Blavatsky

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A 19th-century Russian occultist and author known for founding the Theosophical Society
2. She is recognized for her teachings on spiritual enlightenment and the cosmos
3. Notable for her influential writings that merged Eastern and Western philosophies

Etymology: Helena Blavatsky was a Russian-born writer who co-founded the Theosophical Society in New York in 1875, and her surname is now used as an adjective and noun for her, and occasionally for her followers' ideas. "Blavatsky" is simply a proper name: she was born Helena Petrovna von Hahn in 1831 in Yekaterinoslav (now Dnipro, Ukraine), and she took the surname Blavatsky from her first husband, Nikifor Blavatsky, a Russian general, though the marriage lasted only months before she left him. No etymology of the surname as a common word exists in the way that "sandwich" or "boycott" does. Her name entered wider use through her books, above all "Isis Unveiled" (1877) and "The Secret Doctrine" (1888), which drew on Hindu, Buddhist, Egyptian, Kabbalistic and other traditions and presented them as a shared ancient wisdom. Her Russian surname itself derives from the Russian word for a family or clan name, but the English usage is purely a reference to her as a person. The name stands for a specific historical figure and her movement, not for a general concept.

Synonyms: Helena Blavatsky