Etymology
Perhaps via French [Term?] (compare French mérèse (growth by cell division), mérisme (merismus, merism)), ultimately from Ancient Greek μερίζω (merízō), from μέρος (méros, “part”) + -ίζω (-ízō, “-ize”), from Proto-Hellenic *(h)méros. First English attestation in 1923 on page 44 of Glass-making in England by Harry J. Powell.