Macrocosm
/ˈmæk.roʊˌkɑːzəm/noun
The entire universe regarded as a system that corresponds to or mirrors a smaller system, especially the human body or society.
Did you know?In Renaissance magic and Hermetic philosophy, the human being was treated as a microcosm—a living mirror of the macrocosm, or universe.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
μακρός (makrós)
“long, large, or great”
Ancient Greek
Greek
κόσμος (kósmos)
“order, arrangement, ornament; later the ordered universe”
Ancient Greek
Greek
μακρόκοσμος (makrókosmos)
“the great world or universe, contrasted with the microcosm”
Late Latin
Latin
macrocosmus
“the universe as a great world”
16th Century
English
macrocosm
“the universe considered as a unified whole”
Modern English
English
macrocosm
“the large-scale system that contains or reflects a smaller system”