The practice or belief in the theory that people or things originated in the place where they are currently found, rather than having migrated there.
From autochthon plus the suffix -ism, creating an abstract noun representing a theory or practice. The -ism suffix transforms the concept into a belief system or philosophical position.
Autochthonism was a real political ideology in ancient Greece—claiming your people were born from the earth itself gave you superior status. Modern scholars have debunked these origin myths, but the word lives on in anthropology to describe any belief in local origins rather than migration.
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