Definition of "heterotopia" in English

noun

1. (pathology) Normal tissue (or an organ) present at an abnormal part of the body

2. (ecology) The occurrence of an organism in a number of different habitats

3. (philosophy, literary criticism) A space which is alien to what is normal within the society, variably presenting a utopian vision in physical form or serving to segregate subversive elements from the wider society.

   • Michel Foucault gave the museum and the mental hospital as two different examples of heterotopias.