philanthropy

philanthropy
/fi lan"threuh pee/, n., pl. philanthropies.
1. altruistic concern for human welfare and advancement, usually manifested by donations of money, property, or work to needy persons, by endowment of institutions of learning and hospitals, and by generosity to other socially useful purposes.
2. the activity of donating to such persons or purposes in this way: to devote one's later years to philanthropy.
3. a particular act, form, or instance of this activity: The art museum was their favorite philanthropy.
4. a philanthropic organization.
[1600-10; earlier philanthropia < LL < Gk philanthropía love for mankind. See PHIL-, ANTHROPO-, -Y3]

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Voluntary, organized efforts intended for socially useful purposes.

Philanthropic groups existed in the ancient civilizations of the Middle East, Greece, and Rome: an endowment supported Plato's Academy (с 387 BC) for some 900 years; the Islamic waqf (religious endowment) dates to the 7th century AD; and the medieval Christian church administered trusts for benevolent purposes. Merchants in 17th-and 18th-century western Europe founded organizations for worthy causes. Starting in the late 19th century, large personal fortunes led to the creation of private foundations that bequeathed gifts totaling millions and then billions in support of the arts, education, medical research, public policy, social services, environmental causes, and other special interests. See Andrew Carnegie; B'nai B'rith; Bill Gates; George Peabody; Rockefeller Foundation; Straus family.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Philanthropy —    Philanthropy was important in Byzantium (q.v.) both in theory and in practice. In theory, the emperor (q.v.), as God s viceroy on earth, was expected to set an example of Christian philanthropy. To this end, in major cities the state funded… …   Historical dictionary of Byzantium

  • Philanthropy — Phi*lan thro*py, n. [L. philanthropia, Gr. ?: cf. F. philanthropie.] Love to mankind; benevolence toward the whole human family; universal good will; desire and readiness to do good to all men; opposed to misanthropy. Jer. Taylor. [1913 Webster]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • philanthropy — I noun almsgiving, altruism, beneficence, benevolence, benevolentia, benignancy, benignity, bounteousness, bountifulness, bounty, brotherhood, brotherliness, brotherly love, charitableness, charity, considerateness, consideration, devotion to… …   Law dictionary

  • philanthropy — (n.) c.1600, from L.L. philanthropia, from Gk. philanthropia humanity, benevolence, from philanthropos (adj.) loving mankind, useful to man, from phil loving + anthropos mankind (see ANTHROPO (Cf. anthropo )). Originally in English in the Late… …   Etymology dictionary

  • philanthropy — *charity Antonyms: misanthropy …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • philanthropy — [n] humanitarianism alms, almsgiving, altruism, assistance, benefaction, beneficence, charity, contribution, dole, donation, endowment, fund, generosity, gifting, good works, helping hand*, relief; concepts 337,657 …   New thesaurus

  • philanthropy — ► NOUN ▪ the desire to help others, especially through donation of money to good causes. DERIVATIVES philanthropic adjective philanthropically adverb. ORIGIN Greek philanthr pia, from philanthr pos man loving …   English terms dictionary

  • philanthropy — [fə lan′thrə pē] n. [LL philanthropia < Gr philanthrōpia < philein, to love + anthrōpos, man: see ANTHROPO ] 1. a desire to help mankind, esp. as shown by gifts to charitable or humanitarian institutions; benevolence 2. pl. philanthropies a …   English World dictionary

  • Philanthropy — Philanthropist redirects here. For the TV series, see The Philanthropist (TV series). For the academic journal, see The Philanthropist. Not to be confused with Anthropophilia. Philanthropy etymologically means the love of humanity love in the… …   Wikipedia

  • PHILANTHROPY — Introduction At the close of the 18th century the communal system of fund raising for charity with authority vested in the charity overseers (Gabba ei Ẓedakah) – to tax members of the community in order to ensure appropriate giving – was on the… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Philanthropy — (Roget s Thesaurus) < N PARAG:Philanthropy >N GRP: N 1 Sgm: N 1 philanthropy philanthropy humanity humanitarianism universal benevolence Sgm: N 1 endaemonism endaemonism deliciae humani generis Sgm: N 1 cosmopolitanism utilitarianism… …   English dictionary for students

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