fin de siecle

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. The end of the century: used attributively of anything that exhibits certain characteristics supposed to mark the closing years of the nineteenth century, regarded as a period of emancipation from the traditional social and moral order.
2. The end of the century: used attributively of anything that exhibits certain characteristics supposed to mark the closing years of the nineteenth century, regarded as a period of emancipation from the traditional social and moral order.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. Lit., end of the century; -- mostly used adjectively in English to signify: belonging to, or characteristic of, the close of the 19th century. At that time the phrase was also intended to imply “modern” or “up-to-date;” .

WordNet 3.0

1. adj. relating to or characteristic of the end of a century (especially the end of the 19th century)