occidental

[ ok-si-den-tl ]

adjective

1. (usually initial capital letter) of, relating to, or characteristic of the Occident or its natives and inhabitants.
2. western.

noun

1. (usually initial capital letter) a native or inhabitant of the Occident.

occidental

/ ˌɒksɪˈdɛntəl /

adjective

1. a literary or formal word for western Compare oriental

Other Words From

• occi·den·tali·ty noun
• occi·dental·ly adverb
• nonoc·ci·dental adjective
• nonoc·ci·dental·ly adverb
• pseudo·occi·dental adjective
• unoc·ci·dental adjective
• unoc·ci·dental·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of occidental¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin occidentālis western, equivalent to occident- Occident ( def ) + -ālis -al ¹

Example Sentences

As the all-Asian chorus line, bewigged to resemble standard Broadway hoofers, strut their stuff, we realise just how offensive it is when, as more often happens, occidental actors play oriental roles.

From The Guardian

So is the “syndrome” all in the prejudiced occidental mind?

From The Guardian

“They were my first introduction to occidental culture,” Chinese-born physicist Tsung Dao Lee recalled.

From Washington Post

The idea of “Japanese” alludes, perhaps, to “otherness,” to an enduring occidental fascination with the obliqueness of the Far East, of words that look like pictures and ancient ceremonies with complex rules.

From New York Times

But long after Texaco is gone, the vision she’s granted him will endure: In the centre, an occidental urban logic, all lined up, ordered, strong like the French language.

From The Guardian