sovereignty

sov·er·eign·ty

noun \-tē\\ˈsä-v(ə-)rən-tē, -vərn-tē also ˈsə-\

plural sov·er·eign·ties

Definition of SOVEREIGNTY

1

obsolete : supreme excellence or an example of it

2

a : supreme power especially over a body politic

b : freedom from external control : autonomy

c : controlling influence

3

: one that is sovereign; especially : an autonomous state

Variants of SOVEREIGNTY

sov·er·eign·ty also sov·ran·ty \-tē\ \ˈsä-v(ə-)rən-tē, -vərn-tē also ˈsə-\

Examples of SOVEREIGNTY

1. <upon leaving home she felt that she had achieved sovereignty for the first time in her life>
2. <as parts of the same sovereignty, the states should not enact laws intended to harm one another economically>
3. Nor was the sovereignty of the Native Hawaiian race recognized at the time Hawaii became a state. —Ramesh Ponnuru, National Review, 18 July 2005
4. Cesaire's wrenching chant of self-affirmation announced a new era of intellectual and cultural sovereignty for black writers in French. —Lila Azam Zanganeh, New York Times Book Review, 12 June 2005
5. The position plunged him into a supremely complicated religious and political game. Throughout Europe the old order of divinely sanctioned kingdoms was battling models of popular sovereignty and citizenship inspired by the Enlightenment, the French Revolution and the adolescent U.S. —David Van Biema, Time, 4 Sept. 2000

Origin of SOVEREIGNTY

Middle English soverainte, from Anglo-French sovereinté, from soverein (see ²sovereign)

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to SOVEREIGNTY

Synonyms

autonomy, independence, independency, liberty, self-determination, self-governance, self-government, freedom (also sovranty)

Antonyms

dependence (also dependance), heteronomy, subjection, unfreedom

Related Words

emancipation, enfranchisement, liberation, manumission, release

Near Antonyms

captivity, enchainment, enslavement, immurement, imprisonment, incarceration, internment, subjugation

Other Government and Politics Terms

agent provocateur, agitprop, autarky, cabal, egalitarianism, federalism, hegemony, plenipotentiary, popular sovereignty, socialism

sovereignty

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

In political theory, the ultimate authority in the decision-making process of the state and in the maintenance of order. In 16th-century France Jean Bodin used the concept of sovereignty to bolster the power of the king over his feudal lords, heralding the transition from feudalism to nationalism. By the end of the 18th century, the concept of the social contract led to the idea of popular sovereignty, or sovereignty of the people, through an organized government. The Hague Conventions, the Geneva Conventions, and the United Nations all have restricted the actions of sovereign countries in the international arena, as has international law.