junta

[hoo n-tuh, juhn‐, huhn‐] /ˈhʊn tə, ˈdʒʌn‐, ˈhʌn‐/
noun
1.
a small group ruling a country, especially immediately after a coup d'état and before a legally constituted government has been instituted.
2.
a council.
3.
a deliberative or administrative council, especially in Spain and Latin America.
4.
junto.
Origin
1615-25; < Spanish: a meeting, noun use of feminine of Latin junctus, past participle of jungere to join; see junction
Pronunciation note
When the word junta was borrowed into English from Spanish in the early 17th century, its pronunciation was thoroughly Anglicized to
[juhn-tuh] /ˈdʒʌn tə/ (Show IPA). The 20th century has seen the emergence and, especially in North America, the gradual predominance of the pronunciation
[hoo n-tuh] /ˈhʊn tə/ derived from Spanish
[hoon-tah] /ˈhun tɑ/ through reassociation with the word's Spanish origins. A hybrid form
[huhn-tuh] /ˈhʌn tə/ is also heard.
Examples from the web for junta
  • The junta spends the money on itself, its arsenal and its absurd new capital.
  • Not only are there scant signs of change from the repressive ruling junta.
  • The regime that succeeded him was an uneasy tussle between idealists and a would-be military junta.
  • The military junta continued to restrict aid shipments and proceeded with a referendum intended to cement its power.
  • One of the accused was once a spokesman for a particularly nasty military junta.
  • The military junta froze the proceeds after seizing power that year.
  • Though she spoke of reconciliation, the event itself was a challenge to the authority and control of the ruling military junta.
  • He was uncouth and boorish, prone to banging the table with his revolver at junta meetings.
  • The junta has placed such strict limits on her activities that she has in effect simply been released into a larger prison.
  • Both bubbles of optimism burst because the junta was unwilling to cede any real power.
British Dictionary definitions for junta

junta

/ˈdʒʊntə; ˈdʒʌn-; US ˈhʊntə/
noun
1.
a group of military officers holding the power in a country, esp after a coup d'état
2.
Also called junto. a small group of men; cabal, faction, or clique
3.
a legislative or executive council in some parts of Latin America
Word Origin
C17: from Spanish: council, from Latin junctus joined, from jungere to join
Contemporary definitions for junta
noun

a governmental council or committee, esp. one that rules after a revolution

Word Origin

Latin jungere 'to join'

noun

a closely knit group; clique; also called junto

Word Origin

Latin jungere 'to join'

Word Origin and History for junta
n.

1620s, "Spanish legislative council," from Spanish and Portuguese junta "council, meeting, convention," from Medieval Latin iuncta "joint," from Latin iuncta, fem. past participle of iungere "to join" (see jugular).

Meaning "political or military group in power" first recorded 1640s as junto (from confusion with Spanish nouns ending in -o), originally with reference to the Cabinet Council of Charles I. Modern spelling in this sense is from 1714; popularized 1808 in connection with councils formed across Spain to resist Napoleon.

junta in Culture
junta [(hoon-tuh, jun-tuh)]

A group of military leaders who govern a country after a coup d'état.

Encyclopedia Article for junta

(Spanish: "meeting"), committee or administrative council, particularly one that rules a country after a coup d'etat and before a legal government has been established. The word was widely used in the 16th century to refer to numerous government consultative committees. The Spanish resistance to Napoleon's invasion (1808) was organized by the juntas provinciales; the national committee was the junta suprema central. In subsequent civil wars or revolutionary disturbances in Spain, Greece, or Latin America, similar bodies, elected or self-appointed, have usually been called juntas.

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