During his papacy from 1471–1484, Sixtus IV granted many special favors to members of his family, in particular his nephews. This practice of papal favoritism was carried on by his successors, and in 1667 it was the subject of Gregorio Leti's book Il Nepotismo di Roma—titled in the English translation, The History of the Popes' Nephews. Shortly after the book's appearance, nepotism began to be used in English for the showing of special favor or unfair preference to any relative by someone in any position of power, be it ecclesiastical or not. (The nep- spelling is from nepote, a 17th-century variant of Italian nipote, meaning "nephew.")
Example Sentences
Nepotism has hurt the company.
Recent Examples on the WebThe taint of government negligence, corruption, irresponsible spending, and nepotism has weakened our nation and created a serious security threat.Anchorage Daily News, 5 Aug. 2022 Once barriers based on prejudice came down, Jews attained positions of influence and often hired other Jews, recommended Jewish students, and practiced fairly extensive literary nepotism. Joseph Epstein, WSJ, 29 July 2022 Where's Hollywood nepotism when Idris Elba's daughter needs it? Brendan Morrow, The Week, 16 Aug. 2022 The person you were supposed to admire—the president!—was a nepotism hire who could barely string a sentence together. Marisa Kabas, The New Republic, 20 May 2022 Both actors struggled to find a place in Hollywood afterwards because the spectacle rarely translates into currency, or opportunities for nepotism. Richard Newby, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 July 2022 The only problem is that the job comes with whispers of nepotism, pressure from her mother, who is the Dean of Douglass’ Medical School, and a reckoning with an 18 year-old secret. Selome Hailu, Variety, 13 July 2022 Berrios, who also previously headed up the Cook County Democratic Party, fought continuous allegations of nepotism and pay-to-play. Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 28 June 2022 There’s no deep takeaway about why this level of electoral participation was unique for the Trump family and whether governing-by-nepotism should or shouldn’t be a point of concern. Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 July 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
French népotisme, from Italian nepotismo, from nepote nephew, from Latin nepot-, nepos grandson, nephew — more at nephew