Illiberalism

 ( Liberalism ) 

Historically, the adjective illiberal has been mostly applied to personal attitudes, behaviors and practices “unworthy of a free man”, such as lack of generosity, lack of sophisticated culture, intolerance, narrow-mindedness, meanness.Rosenblatt, Helena (2021). The history of illiberalism. In Routledge handbook of illiberalism (pp. 16-32). Routledge. Lord Chesterfield, for example, wrote that “Whenever you write Latin, remember that every word or phrase which you make use of, but cannot find in Julius Caesar, Cicero, Livy, Horace, Virgil; and Ovid, is bad, illiberal Latin”Chesterfield, L. (2008). Lord Chesterfield's letters. Oxford University Press.

Contemporary usage indicates an opposition to liberalism or liberal democracy. Fritz Stern, a historian of Germany, understood by illiberalism anti-democratic mentality and anti-democratic practices such as suffrage restrictions.Stern, Fritz. 1972. The Failure of Illiberalism: Essays on the Political Culture of Modern Germany. New York: Knopf.

Marlene Laruelle defines illiberalism as a backlash against today’s liberalism. According to her, illiberalism is “majoritarian, nation-centric or sovereigntist, favouring traditional hierarchies and cultural homogeneity”, calling for “a shift from politics to culture and is post-post-modern in its claims of rootedness in an age of globalization”.Laruelle, Marlene. "Illiberalism: A conceptual introduction." East European Politics 38.2 (2022): 303-327.

Zsolt Enyedi defines illiberalism as opposition to the main principles of liberal democracy: limited government, open society and state neutrality. He distinguishes between authoritarian, populist, traditionalist, religious, paternalist, libertarian, nativist-nationalist, materialist and left-wing varieties.Enyedi, Zsolt (2024). Concept and Varieties of Illiberalism. Politics and Governance /ref>

• Illiberal democracy