Technocrat
/ˈtɛk.nə.kræt/noun
A person who believes or is seen as favoring technical experts and scientific methods in government or administration.
Did you know?The word is a 20th-century political coinage built from Greek roots, and its core element, *tekhnē*, originally meant skilled art, craft, or cunning know-how — the kind of knowledge that was once treated almost like magic.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*teks-
“to weave, fabricate, or make”
Ancient Greek
Greek
τέχνη (tékhnē)
“art, craft, skill, or cunning know-how”
Ancient Greek
Greek
κράτος (krátos)
“strength, power, rule, dominion”
20th Century
English
technocrat
“a person advocating rule by technical experts”
Modern English
English
technocrat
“an advocate or member of rule by technical experts”
Explore more surprising origins