subculture

[suhb-kuhl-cher, suhb-kuhl-cher]

verb (used with object)

subcultured, subculturing 

1. Bacteriology.,  to cultivate (a bacterial strain) again on a new medium.

noun

1. Bacteriology.,  a culture derived in this manner.

2. Sociology.

   1. the cultural values and behavioral patterns distinctive of a particular group in a society.

   2. a group having social, economic, ethnic, or other traits distinctive enough to distinguish it from others within the same culture or society.

subculture

noun

1. a subdivision of a national culture or an enclave within it with a distinct integrated network of behaviour, beliefs, and attitudes

2. a culture of microorganisms derived from another culture

verb

1. (tr) to inoculate (bacteria from one culture medium) onto another medium

subculture

1. A group within a society that has its own shared set of customs, attitudes, and values, often accompanied by jargon or slang. A subculture can be organized around a common activity, occupation, age, status, ethnic background, race, religion, or any other unifying social condition, but the term is often used to describe deviant groups, such as thieves and drug users. (See counterculture.)

Other Word Forms

• subcultural adjective
• subculturally adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of subculture¹

First recorded in 1895–1900; sub- + culture

Example Sentences

It’s a subculture that might not be as interesting as a lot of journalists believe.

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Critics and digital subcultures embraced the niche volume like a manifesto — and a marker of Seu’s arrival as a public intellectual whose archiving was itself a form of activism.

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In his 2004 book, “Who Are We? The Challenge to America’s National Identity,” Huntington described this as a unifying outlook that most Americans traditionally had shared, “whatever their subcultures.”

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This enthusiasm to connect with like-minded film and music freaks online has bred a new dark subculture that simply won’t die.

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Nearly all the performers hailed from the world of worship music; there was nary a nod to what might resonate with people outside white evangelical subculture.

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