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New South Wales - Glossary Term

Mongolism (1915 - 1980s)

From
1915
To
1980s

The terms 'mongol', 'mongolian', 'mongolism' and 'mongoloid' were used to describe people with Down Syndrome, and their facial features. It was one of the words used when describing intellectual and physical disability and one of the categories of 'mental deficiency' and 'feeble-mindedness'. People with this condition were also described as 'imbeciles'.

Publications

Online Resources

Prepared by: Naomi Parry