mín zhǔ
democracy
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民主是人民的权利。
Mínzhǔ shì rénmín de quánlì.
Democracy is the right of the people.
民主国家的人民享有民主权利。
Mínzhǔ guójiā de rénmín xiǎngyǒu mínzhǔ quánlì.
The people of democratic countries enjoy democratic rights.
我们要维护民主制度。
Wǒmen yào wéihù mínzhǔ zhìdù.
We must uphold the democratic system.
民主政治 (mínzhǔ zhèngzhì)
democracy
民主主义 (mínzhǔ zhǔyì)
democracy
专制 (zhuānzhì)
autocracy
独裁 (dúchái)
dictatorship
The Chinese word 民主 (mǐnzhǔ) for "democracy" is a compound of two characters: 民 (mǐn), meaning "people", and 主 (zhǔ), meaning "master" or "lord". Thus, 民主 literally means "people are the masters" or "people's rule". This term was first used in China in the late 19th century, when it was introduced by Chinese intellectuals who had studied in the West and were influenced by Western democratic ideas. The term quickly gained popularity, and it was eventually adopted as the official Chinese translation of "democracy". Today, 民主 is one of the most important political terms in China, and it is used to refer to the country's political system, which is based on the idea of people's sovereignty.
