autocrate

Forms

autocrate m or f by sense (plural autocrates)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek αὐτοκρατής (autokratḗs, “ruling by oneself, sovereign”), first recorded in French in 1768.^{[2][3][4][1][5]} The Greek word is formed from αὐτο- (auto-, “self”) and the stem of κράτος (krátos, “strength, power”), the noun behind κρατέω (kratéō, “to rule”).^[1][6][2] The Académie dates the borrowing to the 18th century.^[7] Picoche groups it with the other French words in -crate and -cratie, which name the holder of power and the form of government.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in 1768, in the Éphémérides du citoyen, for a ruler whose power is absolute.^[3][2]

Semantic evolution

From its first use the word named a sovereign whose power is subject to no control, and in particular it became the official title of the emperors of Russia from Peter the Great onward.^[3][6][7] Littré, in the 1870s, still gives the Russian emperor as the example of an autocrat.^[6] By extension it is applied to anyone who imposes his will on others like a tyrant.^[3][7][9]

In the 18th century a feminine autocratrice, formed after autocrator, was also used, as in Voltaire's phrase on the empress Elizabeth; it has gone out of use.^[3][9]

Timeline

• 1768 – First record, in the Éphémérides du citoyen.^[3][2]
• 18th century – Voltaire uses the feminine autocratrice of the empress Elizabeth.^[3]
• 1873 – Littré defines it as a sovereign whose power is subject to no legal control.^[6]

Meanings

Noun

1. An autocrat, a sovereign whose power is absolute and subject to no control.^[4][10][9]
2. (history) The official title of the emperors of Russia, from Peter the Great onward.^[3][7][10]
3. (figurative) A person who imposes his or her will on everyone, a tyrant.^[3][7][9]

Adjective

1. autocratic, absolute: pouvoir autocrate.^[7][2]

Related words

• autocratie
• autocratique
• démocrate
• aristocrate

Usage notes

Larousse notes that the word has no feminine form in current use, despite Voltaire's autocratrice.^[9][3]

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
4. ^ a b Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
5. ^ Wartburg, Walther von, et al. (1922–2002), Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, 25 vols., Bonn / Leipzig / Basel: Klopp / Teubner / Zbinden, p. 25, 1100b
6. ^ a b c d Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette
7. ^ a b c d e f Académie française (1992–2024), Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, 9th ed., Paris: Académie française / Fayard / Imprimerie nationale
8. ^ Picoche, Jacqueline (1991), Dictionnaire étymologique du français, Paris: Le Robert (Les Usuels du Robert)
9. ^ a b c d e Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
10. ^ a b Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard