Oligarchy is a form of government in which a small group of people hold most or all political power .
What is oligarchy government mean?
oligarchy, government by the few , especially despotic power exercised by a small and privileged group for corrupt or selfish purposes. ... Aristotle used the term oligarchia to designate the rule of the few when it was exercised not by the best but by bad persons unjustly.
What is an example of an oligarchy?
Examples of a historical oligarchies are Sparta and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . A modern example of oligarchy could be seen in South Africa during the 20th century. ... Capitalism as a social system, exemplified most notably by the United States, is sometimes described as an oligarchy.
What countries have an oligarchy?
- Russia.
- China.
- Saudi Arabia.
- Iran.
- Turkey.
- South Africa.
- North Korea.
- Venezuela.
What is oligarchy government for kids?
An oligarchy is a type of ruling structure in which a few people wield power . Typically, the rulers come from a small privileged group and use their power to seek personal gain or benefits for their group. The term oligarchy has been used to describe historical examples of government rule by the few.
Who holds power in an oligarchy?
In an oligarchy (OH-lih-gar-kee), a small group of people has all the power . Oligarchy is a Greek word that means “rule by a few.” Sometimes this means that only a certain group has political rights, such as members of one political party, one social class, or one race.
What are some characteristics of an oligarchy?
The characteristics of an oligarchy include the act that the power is held in a very small group of people . These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, corporate, religious, political, or military control.
Is an oligarchy a dictatorship?
As nouns the difference between oligarchy and dictatorship
is that oligarchy is a government run by only a few , often the wealthy while dictatorship is a type of government where absolute sovereignty is allotted to an individual or a small clique.
What are the two types of oligarchy?
The correct answer is D ( theocracy and communism ) because the definition of an oligarchy is when a group of people rules over a majority.
What is a synonym for oligarchy?
autocracy , oppression, domination, cruelty, authoritarianism, despotism, totalitarianism, coercion, terrorism, absolutism, severity, monocracy, fascism, totality, imperiousness, high-handedness, unreasonableness, reign of terror, peremptoriness.
What are the disadvantages of an oligarchy?
- Wealth imbalance: Oligarchies increase income inequality. ...
- Impenetrable ruling class: As the insider group gains power, it seeks to keep it. ...
- Lack of diversity: Oligarchies can become stale. ...
- Restrictions on free-market economy: If an oligarchy takes too much power, it can restrict a free market.
What is the difference between a democracy and an oligarchy?
Oligarchy vs Democracy
Oligarchy is a ruling system in which only a few number of privileged people get the power over ruling and decision-making in a political system. ... Democracy, in contrast, is a political system where general public gets the opportunity to select the suitable candidates for the power.
What country has a dictatorship now?
Current one-party states include China, Uganda, Cuba, Eritrea, Laos, North Korea and Vietnam , The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which is not recognized by the UN, is also a one-party state.
Why is oligarchy the most common form of government?
One of the main pros of oligarchy is that it puts power in the hands of people who are often experts and can make informed decisions for the populous or company . It therefore is more efficient than every single person being able to make decisions, and can often free up people to focus on their own work or lives.
Is the United States an oligarchy?
The modern United States has also been described as an oligarchy because some literature has shown that economic elites and organized groups representing special interests have substantial independent impacts on U.S. government policy, while average citizens and mass-based interest groups have little or no independent ...
What was the first oligarchy?
Webster’s Dictionary defines an oligarchy as, “a government in which a small group exercises control.” The root of the word, oligarchy, comes from a Greek word meaning, “few.” In Ancient Greece, oligarchies were especially common as early as 800 B.C. and in some places, like the city-state of Athens, the oligarchical ...
