Etymograph

English

militarism

Militarism comes from French militaire ‘military, militaristic’, and goes back to Latin mīles ‘soldier’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmīles1‘soldier’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmīlitāris2
  3. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600militaire2‘military’
  4. Frenchc. 1600–presentmilitaire3‘military, militaristic’
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentmilitarisme4
  6. Englishtodaymilitarism4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin militaris
  2. 2 Wiktionary, French militaire
  3. 3 Wiktionary, French militarisme
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English militarism

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmīlesWiktionary, Latin militaris‘soldier’
  2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmīlitārisWiktionary, French militaire
  3. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600militaireWiktionary, French militaire‘military’
  4. Frenchc. 1600–presentmilitaireWiktionary, French militarisme‘military, militaristic’
  5. Frenchc. 1600–presentmilitarismeWiktionary, English militarism
  6. EnglishtodaymilitarismWiktionary, English militarism

Every English word from Latin mīles

Today it means

noun An ideology which claims that the military is the foundation of a society's security, and thereby its most important aspect.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “militarism”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin militaris, French militaire, French militarisme. 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 / Latin mīles / militarism

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