BharatNotes Stigma
noun (countable and uncountable); plural: stigmas or stigmataUsage in a UPSC answer
The Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, specifically mandates anti-stigma campaigns and community-based mental health services, recognising that the social stigma surrounding mental illness in India constitutes a structural barrier that prevents millions from seeking care and perpetuates discrimination in employment and family life.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word Family
stigmatise/stigmatize (verb), stigmatised (adjective), stigmatisation (noun), stigmatic (adjective), stigma-free (adjective phrase)
Root
Greek stigma = a mark, brand (stizein = to prick, tattoo); originally a physical brand burned onto enslaved persons or criminals
Etymology
Directly from Greek stigma (a mark made by a pointed instrument, a brand), from stizein (to tattoo, prick). In ancient Greece and Rome, stigmata were physical brands on enslaved people or criminals. The word passed into Latin and then English (16th century) retaining the mark/brand sense; the metaphorical sense — a mark of social disgrace attached to identity — was developed and systematised by Goffman (1963) and is now the dominant sociological usage.
Memory Hook
STIGMA comes from the Greek for a brand burned onto a slave. Even today, stigma works like a social brand — an invisible mark seared onto a person's identity that others read as 'lesser'. Once branded, the stigma is hard to remove.
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