We explain what something intrinsic is, the origin of the term and examples of its use. Also, its meaning in medicine, philosophy and economics.
What is something intrinsic?
With the adjective intrinsic we normally refer to everything that is proper or essential to something, that is, to what is immanent or inseparable from a thing or situation. The use of this word in Spanish comes from the incorporation (as a cultism) of the adverb Latin intrinsecus, which meant "inside" or "inside". His concept The opposite is extrinsic, which is alien or optional, which is not proper to a thing.
Something intrinsic is a substantial part of that which contains it, that is, its nature makes it proper to something. It can be said, for example, that “the presence of water is intrinsic of our planet ”, since it is the only one in the solar system that has this liquid. Or else that "the search for salvation is an intrinsic feature of most religions", that is to say that in almost all the promise of salvation occupies a central place.
Are synonyms of intrinsic the adjectives immanent or inherent, as well as proper, essential, characteristic, essential or inborn.
Other uses of the term "intrinsic"
In more specialized contexts, the term intrinsic can refer to more specific and specific things, as in the following cases:
- In medicine, the intrinsic refers to the tissues that are part of an organ or a specific part of the body. Body, and that therefore belong exclusively to him. For example, the intrinsic muscles of the heart are those that make up the heart muscles.
- In philosophy, there is talk of intrinsic naming to refer to the way of being of an object or entity as regards its nature and not its relationships with other objects or entities.
- In economy, is known as intrinsic value or core value at the market price of a good or an asset, determined by its nature and its components, tangible or intangible. On occasions, this value may differ from the legal value of the asset, as was the case in the past with many currencies, manufactured from metals valuable goods (such as copper), whose nominal value (the value it represents in the economic system, say, one cent of a dollar) was less than its intrinsic value (that is, the cost of the copper from which it is made), which caused that instead of being used as a piece of exchange, they were used as raw material to obtain marketable copper.