atavism

American  

[at-uh-viz-uhm] / ˈæt əˌvɪz əm /

noun

1. Biology.

   1. the reappearance in an individual of characteristics of some remote ancestor that have been absent in intervening generations.

   2. an individual embodying such a reversion.

2. reversion to an earlier type; throwback.

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atavism British  

/ ˈætəˌvɪzəm, əˈtævɪk /

noun

1. the recurrence in a plant or animal of certain primitive characteristics that were present in an ancestor but have not occurred in intermediate generations

2. reversion to a former or more primitive type

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Other Word Forms

• atavic adjective
• atavist noun

Etymology

Origin of atavism

First recorded in 1825–35; from Latin atav(us) “great-great-great grandfather; remote ancestor, forefather” ( at-, akin to atta familiar name for a grandfather, “grampa” + avus “grandfather, ancestor”) + -ism

Explanation

Atavism is a return to a previous way of doing, saying, or seeing things. It can be casual, like wearing retro clothing and listening to vinyl records, or committed, like living in a straw hut without electricity. It makes sense that atavism comes from a Latin word meaning “forefather,” since it refers to a way of doing things like our ancestors did them. It’s often used negatively, though, to refer to behavior the speaker finds primitive or unacceptable. Atavists are often called "throwbacks." In biology, the term atavism or “evolutionary throwback” is used when animals are born with features that had disappeared, such as legs on a whale.

Example Sentences

Millet plays with the title and with the idea of atavism, in which an ancient trait asserts itself by skipping forward a few generations to suddenly appear in the gene pool.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2025

His atavism came with the weekend’s most polish.

From Slate • May 30, 2023

Enright understands adulthood as a kind of aberration that befalls families: siblings must grow up, but their maturity is oddly irrelevant to the atavism of the family unit.

From The New Yorker • May 18, 2015

We conclude that Ballard is quite unstimulated by human interaction – unless it takes the form of something inherently weird, like mob atavism or mass hysteria.

From The Guardian • Jul. 13, 2012

As if it came from an atavism deeper than fear, I used to add “brother” silently to boys’ names.

From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston

Related Words

• backsliding
• relapse