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Why does Semitic refer to several groups of people, including Babylonians, Assyrians, Arabs and Jews, whereas anti-Semitic only refers to Jews?

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Because words mean what people use them to mean, not what some people think they ought to mean. (Not putting it in as an answer, because in a way it's not very helpful: but in a sense it is the whole of the answer to any question of the form "Why does/doesn't X mean Y"). – Colin Fine Apr 11 '11 at 11:08
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@Colin: +100! excellent! where is the linguistics.SE site? But then sometimes, there -is- an explanatory reason. – Mitch Apr 11 '11 at 13:30
@Mitch: yes indeed, the historical explanation for how a word has come to have a particular meaning is often fascinating. But it is a field rife with unverified assumptions, ingenious invention masquerading as certainty, and lots of "we just don't know". – Colin Fine Apr 11 '11 at 14:59

3 Answers

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NOAD defines anti-Semitism thus:

anti-Semitism
hostility or prejudice against Jews

And here is the relevant entry from the Online Etymology Dictionary:

anti-Semitism
also antisemitism, 1881, from Ger. Antisemitismus, first used by Wilhelm Marr (1819–1904) German radical, nationalist and race-agitator, who founded the Antisemiten-Liga in 1879; see anti- + Semite. Not etymologically restricted to anti-Jewish theories, actions, or policies, but almost always used in this sense. Those who object to the inaccuracy of the term might try H. Adler's Judaeophobia (1882). Anti-Semitic (also antisemitic) and anti-Semite (also antisemite) also are from 1881, like anti-Semitism they appear first in English in an article in the "Athenaeum" of Sept. 31, in reference to German literature.

Anti-Semitic is Jewish-specific for historical reasons, as revealed by the Etymology Dictionary. In its most literal sense, anti-Semitic should relate to all Semitic cultures, but this is not the case—a great example of how history, politics, etc, shape English usage.

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It's like how "holocaust" could refer to any massacre (and did at one time), but nowadays almost always refers to the persecution of Jews during WWII. – Kosmonaut Apr 11 '11 at 3:31
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@Kosmonaut: I'd say only the capital-H Holocaust refers the WWII. – Mr. Shiny and New 安宇 Apr 11 '11 at 3:45
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@Mr. Shiny and New: It's all the same when you're speaking. (I'd also argue that, in writing, while the capital-H version formally refers to WWII, any mention of "holocaust", capital or not, recalls that specific one.) – Kosmonaut Apr 11 '11 at 13:40
@Kosmonaut: Thanks for that example! I was trying to come up with one myself while composing the answer. Apartheid came to mind, but I wasn't too sure if it was strong enough. Haha, and I love "It's all the same when you're speaking"!!! – Jimi Oke Apr 12 '11 at 22:52
up vote 2 down vote

Because when the word was coined and came into use, Jews were the only Semitic people encountered in modern European (and American) society.

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Could Gypsies be considered semitic? – oosterwal Apr 11 '11 at 18:11
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@oosterwal - no Romani is indo-european but not semitic. – mgb Apr 11 '11 at 21:34
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Strictly speaking it doesn't — anti-Semitic means anti-Arab more than it means anti-Ashkenazi.

Semitic is a language group; Hebrew is just one of the Semitic languages.

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Probably so, none or very few attested uses of anti-semitic refer exclusively to the ashkenazim. – Peter Olson Apr 11 '11 at 2:21
I meant ashkenazi to distinguish modern european 'jewish/isreali' from ancient Hebrew – mgb Apr 11 '11 at 2:27
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That's an odd use of the word Ashkenazi. – Peter Olson Jun 9 '11 at 5:34

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