autism (English)

Where does "autism" come from?

The word 'autism' was coined by Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Bleuler in 1911 by drawing upon the Ancient Greek word 'autós', meaning 'self'. Derived from the suffix '-ism', the term originally described a psychological state of self-centeredness before evolving into our modern understanding of the neurological condition. Its roots trace back to even older Proto-Indo-European concepts of returning or moving away, embedded within the Greek term for 'self'.

Full etymology tree

• autism (English), 'A pervasive neurological condition that is observable in early childhood and persists throughout the lifespan, characterised by atypical communication patterns (e.g., differences in body language or eye contact), delayed language development, and sensory processing sensitivities.'
  • borrowed Autismus (German), 'autism'
    • compound αὐτός (autós) (Ancient Greek), 'self'
      • compound αὖ (aû) (Ancient Greek), 'Again, anew, afresh, in turn; often after ordinal numerals; in a question, expressing impatience'
        • inherited *h₂ew (Proto-Indo-European), 'away from, off'
      • compound τόν (tón) (Ancient Greek), 'masculine accusative singular of ὁ (ho, “the”) and ὀ (o, Cretan and Lesbian form of ὁ (ho, “the”))'
      • inherited *h₂ew (Proto-Indo-European), 'away from, off'
      • inherited *to- (Proto-Indo-European)
    • suffix -ισμός (-ismós) (Ancient Greek), 'Forms abstract nouns describing a condition or doctrine.'

Direct ancestors

• Autismus (German)
• αὐτός (Ancient Greek)

Updated June 2026

Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris