eugenics

Term: eugenics

Origin: Anc Greek

ευ/eu(=well, good, easy)

γόνος/gonos (=offspring) >

literally meaning  “well-born”

Francis Galton (1822-1911)

Coined:

In 1883 by English scientist Francis Galton (1822-1911) on analogy of ethics, mathematics, physics. He also devised the fingerprint identification system, a valuable forensic tool. Galton was from a very wealthy family (his father was a banker and his mother was the sister of Charles Darwin’s mother) and he didn’t need to earn money. Galton was cousin of Charles Darwin and it seems that he was influenced of Darwin’s book The Origin of Species in 1859. In 1869 Galton wrote the book “ Heredity Genius” in which Galton claimed that good considered families, were more likely to produce intelligent and talented offspring which which he later termed "positive" eugenics.

Definition:

Eugenics is the science which deals with all influences that improve the inborn qualities of a race especially by discouraging reproduction by persons having genetic defects or

Sources

• Galton, F. (1869/1892/1962). Hereditary Genius: An Inquiry into its Laws and Consequences. Macmillan/Fontana, London.
• Galton, F. (1883/1907/1973). Inquiries into Human Faculty and its Development. AMS Press, New York.