Word of the Week: Hegemony

by Naomi L. | September 11, 2017 | Blog, Word of the Week | 2 comments

Source: Oxford Dictionaries

So funny story: the other day I stumbled upon a reminder to write a Word of the Week entry for today’s vocabulary word, but I neglected to add a note about where I first learned it. I want to say it’s another word I picked up from a game in the Elevate – Brain Training app, but it could just as easily have come from a recent political article. In any case, if it isn’t the latter, it very well could be soon; I wouldn’t be surprised if shifting perceptions of “hegemony” became the next hot topic of debate!

“Hegemony” is a form of dominance or leadership, typically of a state or social group over others. The word arose in the mid 16th century and comes from the Greek noun hēgemonía, meaning “leadership”. This noun stems from the noun hēgemṓn “leader”, which in turn derives from the verb hēgéomai “to lead”.

While “hegemony” refers specifically to political states or groups in formal contexts, it can just as frequently refer to the dominance of a certain social group over another, though it’s worth noting that this form of rule stipulates a level of consent from the subordinate group as opposed to dominance by pure force. If you want to expand this word’s use, you can also use the related noun “hegemon”, meaning “a supreme leader”. If your characters are divided into dominant and submissive groups on any scale, “hegemony” may be a good word to use in your stories!

What are your thoughts on this word? Any suggestions for future “Word of the Week” featured words?