Necrocracy
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A form of government imposed by those who have since died. countable, uncountable
"What we call democracy, therefore, is to a considerable extent necrocracy, or a form of government by the graveyards. Old precepts and phrases are handed down from one generation to another; they become part of a nation's heritage […]"
- 2 A form of government where a dead person is recognised as its head; usually a deceased former leader. countable, uncountable
"Kim Jong Il, incidentally, has been made head of the party and of the army, but the office of the presidency is still "eternally" held by his adored and departed dad, who died on July 8, 1994, at 82. (The Kim is dead. Long live the Kim.) This makes North Korea the only state in the world with a dead president. What would be the right term for this? A necrocracy? A thanatocracy? A mortocracy? A mausolocracy?"
- 3 A government ruled by the undead. countable, uncountable
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"What we call democracy, therefore, is to a considerable extent necrocracy, or a form of government by the graveyards. Old precepts and phrases are handed down from one generation to another; they become part of a nation's heritage […]"
Etymology
From necro- (“dead”) + -cracy (“power, rule”).
More for "necrocracy"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.