θεοκρατία

Ancient Greek

Etymology

From θεο- (theo-, “god, deity”) +‎ -κρατία (-kratía, “power, rule”) from θεός and κρᾰτέω.

Coined in the 1st century CE by Josephus (Against Apion 2.17) to denote the idealistic political system of a Jewish state ordained by Moses, as contrasted with democracy, oligarchy and monarchy.

Pronunciation

(1^st CE Egyptian) IPA^(key): /tʰe.o.kraˈti.a/
(4^th CE Koine) IPA^(key): /θe.o.kraˈti.a/
(10^th CE Byzantine) IPA^(key): /θe.o.kraˈti.a/
(15^th CE Constantinopolitan) IPA^(key): /θe.o.kraˈti.a/

Noun

θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ • (theokratíā) f (genitive θεοκρατῐ́ᾱς); first declension (Koine)

(politics, religion) theocracy
- 37 CE – 100 CE, Josephus, Against Apion 2.17:
  οἱ μὲν γὰρ μοναρχίαις, οἱ δὲ ταῖς ὀλίγων δυναστείαις, ἄλλοι δὲ τοῖς πλήθεσιν ἐπέτρεψαν τὴν ἐξουσίαν τῶν πολιτευμάτων. ὁ δ’ ἡμέτερος νομοθέτης εἰς μὲν τούτων οὐδοτιοῦν ἀπεῖδεν, ὡς δ’ ἄν τις εἴποι βιασάμενος τὸν λόγον θεοκρατίαν ἀπέδειξε τὸ πολίτευμα θεῷ τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ τὸ κράτος ἀναθείς.
  hoi mèn gàr monarkhíais, hoi dè taîs olígōn dunasteíais, álloi dè toîs plḗthesin epétrepsan tḕn exousían tôn politeumátōn. ho d’ hēméteros nomothétēs eis mèn toútōn oudotioûn apeîden, hōs d’ án tis eípoi biasámenos tòn lógon theokratían apédeixe tò políteuma theôi tḕn arkhḕn kaì tò krátos anatheís.
  1895 translation by William Whiston
  Some legislators have permitted their governments to be under monarchies, others put them under oligarchies, and others under a republican form; but our legislator had no regard to any of these forms, but he ordained our government to be what, by a strained expression, may be termed a Theocracy, by ascribing the authority and the power to God. (@perseus.tuftus.edu)

Inflection

First declension of ἡ θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ; τῆς θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱς (Attic)

Case / #	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ἡ θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ hē theokratíā	τὼ θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ tṑ theokratíā	αἱ θεοκρᾰτῐ́αι hai theokratíai
Genitive	τῆς θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱς tês theokratíās	τοῖν θεοκρᾰτῐ́αιν toîn theokratíain	τῶν θεοκρᾰτῐῶν tôn theokratiôn
Dative	τῇ θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾳ têi theokratíāi	τοῖν θεοκρᾰτῐ́αιν toîn theokratíain	ταῖς θεοκρᾰτῐ́αις taîs theokratíais
Accusative	τὴν θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱν tḕn theokratíān	τὼ θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ tṑ theokratíā	τᾱ̀ς θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱς tā̀s theokratíās
Vocative	θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ theokratíā	θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ theokratíā	θεοκρᾰτῐ́αι theokratíai
Notes:	This table gives Attic inflectional endings. For declension in other dialects, see Appendix:Ancient Greek dialectal declension.

Related terms

θεοκρᾱσῐ́ᾱ f (theokrāsíā, “mingling with god”)
θεόκρῐτος m (theókritos, “judge of gods, epithet for Paris”)
and see θεο- and-κρατία

Descendants

→ Danish: teokrati
→ Dutch: theocratie
→ English: theocracy
→ French: théocratie
→ German: Theokratie
Greek: θεοκρατία (theokratía)
→ Italian: teocrazia
→ Norwegian Bokmål: teokrati
→ Portuguese: teocracia
→ Romanian: teocrație
→ Spanish: teocracia
→ Swedish: teokrati

References

“θεοκρατία”, in Liddell & Scott (1940) A Greek–English Lexicon, Oxford: Clarendon Press
θεοκρατία in Bailly, Anatole (1935) Le Grand Bailly: Dictionnaire grec-français, Paris: Hachette

Greek

Etymology

From Hellenistic Koine Greek θεοκρᾰτῐ́ᾱ (theokratíā). Morphologically from θεο- (“god”) +‎ -κρατία (“holding power, ruling”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /θe.o.kraˈti.a/
Hyphenation: θε‧ο‧κρα‧τί‧α

Noun

θεοκρατία • (theokratía) f (plural θεοκρατίας)

(politics, religion) theocracy
Στην αρχαία Αίγυπτο επικρατούσε θεοκρατία.
Stin archaía Aígypto epikratoúse theokratía.
Theocracy was dominant in Ancient Aegypt.

Declension

	singular	plural
nominative	θεοκρατία (theokratía)	θεοκρατίες (theokratíes)
genitive	θεοκρατίας (theokratías)	θεοκρατιών (theokratión)
accusative	θεοκρατία (theokratía)	θεοκρατίες (theokratíes)
vocative	θεοκρατία (theokratía)	θεοκρατίες (theokratíes)

Related terms

θεοκρατικός (theokratikós, “theocratic”)

see: θεο- and -κρατία