patriarchate

From Old French patriarcat, from Medieval Latin patriarchatus, from Ancient Greek πατήρ (patḗr) "father" + -archy, "rule".

patriarchate (plural patriarchates)

1. (Christianity) The term of office of a Christian patriarch.

   The patriarchate of Pope John Paul II as Patriarch of the West was more than 25 years.

2. The office or ecclesial jurisdiction of such a patriarch.

   The Patriarchate of Constantinople has primacy over the whole of the Orthodox world.

3. The office-space occupied by a patriarch and his staff.

   The Latin patriarchate in Jerusalem is, by modern standards, a very cramped space.

(political science, politics): This term would describe a kind of polity.

• matriarchate