biologisk

Biologisk is an adjective used in Danish, Norwegian and Swedish to denote relation to biology or to living organisms. It describes things that pertain to the science of biology, the characteristics of living beings, or processes and data derived from biological study. Common usages include biological diversity, biological processes, and biological material. In practical language it can describe organisms, tissues, or experiments that involve living matter, as in biologisk materiale or biologisk forskning.

Etymology: The term stems from the Greek bios (life) and logos (study), entering modern Scandinavian languages via Latin and other European languages such as French biologique and English biological. In everyday usage, it is often contrasted with terms like kemisk (chemical) or mekanisk (mechanical), to indicate a biological rather than chemical or physical context. In some contexts, 'biologisk' may also appear in discussions of medicine, ecology, genetics, and biotechnology.

Notes: 'Biologisk' in these languages does not inherently indicate organic farming or food standards—that role is typically filled by 'organisk' or 'økologisk' depending on the language and country. The word is widely used in scientific writing, education, policy documents, and media to describe living systems, their functions, and their study.