Ruritanian

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Definitions

1. Relating to the imaginary Central European kingdom of Ruritania ; a person born in or living in that fictional land
2. Describing things connected with the made-up realm of Ruritania ; someone who comes from or belongs to that invented country
3. Of or belonging to the fictional kingdom of Ruritania ; a citizen or resident of that imaginary European state

Etymology: Anthony Hope, the English novelist, invented Ruritania for "The Prisoner of Zenda," and the made-up kingdom became so familiar that its name turned into an adjective. Hope set the story in a small, romantic Central European country that never existed on any map, and readers were so taken with its castles, intrigues and royal doubles that the place seemed to need a name for its people and things. "Ruritanian" is built in the plainest way: the fictional country's name with the suffix "-an," the same ending that appears in words like "Italian" or "American." The result describes anything that resembles Hope's invented realm, usually in a light, slightly mocking sense. A Ruritanian court is one full of pageantry and melodrama, and the word is often used of comic-opera politics or lavish, old-fashioned ceremony.