Anglophiliac

Part of speech: noun, adjective

Definitions

1. Someone who greatly admires England, its people, language and traditions, often showing a strong preference for things English
2. A person with a deep fondness for English ways of life, manners, literature and customs over those of other nations
3. One who is devoted to or enamoured of anything English, especially its culture, history and social habits

Etymology: Anglophiliac is a blend of "Anglo-" and "-philiac," the latter from the Greek "philia," meaning love or affection, as in "bibliophile." The "Anglo-" element comes from Latin "Anglus," the name for the Angles, one of the Germanic tribes that settled Britain. Words built on "-philiac" tend to borrow the pattern of "-phile" and "-phobe" but add the medical sense of a compulsion, and that is part of what makes this one sound slightly comic. The formation is a deliberate parallel with "Francophile," and "Anglophile" appeared in English first, around the turn of the twentieth century, as a label for admirers of England and things English. "Anglophiliac" followed as a playful variant, with "-iac" lending the flavour of an addiction or a weakness, the way "maniac" and "hypochondriac" do.

Synonyms: anglophile

Antonyms: anglophobe