cainophobia means the fear of newness and/or of things that are new. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
Why “cainophobia” is a great word
CAINOPHOBIA — [Noun] An irrational, often pathological fear of novelty, new things, or newness itself. From the Ancient Greek καινός (kainós, "new") and -phobia (from φόβος, phóbos, "fear"). Unlike neophobia, a broader aversion to the new, or misoneism, a hatred of change, cainophobia is the specific, paralyzing dread of the pristine. It is the cold sweat upon receiving an unfamiliar brand of butter, the vertigo before a freshly painted white door, and the conviction that the unopened letter contains only ruin—the mind's rebellion against the blank potential of the untouched page.
Etymology
From the Ancient Greek roots καινός (kainós, “new”) or καινότης (kainótēs, “newness”) + -phobia.
noun
- The fear of newness and/or of things that are new.“It is not by means of a social xenophobia and cainophobia that we shall succeed in junking our sawdust goals but only by a sincere and passionate openness to new experience.”