Where does “oligarchy” come from?
Oligarchy comes from French oligarchie, from Latin oligarchia, from Ancient Greek ἀρχή (arkhḗ, "rule") combined with a root meaning "few."
oligarchy (English): A government run by only a few, often the...
Definitions
- A government run by only a few, often the...
Ancestry of “oligarchy”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | oligarchie | oligarchy |
| 2 | Late Latin | oligarchia | oligarchy |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | ὀλιγαρχία | rule of few, oligarchy; vocative singular of... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ὀλιγάρχης | oligarch |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | -άρχης | -arch |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -ής | adjective suffix |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ēs | Primarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -ess | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |