sovereign

sovereign
\ \ [13] A sovereign is etymologically someone who is ‘above’ others. The word comes via Old French souvereinruler’, a descendant of Vulgar Latin *superānus. This was derived from the Latin preposition superabove’. In the 1490s the term was applied to a gold coin worth 22s 6d (£1.12½), a usage which served as a model in 1817 for its application to a gold coin worth one pound.
\ \ Cf.SUPER

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Sovereign — Sovereign, 1558 Beim Sovereign handelt es sich um das Nominal einer englischen Goldmünze, die Heinrich VII. erstmals 1489 prägen ließ. Im 17. und 18. Jahrhundert wurde der Sovereign zuerst vom Laurel, später von der Unite und der Guinee verdr …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • sovereign — sov·er·eign 1 / sä vrən, sə , və rən/ also sov·ran / vrən/ n: a person or political entity (as a nation or state) possessing or held to possess sovereignty a controversy between two sovereign s...the United States on the one hand and the State of …   Law dictionary

  • Sovereign — Sov er*eign (? or ?; 277), a. [OE. soverain, sovereyn, OF. soverain, suvrain, F. souverain, LL. superanus, fr. L. superus that is above, upper, higher, fr. super above. See {Over}, {Super}, and cf. {Soprano}. The modern spelling is due to a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sovereign — [säv′rən, säv′ər in; ] occas. [ suv′rən, suv′ər in] adj. [ME soveraine < OFr < VL * superanus < L super, above, OVER] 1. above or superior to all others; chief; greatest; supreme 2. supreme in power, rank, or authority 3. of or holding… …   English World dictionary

  • Sovereign — Sov er*eign (? or ?; 277), n. 1. The person, body, or state in which independent and supreme authority is vested; especially, in a monarchy, a king, queen, or emperor. [1913 Webster] No question is to be made but that the bed of the Mississippi… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • sovereign — UK US /ˈsɒvərɪn/ adjective [before noun] GOVERNMENT, FINANCE ► used to describe money that is borrowed or invested by national governments: »Asian sovereign funds are increasingly investing in European and US companies …   Financial and business terms

  • sovereign — [adj] dominant, effective absolute, ascendant, autonomous, chief, commanding, directing, effectual, efficacious, excellent, guiding, highest, imperial, independent, lofty, majestic, monarchal, monarchial, overbearing, paramount, predominant,… …   New thesaurus

  • Sovereign — (spr. Sowwerin), englische Goldmünze = 1 Pfd. Sterl., s. Großbritannien S. 686 …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Sovereign — (spr. ßöwwĕrĭn), seit 1816 geprägte brit. Goldmünze von 160/623 Troyunzen Gewicht und 11/12 Feinheit = 20,4295 Mk., stellt die Einheit des englischen Münzwesens, das Pfund Sterling, dar. S. Tafel »Münzen V«, Fig. 8. Den ersten S. prägte Heinrich… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Sovereign — Sovereign, englische Goldmünze, s.v.w. Pfund Sterling (s.d.) …   Lexikon der gesamten Technik

  • Sovereign — (spr. ßöwwĕrĭn), engl. Goldmünze zu 1 Pfd. St. = 20,4295 M …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

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