Oligarchies

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A political system in which power is concentrated in the hands of a small group of individuals or families
2. A governance structure characterized by the dominance of a few elite members over the majority population
3. A form of rule where a limited number of leaders exert significant influence over decision-making and resources

Etymology: The plural "oligarchies" is simply the plural of "oligarchy," so the story lies in the parent word. It is built from two Ancient Greek elements: "olígos," meaning "few," and "arkhḗ," meaning "rule" or "command," the same "arkhḗ" that gives us words such as "monarchy" and "anarchy." Put together, the original sense was a plain description of government by a small group. The word reached English by way of French "oligarchie," which itself came from Late Latin "oligarchia," a path that carried the Greek term through the medieval Latin of scholars and into the vocabulary of political writing.

Synonyms: plutocracies, aristocracies

Antonyms: democracies