shogunate

shogunate means the office or dignity of a shogun.

Why “shogunate” is a great word

The office, rank, or period of rule of a shogun in feudal Japan. From Japanese shogun ("military commander") + the English suffix -ate (forming nouns denoting rank or office). First recorded in English in 1870–75. Unlike bakufu (which names the shogun's military administration, the "tent government") or shogun (which names the man himself), shogunate encompasses the entire institution and its epoch. It is the weight of the sword-girt authority, the centuries of cloistered politics behind paper screens, and the long, enforced peace of a country ruled from a shadow capital. It is the understanding that power, once seized, settles into the floorboards of history, not as a man, but as an era.

Etymology

From shogun + -ate (forms nouns denoting rank or office).

noun

The office or dignity of a shogun.

Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Words closest in meaning

By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.

shogun 70% match — The supreme generalissimo of feudal Japan. vs shogunate →
shogunal 70% match — Of or pertaining to a shogun. vs shogunate →
bakufu 60% match — A shogunate; the office and administration of a shogun. vs shogunate →
shrievalty 52% match — The office, jurisdiction, or tenure of a sheriff (chiefly in reference to the British office; uncommon in reference to the American office). vs shogunate →
dogate 51% match — The office or dignity of a doge. vs shogunate →
regentship 49% match — The office of a regent; regency. vs shogunate →
justiciary 48% match — A judgeship: a judge's jurisdiction, power, or office. vs shogunate →
sultanry 47% match — sultanate. vs shogunate →