What is the origin of the word government?
The word government derives from the Greek verb meaning to steer with a gubernaculum or rudder. This metaphorical sense appears in classical literature, including Plato's Ship of State.
Questions about Government
Short answers, pulled from the story.
When did the first small city-states appear on human history?
About 5,000 years ago, the first small city-states appeared on human history. By the third to second millenniums BC, some developed into larger governed areas like Sumer and ancient Egypt.
How many basic types of governments did Plato divide them into in The Republic?
Plato divided governments into five basic types in his book The Republic written around 375 BC. These types include aristocracy, timocracy, oligarchy, democracy, and tyranny.
Which countries serve as examples of federal constitutional republics?
The United States serves as a federal constitutional republic example while the former Soviet Union functioned as a federal socialist republic. Federalism describes a system where sovereignty divides constitutionally between central authority and constituent units.
How many nations were democracies as of 2021 according to the Global State of Democracy report?
More than half the nations in the world are democracies reaching 97 of 167 as of 2021. The Global State of Democracy 2021 report from International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance tracks these trends.