Alienist

Alienist is an archaic term for a psychiatrist or psychologist. From the French 'aliéniste', 'aliéné' meaning insane, or from Latin 'alienatus', past participle of 'alienare', meaning 'to estrange'. It was commonly used between in the period between 1860 and 1940 to refer to attending psychiatrists in a state facility. Although currently not often used, the term "alienist" is still used in psychiatric hospitals to describe those mental health professionals who evaluate defendants to determine their competency to stand trial.