TYPES OF GOVERNMENTS From Autocracy to Democracy Instructions: Follow along and fill in the boxes on your chart to match the information in the slides.

AUTOCRACY ROOT OF WORDRULED BY auto- = self-acting -cracy = government One all-powerful person EXAMPLEDESCRIPTION The chief of a tribe or clan of people rules without question. Oldest and most common form of gov’t Leaders can rule decisively with little opposition to their decision Other groups have little voice in decisions

AUTOCRACY DICTATOR One different type of an autocracy is a Where did dictatorships come from?

DICTATOR ROOT OF WORDRULED BY dictatus = to assertOne autocrat who rules absolutely EXAMPLEDESCRIPTION Kim Jung Il in North Korea is a totalitarian dictator and uses his power to make himself rich Dictators often crush opposition by jailing and executing their opponents Smart dictators will often use their power to industrialize their countries quickly

AUTOCRACY MONARCHY Another type of autocracy is a Where did monarchies come from?

MONARCHY ROOT OF WORDRULED BY mon- = one -archy = ruler One autocrat who gains their power through birth EXAMPLEDESCRIPTION The King of Saudi Arabia gained his position through his birthright, and one of his sons will take over when he dies. A monarchy can be passed for hundreds of years from parent to child This can be very stable, but can fall apart when a country cannot decide who should be the next king or queen

AUTOCRACY OLIGARCHY Some autocracies are ruled by more than one person. This is known as a Where did oligarchies come from?

OLIGARCHY ROOT OF WORDRULED BY olig- = few -archy = ruler A few people sharing power together EXAMPLEDESCRIPTION China today is run by a small group of communist leaders that make decisions for the country Similar to autocracy, but a small group rules instead of one person Oligarchies tend to serve the needs of a few people in society rather than the whole of society

MONARCHY DEMOCRACY Monarchies conquered the rest of the world and established empires. These empires opened new trade routes, and made common citizens very wealthy. These citizens began demanding new power, and through revolutions they established Where did democracies come from?

DEMOCRACY ROOT OF WORDRULED BY Demo = people -cracy = government The citizens of a country make decision, often through voting EXAMPLEDESCRIPTION The United States elects officials to make decisions for the citizens of the country All citizens have a voice in government The majority decision rules The minority loses out Many competing groups means that democracies can be unstable

THEOCRACY ROOT OF WORDRULED BY Theo = religious beliefs -cracy = government Religious leaders who make decisions based on their belief systems EXAMPLEDESCRIPTION Iran is ruled by a group of religious scholars who make decisions based on their holy book Theocracies are run by people who try to maintain a lifestyle that their religion approves of People of one religion can live the way they believe their religion requires them to People of other religions are often oppressed and cannot make their own choices