despot

despot
\ \ [16] The ultimate source of despot is Greek despótēslord’. It is related to Sanskrit dampatimaster of the house’, and both probably go back to an Indo-European compound formed from *domo- ‘house’ (source of Latin domushouse’, and hence of English domestic) and another element related to Latin potisable’ and English power. (Latin dominuslord’, a derivative of domushouse’ and originally meaning ‘master of the house’, is a semantically parallel formation.) Greek despótēs was used for ‘lord, master’ or ‘ruler’ in various contexts, with no particular pejorative connotation (in modern Greek it means ‘bishop’). But most rulers in ancient times enjoyed absolute power, and so eventually the word (which entered English via medieval Latin despota and early modern French despot) came to mean ‘tyrannical ruler’; this sense became firmly established at the time of the French Revolution.
\ \ Cf.DOMESTIC, DOMINION

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • despot — DESPÓT, despoţi, s.m. 1. (În antichitate şi în evul mediu) Conducător cu puteri discreţionare; tiran. ♦ fig. Persoană excesiv de autoritară, care, în acţiunile sale, nu ţine seama de alţii, care vrea să şi impună cu orice preţ voinţa. 2. (În… …   Dicționar Român

  • Despot — may refer to: Despot (court title), a Byzantine court title Despotism, a form of government in which power is concentrated in the hands of an individual or a small group People with the surname Despot: Despot voda or Ioan Iacob Heraclit… …   Wikipedia

  • Despot — Sm Gewaltherr(scher) erw. fremd. Erkennbar fremd (15. Jh.) Entlehnung. Entlehnt aus gr. despótēs Herr, Hausherr, Herrscher , wohl eine Zusammenrückung des Hauses Herr . Das Hinterglied ist umgebildet aus ig. * poti m. Herr , das zu l. potis… …   Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache

  • despot — dèspot (dȅspot) m DEFINICIJA 1. pov. a. carski pokrajinski namjesnik u Bizantu b. naslov nekih srpskih vladara krajem 14. i u 15. st. 2. pren. vladar koji vlada samovoljno i okrutno; apsolutist, tiranin ONOMASTIKA Déspa ž. os. ime (narodno, sa… …   Hrvatski jezični portal

  • Despot — Des pot, n. [F. despote, LL. despotus, fr. Gr. despo ths master, lord, the second part of which is akin to po sis husband, and L. potens. See {Potent}.] 1. A master; a lord; especially, an absolute or irresponsible ruler or sovereign. [1913… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Despot — Despot, también conocido como Alec Reinstein, es un rapero firmado por el sello de Nueva York, Def Jux Records. Despot se mudó a Forest Hills, Queens, después de dejar los estudios en Purchase College. Categoría: Maestros de ceremonias de Estados …   Wikipedia Español

  • despot — index dictator Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 despot n. A ruler with absolute powe …   Law dictionary

  • despot — 1560s, absolute ruler, from O.Fr. despot (14c.), from M.L. despota, from Gk. despotes master of a household, lord, absolute ruler, from PIE *dems pota ; for first element see DOMESTIC (Cf. domestic) (adj.); second element cognate with L. potis,… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Despot — (v. gr. Despŏtes), 1) Herr von Sklaven, Hausherr; 2) Titel der Mitregenten im Byzantinischen Kaiserreich u. der Prinzen od. Schwiegersöhne des Kaisers, so wie vornehmer Statthalter, auch einiger Patriarchen, Bischöfe u. Fürsten; 3) jetzt… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Despōt — (griech.), »Herr«, insbes. von Sklaven; Hausherr; unter den griechischen Kaisern Ehrentitel für Prinzen oder Schwiegersöhne; auch Mitregenten, Statthalter von Provinzen und bevorrechtete Vasallen, Patriarchen etc.; jetzt ein willkürlich… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Despot — Despōt (grch.), Herr, Gebieter; dann unumschränkter, willkürlicher Herrscher; Despotīe, Despotismus, schrankenlose Willkürherrschaft eines einzelnen oder auch einer Volksklasse; despōtisch, eigenmächtig, willkürlich, gewaltherrlich. Aufgeklärter… …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

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