BharatNotes Casteism
noun (uncountable)Usage in a UPSC answer
The Supreme Court's ruling in Indra Sawhney v. Union of India (1992) drew a constitutional boundary between remedying the effects of historical casteism and perpetuating caste-based preference as an end in itself.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word Family
caste (noun), casteist (adjective/noun), casteist (noun, one who practises casteism), casteization (noun)
Root
Portuguese casta = race, lineage, breed + -ism = doctrine, practice; entered English via Portuguese colonial usage in India
Etymology
The base word 'caste' derives from Portuguese casta (lineage, breed), itself from Latin castus (pure, chaste). Portuguese colonists applied casta to describe the Hindu varna-jati system in the 16th century. 'Casteism' as a critical sociological term was developed primarily in 20th-century Indian social science, notably by B.R. Ambedkar, who distinguished between caste as a social institution and casteism as its ideological justification.
Memory Hook
Casteism = caste + -ism (a belief system). Just as 'racism' is the ideology of racial superiority, 'casteism' is the ideology of caste superiority. Both words follow the same deadly pattern: a social category turned into a justification for hierarchy.
How This Word Works in UPSC Writing
Prejudice, discrimination or partiality on the basis of caste. It should be distinguished from caste as a social institution: caste describes a structure, while casteism names the attitude and practice that convert that structure into disadvantage. GS1 and GS2 answers are stronger when they separate the persistence of caste identity from the practice of casteism, since the two do not decline together.
Don’t Confuse It With
Casteism is discrimination or bias based on caste. Caste is the social institution itself. Untouchability is a specific and constitutionally abolished practice of exclusion directed at particular groups. Communalism operates on religious rather than caste identity.
Hindi Meaning
जातिवाद (jātivād); जाति (jāti) alone is caste as an institution.
Common Questions
- What is casteism?
- Prejudice, discrimination or favouritism directed at people on the basis of their caste.
- Is casteism the same as caste?
- No. Caste is a social institution of hereditary groups. Casteism is the discriminatory attitude and practice built on it.
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