atavism
noun
at·a·vism
ˈa-tə-ˌvi-zəm
1
a
: recurrence in an organism of a trait or character typical of an ancestral form and usually due to genetic recombination
b
: recurrence of or reversion to a past style, manner, outlook, approach, or activity
architectural atavism
2
: an individual or character that manifests atavism : throwback
He was a magnificent atavism, a man so purely primitive that he was of the type that came into the world before the development of the moral nature.—Jack London
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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