peculiar institution

American  

noun

1. Black slavery in the southern U.S. before the Civil War.

---

Etymology

Origin of peculiar institution

An Americanism dating back to 1835–45

Example Sentences

The sport may be our most peculiar institution, and if you don’t agree, please, try explaining our fall Saturday spectacle to anyone outside our borders as I have.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 31, 2023

After the Civil War it would be spoken of in only genteel euphemisms, like "the peculiar institution."

From Salon • Oct. 11, 2021

These “contrabands,” like centuries of enslaved people before them, challenged the pro-slavery federal government to confront the political reality wrought by its peculiar institution.

From New York Times • Nov. 16, 2020

It broke from the union over slavery, and its economy was indelibly shaped by that peculiar institution.

From Washington Post • Jul. 17, 2015

In Martin’s recollection, his father, Donald, had never expressed an opinion about the peculiar institution, although their family was rare in their circle in not owning slaves.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead