realpolitik

See also: Realpolitik and réalpolitik

English

Alternative forms

• Realpolitik

Etymology

Borrowed from German Realpolitik (literally “real politics, realistic politics”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ɹeɪˈɑːlpɒlɪˌtiːk/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ɹeɪˈɑlpoʊlɪˌtik/, /ɹiˈɑlpoʊlɪˌtik/
• Rhymes: -iːk

Noun

realpolitik (countable and uncountable, plural realpolitiks)

1. (politics) Pragmatic government policy concerned with perceived interests of the state.

   Hypernyms: pragmatism, realism

   Coordinate term: Machiavellianism

   • 1913, Stanley Shaw, William of Germany, page 357:

     It is Realpolitik in sport, and a Realpolitik which is not wholly unknown in England; but while the spirit of Realpolitik is still perceivable in German sport, it is equally perceivable that the standard English way of viewing sporting competition is becoming more and more approached in Germany.

   • 1918, Hartley Burr Alexander, Liberty and democracy: and other essays in war-time:

     Possibly the Germans themselves regard their Realpolitik as but the continuation of the philosophic tradition of disillusionment: like Xenophanes they would remind us that the gods of the Ethiopians are snub-nosed and swart, of the Thracians blue-eyed and red-haired, and that if oxen had gods their gods would be oxen.

   • 1932, Elisha Ely Garrison, The Riddle of Economics, page 254:

     Realpolitik, in one or another form, is, therefore, from the standpoint of science and of abstract principle, immoral, unsound and no defense of it on the ground of concrete necessity can make it otherwise.

   • 2013 August 14, Simon Jenkins, “Gibraltar and the Falklands deny the logic of history”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

     Twenty-first century nation states will no longer tolerate even the mild humiliation of hosting the detritus of 18th- and 19th-century empires. Most European empires were born of the realpolitik of power, mostly the treaties of Utrecht (1713) and Paris (1763). The same realpolitik now ordains their dismantling. An early purpose of the United Nations was to bring this about.

Derived terms

• realpolitician
• realpolitikal
• realpolitiker

 

Translations

pragmatic international government policy

• Arabic: وَاقِعِيَّة سِيَاسِيَّة f (wāqiʕiyya(t) siyāsiyya)
• Belarusian: рэа́льная палі́тыка f (reálʹnaja palítyka)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 現實政治／现实政治 (xiànshí zhèngzhì)

• Danish: realpolitik (da) c
• Esperanto: realecpolitiko
• Estonian: reaalpoliitika
• Finnish: reaalipolitiikka (fi)
• French: realpolitik (fr) f, réalpolitik (fr) f, réalpolitique (fr) f, réal-politique (fr) f
• German: Realpolitik (de) f
• Greek: ρεαλπολιτίκ (el) f (realpolitík)
• Icelandic: raunsæisstjórnmál n pl
• Indonesian: realpolitik (id)
• Italian: Realpolitik (it) f
• Japanese: 現実的政治 (げんじつてきせいじ, genjitsuteki seiji), レアルポリティーク (rearuporitīku)
• Korean: 현실정치(現實政治) (hyeonsiljeongchi)
• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish: siyaseta reel (ku)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: realpolitikk m

• Persian: سیاست واقعی (siyâsat vâqe'i), واقع‌گرایانه (vâqe'-garâyâne)
• Polish: Realpolitik (pl) f
• Russian: реа́льная поли́тика f (reálʹnaja polítika), реалполити́к f (realpolitík)
• Swedish: realpolitik (sv) c
• Tamil: மெய் அரசியல்சார் (mey araciyalcār)
• Ukrainian: реа́льна полі́тика f (reálʹna polítyka)

French

Alternative forms

• réalpolitik, réal-politique
• réalpolitique (post-1990 spelling)

Etymology

Borrowed from German Realpolitik. [from 19th century]

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʁə.al.pɔ.li.tik/
• Rhymes: -ik
• Homophones: realpolitiks, réalpolitik, réalpolitiks, réalpolitique, réalpolitiques, réal-politique, réal-politiques

Noun

realpolitik f (plural realpolitiks)

1. (politics) realpolitik