English
altruize
Altruize comes from French altruisme ‘altruism’, from autrui ‘others’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-1‘beyond, other’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂élyos1‘other, another’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*aljos1‘another’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*aliteros1‘other (of two)’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEalterī1
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*alterui1next step skipped: Old French altre
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400autrui1‘others’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentautrui1‘others’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentaltruisme1‘altruism’
- English1500–presentaltruism1
- Englishtodayaltruize1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English altruize
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-Wiktionary, English altruize‘beyond, other’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂élyosWiktionary, English altruize‘other, another’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*aljosWiktionary, English altruize‘another’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*aliterosWiktionary, English altruize‘other (of two)’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEalterīWiktionary, English altruize
- Vulgar Latinc. 100–700 CE*alteruiWiktionary, English altruizenext step skipped: Old French altre
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400autruiWiktionary, English altruize‘others’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentautruiWiktionary, English altruize‘others’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentaltruismeWiktionary, English altruize‘altruism’
- English1500–presentaltruismWiktionary, English altruize
- EnglishtodayaltruizeWiktionary, English altruize
A compound of altruism + -ize
Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘beyond, other’
…
Vulgar Latin *alterui
Old French autrui ‘others’
French autrui ‘of or to others’
French altruisme
English altruism
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘beyond, other’
as, all, old, adult, el, element, ultimate, elder, ellen, ultra, ou, qualification, alumni, outrage, alter, adolescent, altitude, abolish, alpine, altar, alt, alias, alum, alto, proletariat, retaliate, auld, alimony, alp, ulterior, coalesce, foetal, aad, eld, exalt, althea, altimeter, withal, 57 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos ‘other, another’
else, alienation, alienate, parallax, inalienable, 29 more
through Proto-Italic *aljos ‘another’
through Proto-Italic *aliteros ‘other (of two)’
Today it means
verb To make altruistic.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “altruize”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- / altruize