Ostracismus

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The practice of excluding or banishing an individual from a community, often through a formal vote or consensus
2. A historical method used in ancient Greece to prevent the concentration of power by allowing citizens to vote for the exile of a perceived threat
3. A form of social ostracism that reflects collective disapproval or fear of certain individuals who are deemed dangerous or undesirable

Etymology: In ancient Athens, "ostrakon" meant a broken piece of pottery, and it gave its name to a political procedure. Once a year, citizens could scratch the name of a man they wanted removed onto a potsherd. If enough votes were cast against one person, he was exiled for ten years. The exile did not strip him of property or citizenship, and it was not a punishment for a crime. It was a way to remove a powerful figure seen as a threat to the city before he could become a tyrant. The Latin "ostracismus" comes from the Greek "ostrakismos" and kept the sense of that formal vote. The social meaning, shunning someone out of collective distrust or fear, is a later extension of that original legal act. English took the Latin word and later formed the verb "ostracize" from it.