Etymology and use Autocracy comes from the Ancient Greek (Greek: ; "self") and (Greek: ; "power, might"). This became the Hellenistic/Byzantine Greek word (Greek: αὐτοκράτωρ) and the Latin , both of which were titles for the Roman emperor. This was adopted in Old Russian as and then modern Russian as . In the 18th century, the title for the Russian emperor was translated to and then in French, while it was translated to and then in German. These terms were eventually used to refer to autocratic rulers in general. The term has since developed a negative connotation.
Etymology and use Autocracy comes from the Ancient Greek (Greek: ; "self") and (Greek: ; "power, might") This became the Hellenistic/Byzantine Greek word (Greek: αὐτοκράτωρ) and the Latin , both of which were titles for the Roman emperor. This was adopted in Old Russian as and then modern Russian as . In the 18th century, the title for the Russian emperor was translated to and then in French, while it was translated to and then in German. These terms were eventually used to refer to autocratic rulers in general. The term has since developed a negative connotation.