timocracy

Etymology

1580s, from Middle French tymocracie, from Medieval Latin (13th century) timocratia, from Ancient Greek τῑμοκρατίᾱ (tīmokratíā), from τῑμή (tīmḗ, “valuation; honor”) + -κρατίᾱ (-kratíā, “a rule, reign”), from κρατέω (kratéō, “to rule”) (see -cracy).

Why this word is great

TIMOCRACY — [Noun] A form of government in which civic honor or political power is determined by property ownership or the pursuit of military glory. From Middle French tymocracie, from Medieval Latin timocratia, from Ancient Greek τῑμοκρατίᾱ (tīmokratíā), from τῑμή (tīmḗ, "honor, valuation") + -κρατίᾱ (-kratíā, "rule"), from κρατέω (kratéō, "to rule"). Unlike "plutocracy" (where wealth alone buys influence) or "meritocracy" (where skill secures station), timocracy elevates the propertied and the proud—those who fight for status as fiercely as they do for soil. It is the bronze shield hung in the assembly hall, the deed to ancestral acres pressed into a magistrate’s palm, the general’s scarred hands resting on the hilt of a ceremonial sword—a system built on the brittle pride of ownership and the fading echo of battlefield applause.

noun

A form of government in which ambition for honor, power and military glory motivates the rulers.
A form of government in which civic honor or political power increases with the amount of property one owns.