autotheism
|au-to-the-ism|
🇺🇸
/ˌɔːtoʊˈθiːɪzəm/
🇬🇧
/ˌɔːtəʊˈθiːɪzəm/
self as God
Etymology
'autotheism' originates from Greek, specifically the elements 'autos' and 'theos' combined with the suffix '-ism', where 'autos' meant 'self' and 'theos' meant 'god'.
'autotheism' was formed in modern English by combining Greek roots 'autos' and 'theos' with the noun-forming suffix '-ism'; related coinages (e.g., 'autotheist', 'autotheistic') appeared in philosophical and theological writings in the 19th–20th centuries and the compound stabilized as 'autotheism'.
Initially, the components signified 'self' + 'god' literally; the combined term has retained that core sense but has been used both as a technical theological term and as a broader descriptive label for self-deification or extreme individualism.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the belief or doctrine that oneself is divine or can become a god; self-deification.
Some contemporary texts discuss autotheism as a form of self-deification in modern spirituality.
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Noun 2
a philosophical or theological position that centers divinity in the self rather than an external deity; sometimes used descriptively for a practice or tendency rather than a formal doctrine.
In some critiques of modern individualism, autotheism is invoked to describe the elevation of the self to ultimate authority.
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Last updated: 2025/11/29 04:23