Eurocentricity

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The habit of viewing European civilization, values, or perspectives as the standard by which other cultures are measured or judged
2. A bias toward centering European achievements, ideas, and worldviews as the primary or most important frame of reference for understanding humanity
3. The practice of interpreting history, society, and knowledge primarily through a European lens, often marginalizing non-European contributions and viewpoints

Etymology: The name at the heart of this word belongs to a princess. In Greek myth, Europa was a Phoenician woman carried off to Crete by Zeus disguised as a bull, and Greek writers later applied her name to the lands north and west of the Aegean. Its ultimate origin is uncertain; some scholars suggest a Semitic root meaning "west" or "sunset," but this is not settled. The second element comes from Greek "kentron," originally a sharp point or the pin of a compass, which gave English "centre" through Latin "centrum." Joined to "Euro-," it produced "Eurocentric," an adjective describing a view that treats Europe as the middle of the world. The suffix "-ity" arrived through Old French from Latin "-itas," and attached to an adjective it turns a quality into a noun. This term therefore names the condition of being Eurocentric, built from a mythological name, a geometric point, and a Latin suffix.

Synonyms: eurocentrism