matriarchy

Meanings

1. A social system in which the mother is head of household, having authority over men and children, and lineage is traced through the female line.
2. A system of government by females (particularly as a kind of polity).
3. The dominance of women in social or cultural systems.

Etymology

Coined after patriarchy, from Latin māter (“mother”) and Ancient Greek ἄρχω (árkhō, “to rule”). By surface analysis, matri- + -archy.