ἡγεμονία
hēgemonía
G2231 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Rule or authority exercised by a leader, often referring specifically to the office, administration, or term of government of a recognized official (especially a governor or ruler). The word denotes the active exercise of governing power, and in some contexts, the duration of a ruler’s term (reign or government).
Semantic Range
leadership, rule, governmental authority, office or administration of a governor or leader, reign (as a period or term in office), hegemony
Root / Etymology
From ἡγεμών (hēgemōn, 'leader, governor, ruler') plus the abstract noun suffix -ία, forming a noun denoting the office, rule, or administration of a hēgemōn.
Historical & Contextual Notes
ἡγεμονία is an abstract noun based on the concrete title ἡγεμών (governor, chief leader). In classical Greek, it referred broadly to leadership or governance, sometimes even to military command or hegemony within a coalition. By the Hellenistic and Roman periods (including in the New Testament and Josephus), it often denoted an official’s term in office or the authority vested in a specific office. The term thus combines both the institutional and temporal aspects of governance. In the Septuagint, ἡγεμονία is rare but appears in contexts describing official authority. Standard English translations like 'reign' or 'government' convey part of its meaning, but can obscure the institutional nuance or the specific link to an officeholder’s term. While related to ἀρχή ('beginning, rule') and βασιλεία ('kingdom, reign'), ἡγεμονία is less regal and refers more to civil or provincial administration than to kingship.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from ἡγεμών; government, i.e. (in time) official term:--reign.
Root Family
ἡγεμον- (hēgemoneúō) — to lead, to govern, to rule
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| G2230 | ἡγεμονεύω | of the one serving as governor |
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G2231-01 |
ἡγεμονίας | egemonias | N GEN F SG |
reign | of the governorship | governorship | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G2231-01 |
Luke 3:1 | ἡγεμονίας | egemonias | N GEN F SG |
reign | of the governorship | governorship |