Political
<p ><b>Politics</b> (from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_language" title="Greek language" >Greek</a> <i>politikos</i> "of, for, or relating to citizens") </p>
<p>
as a term is generally applied to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art" title="Art" >art</a> or<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science" title="Science" >science</a> of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government" title="Government" >governments</a>, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporation" title="Corporation" >corporate</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academia" title="Academia" >academic</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion" title="Religion" >religious</a>
segments of society. </p>
<p>
It consists of "social relations involving <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authority" title="Authority" >authority</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_(philosophy)" title="Power (philosophy)" >power</a>" and to the methods and tactics used to formulate and apply <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Policy" title="Policy" >policy</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-0" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political#cite_note-0" >[1]</a></sup></p>
<p>
Modern political discourse focuses on democracy and the relationship between people and politics.
It is thought of as the way we "choose government officials and make decisions about public policy". <sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political#cite_note-1" >[2]</a></sup>
</p>
<h2 >Etymology</h2>
<p >The word <i>politics</i> comes from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_language" title="Greek language" >Greek</a> word <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_(Aristotle)" title="Politics (Aristotle)" >Πολιτικά</a> (<i>politika</i>), modeled on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotle" title="Aristotle" >Aristotle</a>'s "affairs of the city", the name of his book on governing and governments, which was rendered in English mid-15 century as Latinized "Polettiques".<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political#cite_note-2" >[3]</a></sup> Thus it became "politics" in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_English" title="Middle English" >Middle English</a> c. 1520s (see the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concise_Oxford_Dictionary" title="Concise Oxford Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" >Concise Oxford Dictionary</a>). </p>
<p>
The singular <i>politic</i> first attested in English 1430 and comes from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_French" title="Middle French" >Middle French</a> <i>politique</i>, in turn from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin" title="Latin" >Latin</a> <i>politicus</i>,<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political#cite_note-3" >[4]</a></sup> which is the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latinisation_(literature)" title="Latinisation (literature)" class="mw-redirect" >latinisation</a> of the Greek πολιτικός (<i>politikos</i>), meaning amongst others "of, for, or relating to citizens", "civil", "civic", "belonging to the state",<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political#cite_note-4" >[5]</a></sup> in turn from πολίτης (<i>polites</i>), "citizen"<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political#cite_note-5" >[6]</a></sup> and that from πόλις (<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polis" title="Polis" >polis</a></i>), "city".<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political#cite_note-6" >[7]</a></sup></p>