What does ethnically mean?
'Ethnically' is an adverb used to describe things in terms of ethnicity — the shared cultural heritage, ancestry, language, or traditions that identify a population group. It most often appears before adjectives such as 'diverse', 'homogeneous', 'mixed', or 'distinct', as in 'an ethnically diverse city' or 'two ethnically related communities'. In this way it allows speakers and writers to characterise the makeup of places, institutions, and populations with precision, distinguishing cultural lineage from nationality, religion, or race. The word carries no inherent positive or negative connotation; its tone depends entirely on context, appearing equally in census data, academic sociology, journalism, and everyday conversation about neighbourhoods and immigration. Derived from the adjective 'ethnic', which traces back through Latin ethnicus to Greek ethnikos ('of a nation or people'), it entered common English usage in the nineteenth century and became especially frequent during the twentieth as societies increasingly discussed multiculturalism and demographic change.
adverbIn a way that relates to a person's ethnic origin or the cultural characteristics of a population group. Also used to mean 'in terms of ethnicity', as when describing how a group is composed or classified.
- With reference to the ethnic composition, origin, or character of a person or group: 'an ethnically mixed community'.
- With reference to classification or distinction on grounds of ethnicity rather than other criteria.
"The neighbourhood remains ethnically diverse, with families from dozens of countries living side by side."
"London is one of the most ethnically diverse cities in Europe."
"The two groups speak mutually intelligible languages but remain ethnically distinct."
The word 'ethnic' once simply meant 'heathen' — in ancient Greek, ethnikos described non-Jews and non-Christians before it came to mean anything about peoples and cultures.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of ethnically
'Ethnically' is formed from the adjective 'ethnic' plus the adverbial suffix '-ly'. 'Ethnic' derives from Latin ethnicus, itself borrowed from Greek ethnikos, meaning 'national' or 'gentile', from ethnos, meaning 'nation, people, or culture'. In early English use, 'ethnic' carried religious overtones, referring to non-Christian peoples, before broadening in the nineteenth century to its modern sense concerning cultural groups. Cognates and relatives include 'ethnicity', 'ethnos', and compounds such as 'ethnocentric'.
Related word forms
How ethnically is actually used
Neutral and descriptive in register, though it frequently appears in discussions of demographics, discrimination, and identity where sensitivity of phrasing matters. It is an adverb only — the adjective is 'ethnic'.
Easily confused with ethnically
'Ethnically' refers to cultural heritage and shared ancestry, while 'racially' refers to physical traits traditionally treated as marking race; the two are related but not interchangeable.
'Ethnically' describes something relating to ethnicity, whereas 'ethnocentrically' means judging other cultures by the standards of one's own.