ideology

Meaning

Noun

• Doctrine, philosophy, body of beliefs or principles belonging to an individual or group.
• The study of the origin and nature of ideas.

Origin

• Borrowed from French idéologie, from (equivalent to English ). Coined 1796 by Antoine Destutt de Tracy. Modern sense of “doctrine” attributed to use of related idéologue by Napoleon Bonaparte as a term of abuse towards political opponents in early 1800s.