Borealism
/ˈbɔːr.i.ə.lɪz.əm/noun
A cultural or ideological focus on northern regions, peoples, identities, or environments, often analyzed as a counterpart to Orientalism.
Did you know?Modern scholars use Borealism to examine how the North is romanticized as pure, wild, remote, or spiritually powerful—much as the East was exoticized through Orientalism.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
Βορέας (Boréas)
“The north wind, personified as a god in Greek mythology.”
Classical Latin
Latin
Boreas
“The north wind or the Greek god of the north wind.”
Late Latin
Latin
borealis
“Northern; relating to the north wind or the northern direction.”
17th Century
English
boreal
“Of or relating to the north; later especially associated with northern forests and climates.”
19th Century
English
-ism
“A suffix forming nouns for doctrines, practices, systems, or characteristic cultural tendencies.”
20th–21st Century
English
borealism
“A scholarly term for the cultural construction, representation, or ideology of the North and northern identity.”
Explore more surprising origins