Arborolatry

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ɑɹbɚˈɑlətɹi/

Definitions

1. a form of religious devotion centered on the sacred or reverential treatment of trees as spiritual objects
2. the ritualistic reverence for trees or their worship as expressions of divine or spiritual significance
3. The practice of honoring trees with religious or spiritual admiration, treating them as sacred entities

Etymology: "Arborolatry" is a compound built from two pieces: the Latin "arbor," meaning tree, and the Greek-derived suffix "-latry," from "latreia," the word for worship or service. The suffix appears in a family of English words for devotion, such as "idolatry" (worship of images) and "bibliolatry" (excessive reverence for the Bible), so the pattern is easy to recognize once you see it. Because the first element is Latin and the second Greek, the word is a hybrid, a mixing of languages that scholars sometimes frown on but that English coiners have never shied away from. Its meaning is literal: worship directed at trees, with no metaphorical stretch involved. The formation shows how English builders of scientific and scholarly vocabulary often reached for classical parts to name specific ideas precisely.

Synonyms: tree worship