What is Tyrant?
A '''tyrant''' (pronounce: ''tie''-rant) is a person who rules with absolute power. In its [[Ancient Greek language|Greek]] origin the word has no negative meaning: we translate ''Oedipus Tyrannus'' as '[[Oedipus]] the King'. A tyrant usually rules a country, and he often got his position as powerful ruler by force, although some of them [[inherit]]ed their power. Later, the word came to mean someone who ruled with cruelty and injustice. The rule of a tyrant is called '''tyranny'''. The [[adjective]] is '''tyrannical'''. A [[dictator]] or [[despot]] is someone who rules with absolute authority, usually cruelly. It now has the same meaning as 'tyrant', whereas before, 'tyrant' meant something like 'ruler' or 'king'. In the 10th and 9th centuries [[BC]], [[Ancient Greece]] was ruled by [[monarch]]s. By the 7th century BC, they were ruled by groups of [[aristocrat]]s. These aristocrats started to become unpopular. This gave cruel people the chance to get power for themselves, telling the people that they would be good rulers, but turning bad once they got power. Around 650 BC the tyrant Cypselus became powerful in [[Corinth]]. There were other tyrants in the [[Asia]]tic countries that were ruled by Greece. Cypselus’s son [[Periander]] was also a cruel tyrant who ruled for 40 years. The tyranny in Corinth came to an end after he died. {{Authoritarian types of rule}} [[Category:Ancient Greece]] [[Category:Forms of government]]