imamate

[ ih-mah-meyt ]

noun

1. the office of an imam.
2. the region or territory governed by an imam.

imamate

/ ɪˈmɑːmeɪt /

noun

1. the region or territory governed by an imam
2. the office, rank, or period of office of an imam

Word History and Origins

Origin of imamate¹

First recorded in 1720–30; imam + -ate ³

Example Sentences

For more than 1,000 years they ruled a state — called an imamate — that covered what is now northern Yemen.

From Los Angeles Times

In 2004, Saleh accused Houthi of numerous crimes — setting up unlicensed religious centers, seeking to restore the imamate and being part of a foreign terror network — and launched what was supposed to be a simple arrest operation.

From Los Angeles Times

“It didn’t want any mention of an ‘imamate.’

From Los Angeles Times

After the monarchy, known as the Imamate, was overthrown in a 1962 revolution, the Houthis and their fellow Sayyids were cast down from their perch and reviled as a backward, antidemocratic group.

From New York Times

Their aim was to stop the northern imamate, which followed a Shia version of Islam known as Zaydi, from encroaching.

From Economist