Ancient Greek word used in political thought
Politeia
(
πολιτε?α
) is an
ancient Greek
word used in Greek political thought, especially that of
Plato
and
Aristotle
. Derived from the word
polis
("city-state"), it has a range of meanings from "
the rights of citizens
" to a "
form of government
".
English translations of the Greek word
[
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]
According to Liddell and Scott's
Greek-English Lexicon
a meaning of politeia is "the conditions and rights of the citizen, or
citizenship
", analogous to the
Latin
civitas
.
[1]
Politeia
,
[2]
in Greek means the community of citizens in a city / state. It should not be confused with "regime" that is meant by
politeuma
[3]
or "Status quo" that is meant by
kathestos
.
[4]
Politeuma
is the word describing the political situation of the community of citizens in a city/state, and
kathestos
means also the general situation of an object, an agreement, or something else.
Politeia
is derived from both the root word
polis
meaning "city" or "state",
[5]
and from the verb
politeuomai
that means "I am living as an active citizen of the
polis
."
People living in a Greek city/state were not necessarily citizens. A person that was ostracized from the active matrix of the city was an example of such. Another example was people who lived in the city but were not active citizens who had a say in the political processes of the community. Women, slaves and others who Greek men deemed unworthy were not in the active matrix of the political formations of that city state, making them not-citizens, so not part of
politeia
.
In the works of ancient Greek philosophers, the principal meaning of
politeia
appears to be: "how a
polis
is run;
constitution
". A
politeia
differs from modern written constitutions in two respects: first, not all Greek states put their laws in writing; more importantly, the Greeks did not normally distinguish between ordinary and constitutional legislation. If a certain body had the power to change the laws, it had the power to change the laws controlling its own power and membership ? even to abolish itself and set up a new governing body.
The phrases
system of government
,
state organisation
,
form of government
, and, more recently,
regime
have also been used to translate
politeia
.
Regime
has drawbacks: it is ambiguous where
politeia
is not. It has a negative tone in English, which
politeia
does not in Greek. It is also a
loan-word
; and in that regard, has no advantage over simply adopting
politeia
itself.
Some translators thus use a different term for this second meaning of
politeia
. Most common is the vague term
polity
. Specific translations of this second meaning as
constitutional democracy
or
republic
are at least
anachronistic
, and in most instances contentious and/or inaccurate. Some translators feel it is incorrect to translate the same word in different ways, arguing that the ambiguity must have been deliberate and that it is impossible to always know which way the word should be rendered.
[6]
In the Greek
New Testament
politeia
is translated as "commonwealth" or "freedom" in Ephesians 2:12 and Acts 22:28.
Politeia in the work of the authors of Antiquity
[
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]
Plato and Cicero
[
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]
Politeia
is the original title of the book by Plato now commonly known in English as
Republic
.
Cicero
translated
politeia
as
res publica
(see also:
De re publica
), from which the modern word republic comes. Note that the meanings the ancient Romans attached to
res publica
were also multiple and only partially overlapping with the Greek
politeia
, and further that few of the multiple meanings of
politeia
or
res publica
are much of an equivalent to
republic
as it is understood in modern political science.
Aristotle
[
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In the
Constitution of the Athenians
(
Athenaion Politeia
), Aristotle uses
politeia
for eleven states of the Athenian government up to his own time, from the
absolute monarchy
of
Ionia
and the
tyranny
of the
Thirty
to the democratic
Assembly
and
selection by lot
of
Pericles
's time and his own. He may have added that the absolute monarchy of Ion was "less political"
[7]
than that of Theseus or the later constitutions, but the text is doubtful.
In his
Politics
, Aristotle clearly uses
politeia
both as above and also in a more restricted sense. Exactly what this sense is, and whether Aristotle is using it in a consistent manner, have both been long debated. By careful choice of quotation (a comprehensive list of quotations along with their respective cross-references is found in
[8]
), all of the following can be defended:
- A specific form of government. Aristotle classified constitutions on two grounds: how many citizens had a voice in making the laws; and whether they did so considering the good of all citizens, or only their own. Along with
monarchy
and
aristocracy
,
politeia
is one of the three virtuous forms of government. While monarchy is the rule by the single most virtuous one, and aristocracy is the rule by the several most virtuous few, politeia is the rule by the multitude of virtuous citizens.
- A constitution that does not fit into this sixfold classification, because it has features of more than one of them: the constitutions of
Carthage
,
Sparta
, and [at least one of the cities of]
Crete
.
- A constitution which mixes
oligarchy
and
democracy
(terms which, as used by Aristotle, refer to vicious kinds of constitutions).
- A constitution in which the
hoplites
governed. This is more restrictive than the Athens of Aristotle's time. Athens was a naval power, and many citizens were allowed to vote, and served the state well in war, who could not afford massive metal armor.
In Book III of his
Politics
(1279a), Aristotle seems to indicate that, in principle,
politeia
refers generically to any form of government or constitution, although he uses the word also to call a particular form of government: "When the citizens at large govern for the public good, it is called by the name common to all governments
(politeion)
, government
(politeia)
."
Why Aristotle uses the same term to refer to at least two distinct ideas has confused readers for millennia. For instance, later Aristotle refers to the ideal politeia as one using a
mixed government
. But it is uncertain whether he is referring to governments in general or to a specific form.
In the
New Testament
politeia
refers both the Greek World as well as to the nation of Israel.
Strong's Concordance
defines the term as:
Signifies (a) "the relation in which a citizen stands to the state, the condition of a citizen, citizenship," Acts 22:28, "with a great sum obtained I this citizenship" (KJV, "freedom"). While Paul's "citizenship" of Tarsus was not of advantage outside that city, yet his Roman "citizenship" availed throughout the Roman Empire and, besides private rights, included (1) exemption from all degrading punishments; (2) a right of appeal to the emperor after a sentence; (3) a right to be sent to Rome for trial before the emperor if charged with a capital offense. Paul's father might have obtained "citizenship" (1) by manumission; (2) as a reward of merit; (3) by purchase; the contrast implied in Acts 22:28 is perhaps against the last mentioned; (b) "a civil polity, the condition of a state, a commonwealth," said of Israel, Ephesians 2:12.
Notes
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]
References
[
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]
- A Greek-English Lexicon
,
Henry George Liddell
and
Robert Scott
, revised and augmented throughout by Sir
Henry Stuart Jones
, with the assistance of Roderick McKenzie, Clarendon Press, Oxford, UK, 1940,
Online version at Perseus website
. 9th edition, with a revised supplement, edited by P.G.W. Glare, with the assistance of A.A. Thompson: 1996,
ISBN
0-19-864226-1
.
External links
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]