Junta

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈdʒʌntə/

Definitions

1. A group of military officers who have taken control of a government by force
2. a political group that seizes governmental power through military force or coup d'état
3. a faction of military leaders or officials that assumes control of state authority by overthrowing legitimate government

Etymology: Spanish speakers used "junta" for centuries to mean simply a gathering, a meeting, or a joining together, and the word still carries that sense in ordinary Spanish. It comes from the feminine form of "junto," which traces back to the Latin "iunctus," the past participle of "iungere," "to join." The English borrowing of the Spanish word is recorded from 1623, so it arrived in English during the early seventeenth century. The leap from "a gathering" to "a ruling council seized by soldiers" happened in the political life of the Spanish-speaking world, where a junta could be any committee formed to govern or to deliberate. Over time the word came to suggest a small self-appointed body taking power, usually after a coup, and that is the sense English speakers now use almost exclusively.

Synonyms: council, committee, assembly

Antonyms: democracy, republic