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Columbia Encyclopedia entry: republic
Republic [Lat. res publica,=public affair], today understood to be a sovereign state ruled by representatives of a widely inclusive electorate. The term republic formerly denoted a form of government that was both free from hereditary or monarchical rule and had popular control of the state and a conception of public welfare. It is in this sense that we speak of the ancient Roman republic. Today, in addition to the above characteristics, a republic is a state in which all segments of society are enfranchised and in which the state's power is constitutionally limited. Traditionally a republic is distinguished from a true democracy in that the republic operates through a representative assembly chosen by the citizenry, while in a democracy the populace participates directly in governmental affairs. In actual practice, however, most modern representative governments are closer to a republic than a democracy. The United States is an example of a federal republic, in which the powers of the central government are limited and the component parts of the nation, the states, exercise some measure of home rule. France is an example of a centralized republic, in which the component parts have more limited powers. The USSR, though in theory a grouping of federated republics and autonomous regions, was in fact a centralized republic until its breakup in 1991.

See F. Hermens, The Representative Republic (1958) and Introduction to Modern Politics (1959).

The Columbia Encyclopedia. Copyright © 2001-09 Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

Wikipedia search results for: Republic
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A republic is a form of government in which the head of state is not a monarch and the people have an impact on its government. The word 'republic' is derived from the Latin phrase res publica, which can be translated as "a public affair". Both modern and ancient republics vary widely in their ideology and composition. The most common definition of a republic is a state without a monarch. In republics such as the United States and France the executive is legitimated both by a constitution and by popular suffrage. In the United States, Founding Fathers like James Madison defined republic in terms of representative democracy as opposed to...more »
Columbia Encyclopedia search results: republic
Results 1 - 10  of 1,323
  • Cisalpine Republic

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  • Altai Republic

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  • Khakass Republic

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  • Karachay-Cherkess Republic

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  • Sakha Republic

    Sakha Republic, formerly Yakut Republic or Yakutia, constituent republic (1995 pop. 1,035,000), c.1,200,000 sq mi (3,108,000 sq km), NE Siberian Russia. Yakutsk is the capital. The Sakha Repub...

  • Buryat Republic

    Buryat Republic or Buryatia, constituent republic (1990 est. pop. 1,050,000), c.135,600 sq mi (351,200 sq km), SE Siberian Russia, N of Mongolia, extending between Lake Baykal and the Yablonov...

  • Dagestan Republic

    Dagestan Republic or Daghestan Republic, constituent republic (1999 pop. 2,074,000), c.19,400 sq mi (50,250 sq km), SE European Russia, bounded on the E by the Caspian Sea. Makhachkala (the ca...

  • Karakalpak Republic

    Karakalpak Republic, autonomous republic (1992 pop. 1,312,000), c.61,000 sq mi (158,000 sq km), W Uzbekistan, on the Amu Darya River. Nukus is the capital. The republic comprises parts of the ...

  • Adygey Republic

    Adygey Republic or Adygeya, formerly Adyge Autonomous Region, constituent republic (1990 est. pop. 435,000), c.2,935 sq mi (7,600 sq km), an enclave within Krasnodar Territory, SE European Rus...

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