liberalism

Etymology

Circa 1819, from French libéralisme circa 1818. Equivalent to liberal + -ism.

noun

1. The quality of being liberal.
2. (politics) Any political movement founded on the autonomy and personal freedom of the individual, progress and reform, and government by law with the consent of the governed.
   Whether some distant cousin really belongs to the extended family of liberalisms is a matter of healthy dispute. January 25, 2009, Timothy Garton Ash, “A Liberal Translation”, in New York Times
3. (economics) An economic ideology in favour of laissez faire and the free market (related to economic liberalism).
   But liberalism has no obvious answers to the biggest problems we face: ecological collapse and technological disruption. 2018, Yuval Noah Harari, 21 Lessons for the 21st Century