1860, American English, from factional + -ism. Prominent up 1930s-1950s in communist jargon.
Entries linking to factionalism
factional adj.
1640s, from faction (n.1) + -al (1). Shakespeare used factionary (c. 1600).
-ism
word-forming element making nouns implying a practice, system, doctrine, etc., from French -isme or directly from Latin -isma, -ismus (source also of Italian, Spanish -ismo, Dutch, German -ismus), from Greek -ismos, noun ending signifying the practice or teaching of a thing, from the stem of verbs in -izein, a verb-forming element denoting the doing of the noun or adjective to which it is attached. For distinction of use, see -ity. The related Greek suffix -isma(t)- affects some forms.