'anomie' originates from French, specifically the word 'anomie', ultimately from Greek 'anomia', where 'a-' meant 'not' and 'nomos' meant 'law'.

'anomie' changed from Greek word 'anomia' into French 'anomie' and was adopted into modern English as 'anomie' (with its plural 'anomies').

Initially, it meant 'lawlessness' in a literal sense, but over time it evolved into the sociological sense of 'a breakdown or absence of social norms' now commonly used.