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Jump to navigationJump to searchCreated page with 'File:lighterstill.jpg *Date: [http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/17th_Century 1655] ==Definitions== *1 : the authority or rule of an ''autocrat'' (one who has unlimited [[pow...'
[[File:lighterstill.jpg]]
*Date: [http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/17th_Century 1655]
==Definitions==
*1 : the [[authority]] or rule of an ''autocrat'' (one who has unlimited [[power]] & undisputed [[influence]])
*2 : [[government]] in which one [[person]] possesses unlimited [[power]]
*3 : a [[community]] or state governed by autocracy
==Description==
The term ''autocrat'' is derived from the [[word]] autokratōr (αὐτοκράτωρ, lit. "self-ruler", or "one who rules by himself"). Compare with oligarchy ("rule by the few") and democracy ("rule by the people").
Today the term autocrat is usually [[understood]] as being synonymous with despot, tyrant and dictator, although each of these terms [[originally]] had a separate and distinct [[meaning]].
'''Autocracy''' is not synonymous with [[totalitarianism]], as the latter concept was forged in 1923 to distinguish modern regimes from [[traditional]] dictatorships. Nor is it synonymous with military dictatorship, as these often take the form of "[[collective]] presidencies" such as the South American juntas. However, an autocracy may be totalitarian or be a military dictatorship.
The term [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy monarchy] also differs in that it emphasizes the hereditary characteristic, though some Slavic monarchs, specifically [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czar Russian Emperors] traditionally included the title "autocrat" as part of their official styles. This usage originated in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire Byzantine Empire], where the term autokratōr was [[traditional]]ly employed in [[Greek]] to [[translate]] the [[Latin]] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperator imperator], and was used along with [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basileus Basileus] to mean "emperor". This use remains current in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_Greek modern Greek language], where the term is used for any emperor (e.g. the Emperor of Japan), regardless of the [[actual]] [[power]] of the monarch. Historically, many monarchs ruled autocratically but eventually their power was diminished and dissolved with the introduction of [[constitution]]s giving the people the power to make [[decisions]] for themselves through elected bodies of [[government]].
The autocrat needs some kind of power [[structure]] to rule. Very few rulers were in the position to rule with only their [[personal]] [[charisma]] and [[skills]], however great these may be, without the help of others. Most historical autocrats depended on their nobles, the military, the [[priest]]hood or others, who could turn against the ruler and depose or murder them. As such, it can be difficult to draw a clear line between historical autocracies and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oligarchy oligarchies].
[[Category: Political Science]]
*Date: [http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/17th_Century 1655]
==Definitions==
*1 : the [[authority]] or rule of an ''autocrat'' (one who has unlimited [[power]] & undisputed [[influence]])
*2 : [[government]] in which one [[person]] possesses unlimited [[power]]
*3 : a [[community]] or state governed by autocracy
==Description==
The term ''autocrat'' is derived from the [[word]] autokratōr (αὐτοκράτωρ, lit. "self-ruler", or "one who rules by himself"). Compare with oligarchy ("rule by the few") and democracy ("rule by the people").
Today the term autocrat is usually [[understood]] as being synonymous with despot, tyrant and dictator, although each of these terms [[originally]] had a separate and distinct [[meaning]].
'''Autocracy''' is not synonymous with [[totalitarianism]], as the latter concept was forged in 1923 to distinguish modern regimes from [[traditional]] dictatorships. Nor is it synonymous with military dictatorship, as these often take the form of "[[collective]] presidencies" such as the South American juntas. However, an autocracy may be totalitarian or be a military dictatorship.
The term [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy monarchy] also differs in that it emphasizes the hereditary characteristic, though some Slavic monarchs, specifically [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czar Russian Emperors] traditionally included the title "autocrat" as part of their official styles. This usage originated in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire Byzantine Empire], where the term autokratōr was [[traditional]]ly employed in [[Greek]] to [[translate]] the [[Latin]] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperator imperator], and was used along with [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basileus Basileus] to mean "emperor". This use remains current in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_Greek modern Greek language], where the term is used for any emperor (e.g. the Emperor of Japan), regardless of the [[actual]] [[power]] of the monarch. Historically, many monarchs ruled autocratically but eventually their power was diminished and dissolved with the introduction of [[constitution]]s giving the people the power to make [[decisions]] for themselves through elected bodies of [[government]].
The autocrat needs some kind of power [[structure]] to rule. Very few rulers were in the position to rule with only their [[personal]] [[charisma]] and [[skills]], however great these may be, without the help of others. Most historical autocrats depended on their nobles, the military, the [[priest]]hood or others, who could turn against the ruler and depose or murder them. As such, it can be difficult to draw a clear line between historical autocracies and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oligarchy oligarchies].
[[Category: Political Science]]
