Do “asymmetric” and “dissymmetric” have different meaning?

Question

I get that usually a- (or un-) and di- prefixes mean different things, e.g. uninterested and disinterested. However, both asymmetric and dissymmetric refer to the lack of symmetry (which the NOAD indicates: “lacking symmetry”). Does that make them freely interchangeable?

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Bonus points: why the hell does dissymetry have two s?

Answer 1

You are wrong in the question itself.

I get that usually a- (or un-) and di- prefixes mean different things, e.g. uninterested and *dis*interested.

So where did the s magically come up from? Well, nowhere - it was there from the beginning, you just messed up the prefix. It's not a di prefix, it's a dis prefix.

Which already answers your question why there are two s in dissymmetry. Well, because there's the prefix + the base:

dis + symmetry

The same as:

a + symmetry

From what I've heard people use the words and also read a few books which contained them, I can say they are synonymous, but dissymmetry is less "famous."

Answer 2

This is a complex question, that requires an in depth response beyond time available. However, see:

this article (resonance/August2012/p768-778)

for a start in the right direction, historically and linguistically. (Among other things, Louis Pasteur is quoted and explained.)

In a qualitative nutshell, dissymmetric is not equivalent to asymmetric, since dissymmetric objects may possess some symmetry elements, while asymmetric objects lack all elements.