acephalous

acephalous
A term used to describe the political system of societies without centralized state authority-such as, for example, traditional African lineage political systems (see, Tribes without Rulers, 1958). Authority is wielded at the level of the clan, lineage, or lineage segment. For this reason these ‘headless’ societies are often referred to by the alternative term ‘segmented’.

Dictionary of sociology. 2013.

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  • Acephalous — A*ceph a*lous, a. [See {Acephal}.] [1913 Webster] 1. Headless. [1913 Webster] 2. (Zo[ o]l.) Without a distinct head; a term applied to bivalve mollusks. [1913 Webster] 3. (Bot.) Having the style spring from the base, instead of from the apex, as… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • acephalous — (adj.) headless, 1731, from Fr. acéphale + ous, or directly from L.L. acephalus, from Gk. akephalos, from a not + kephale head …   Etymology dictionary

  • acephalous — [ā sef′ə ləs] adj. [LL acephalus < Gr akephalos < a , without + kephalē, head: see CEPHALIC] 1. Zool. having no part of the body differentiated as the head 2. having no leader …   English World dictionary

  • acephalous — adjective /əˈsɛfələs/ a) Headless , A false or acephalous structure of sentence. b) Without a distinct head; a term applied to bivalve mollusks …   Wiktionary

  • Acephalous line — An acephalous or headless line is a line in a poem which does not conform to its accepted metre, due to the first syllable s omission. Acephalous lines are usually deliberate variations in scansion, but this is not always obvious. Famous poems to …   Wikipedia

  • Acephalous society — In anthropology, an acephalous society (from the Greek for headless ) is a society which lacks political leaders or hierarchies. Such groups are also known as egalitarian or non stratified societies.Typically these societies are small scale,… …   Wikipedia

  • acephalous — adjective Etymology: Greek akephalos, from a + kephalē head more at cephalic Date: circa 1731 1. lacking a head or having the head reduced 2. lacking a governing head or chief …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • acephalous — adj. [Gr. a, without; kephale, head] (ARTHROPODA: Insecta) Pertains to the absence of any structure comparable to a head, as in certain dipteran larvae; acephalic; see eucephalous, hemicephalous …   Dictionary of invertebrate zoology

  • acephalous — /ay sef euh leuhs/, adj. 1. Also, acephalic /ay seuh fal ik/. Zool. headless; lacking a distinct head. 2. without a leader or ruler. [1725 35; < Gk aképhalos; see A 6, CEPHALOUS] * * * …   Universalium

  • acephalous — Headless. * * * aceph·a·lous ( )ā sef ə ləs, ə sef adj lacking a head or having the head reduced * * * aceph·a·lous (a sefґə ləs) headless …   Medical dictionary

  • acephalous — (Roget s 3 Superthesaurus) a. 1. headless 2. leaderless …   English dictionary for students

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