[1700–10; heresy + -o- + -log(y) + -ist]This word is first recorded in the period 1700–10. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: camera, cozy, envelope, marquise, sliding scale-o- is the typical ending of the first element of compounds of Greek origin (as -i- is, in compounds of Latin origin), used regularly in forming new compounds with elementsof Greek origin and often used in English as a connective irrespective of etymology(Franco-Italian; geography; seriocomic; speedometer); -ist is a suffix of nouns, often corresponding to verbs ending in -ize or nouns ending in -ism, that denote a person who practices or is concerned with something, or holds certainprinciples, doctrines, etc. Other words that use the affix -ist include: Thomist, dramatist, novelist, realist, socialist