oligarchy

English

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] French oligarchie, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin oligarchia, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Ancient Greek ὀλιγαρχία (oligarkhía), from ὀλίγος (olígos, “few”) + ἀρχή (arkhḗ, “rule”).
Surface analysis: olig- (“few”) +‎ -archy (“rule”, “command”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɒlɪɡɑːki/
• enPR: älʹĭ-gär'kē, ōlʹĭ-gär'kē, IPA^(key): /ˈɑːlɪˌɡɑɹki/, /ˈoʊlɪˌɡɑɹki/

• Audio (UK):

  (file)

Noun

oligarchy (plural oligarchies)

1. A government run by only a few, often the wealthy.
   • 2016 January 17, "Wealthy cabals run America," Al Jazeera America (retrieved 18 January 2016):

     The Itasca Project is just one example of existing oligarchy, and a surprisingly open one at that.

2. Those who make up an oligarchic government.
3. A state ruled by such a government.

Related terms

• oligarch
• oligarchic
• oligarchical

Translations

Government by only a few

• Arabic: أُولِيغَارْكِي f (ʔūlīḡārkī)
• Armenian: օլիգարխիա (hy) (ōligarxia)
• Belarusian: аліга́рхія f (alihárxija)
• Bulgarian: олигархия (bg) f (oligarhija)
• Catalan: oligarquia f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 寡頭政治／寡头政治 (zh) (guǎtóu zhèngzhì), 寡头政治 (zh) (guǎtóu zhèngzhì)

• Czech: oligarchie (cs) f
• Danish: oligarki (da) n, fåmandsvælde n or c
• Dutch: oligarchie (nl) f
• Esperanto: oligarĥio
• Estonian: oligarhia
• Finnish: harvainvalta (fi), oligarkia (fi)
• French: oligarchie (fr) f
• Galician: oligarquía (gl) f
• Georgian: ოლიგარქია (oligarkia)
• German: Oligarchie (de) f
• Greek: ολιγαρχία (el) f (oligarchía)

  Ancient: ὀλιγαρχία f (oligarkhía)

• Hebrew: אוליגרכיה (he) f
• Hungarian: oligarchia (hu)
• Irish: olagarcacht f
• Italian: oligarchia (it) f
• Japanese: 寡頭政治 (かとうせいじ, katō seiji)
• Khmer: អប្បាធិបតេយ្យ (appa’ tʰippa’tay)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Korean: 과두제 (gwaduje)
• Latin: oligarchia f
• Latvian: oligarhija f
• Lithuanian: oligarchija f
• Macedonian: олигархија f (oligarhija)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: oligarki n

  Nynorsk: oligarki n

• Persian: الیگارشی (oligârši)
• Polish: oligarchia (pl) f
• Portuguese: oligarquia (pt) f
• Romanian: oligarhie (ro) f
• Russian: олига́рхия (ru) f (oligárxija)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: олигархија f

  Roman: oligarhija (sh) f

• Slovak: oligarchia f
• Slovene: oligarhija (sl) f
• Spanish: oligarquía (es) f
• Swedish: oligarki (sv) n
• Tagalog: untipunuan
• Thai: คณาธิปไตย (th) (ká-naa-tí-bpà-dtai)
• Turkish: oligarşi (tr)
• Ukrainian: олігархі́я (uk) f (oliharxíja)

Those who make up an oligarchic government

• Armenian: օլիգարխիա (hy) (ōligarxia)
• Catalan: oligarquia f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 寡頭／寡头 (zh) (guǎtóu), 寡头 (zh) (guǎtóu)

• Dutch: oligarchie (nl) f
• Esperanto: oligarĥio
• Finnish: oligarkit, oligarkia (fi), valtaeliitti
• French: oligarchie (fr) f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Georgian: ოლიგარქია (oligarkia), ოლიგარქები (oligarkebi)
• Hebrew: אוליגרכיה (he) f
• Irish: olagarcacht f
• Persian: جرگه‌سالاران (jarge-salaran)
• Portuguese: oligarquia (pt) f
• Russian: олига́рхия (ru) f (oligárxija)
• Spanish: oligarquía (es) f
• Tagalog: untipunuan

State ruled by such a government

• Armenian: օլիգարխիա (hy) (ōligarxia)
• Belarusian: аліга́рхія f (alihárxija)
• Bulgarian: олигархия (bg) f (oligarhija)
• Catalan: oligarquia f
• Czech: oligarchie (cs) f
• Danish: oligarki (da) n
• Dutch: oligarchie (nl) f
• Esperanto: oligarĥio
• Estonian: oligarhia
• Finnish: oligarkia (fi), harvainvalta (fi)
• French: oligarchie (fr) f
• Georgian: ოლიგარქია (oligarkia)
• German: Oligarchie (de) f
• Greek: ολιγαρχία (el) f (oligarchía)
• Hungarian: oligarchia (hu), kiskirályság
• Irish: olagarcacht f
• Italian: oligarchia (it) f
• Latvian: oligarhija f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Lithuanian: oligarchija f
• Macedonian: олигархија f (oligarhija)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: oligarki n

  Nynorsk: oligarki n

• Polish: oligarchia (pl) f
• Portuguese: oligarquia (pt) f
• Romanian: oligarhie (ro) f
• Russian: олига́рхия (ru) f (oligárxija)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: олигархија f

  Roman: oligarhija (sh) f

• Slovak: oligarchia f
• Slovene: oligarhija (sl) f
• Spanish: oligarquía (es) f
• Swedish: oligarki (sv) n
• Tagalog: untipunuan
• Ukrainian: олігархі́я (uk) f (oliharxíja)