What is anarchy?

15 May 17:22

5 min. read

This content has been automatically translated from Ukrainian.

The word “anarchy” comes from the ancient Greek ἀναρχία (anarkhía), which literally means “without power” or “absence of a ruler”.

ἀν- (an-) — a prefix meaning “without” or “not”
ἀρχή (arkhḗ) — “power,” “beginning,” “leadership,” “rule”
So anarkhía = "without power"

In Ancient Greece, the term "anarchy" initially had a negative connotation and was used to describe situations where power was lost or abolished, there was no leader, and chaos prevailed everywhere.

For example, Aristotle and Plato spoke of anarchy as a state of chaos that follows the decline of order in the state.

In medieval texts, “anarchy” was also associated with chaos or crime. During the Reformation or the French Revolution, the word began to be used in a positive sense, especially in utopian or radical philosophical circles.

In the 19th century, anarchy began to be used by anarchists as a positive term — not as chaos, but as order without coercion.

Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (French philosopher) was one of the first to declare:
“I am an anarchist, that is, a supporter of order without power.”

Since then, the word has two meanings:

Political (ideological)
Everyday/modern (in use in media, conversations, etc.)

1. Anarchy in the political sense

Anarchy is a political concept that entails the absence of centralized authority, state, hierarchy, or coercion. At the core of anarchism is the idea that people can live together based on voluntary cooperation, solidarity, horizontal self-governance, and mutual aid without top-down coercion.

Key principles:

No government, police, or army in the conventional sense.
People govern themselves, uniting in communities, cooperatives, federations.
Personal freedom + responsibility to the community.
Power is not automatically evil, but it must be horizontal and accountable.

Anarchy does not mean chaos or disorder — in this sense, it is often misinterpreted.
In anarchist theories, an organized society is envisioned, but without a coercive hierarchy.

There have been real examples of anarchy in the political sense — attempts to create societies that reject state hierarchy. Below are a few examples.

Makhnoism (1918–1921, Ukraine)

Territory: Southern Ukraine (mainly Zaporizhia)

Leader: Nestor Makhno

In the period after the 1917 revolution, anarchist Nestor Makhno created free councils (anarchist communes) in southern Ukraine without centralized authority.
Management was based on village assemblies, federations of communities, and volunteer detachments.
Land and factories were transferred to labor collectives.
They successfully fought against both the Red Army and the Whites.
Ultimately, Makhnoism was destroyed by the Bolsheviks.

The Spanish Revolution and Civil War (1936–1939)

Territory: Catalonia, Aragon, parts of Andalusia

Organizers: CNT (anarcho-syndicalist trade union)

During the Spanish Civil War, anarchists effectively governed Catalonia (with a center in Barcelona).
Factories, farms, and transport were collectivized, gender equality was introduced, and private property was abolished.
Labor was organized through federations of trade unions, without a centralized government.
This was the largest experiment in anarchist economy and self-governance in history.

The regime fell after the victory of fascist Franco with the support of Nazi Germany and Italy.

Other examples (smaller scale):

Paris Commune (1871) — had anarchist traits, although it was more socialist.
Green Zone in Exarchia (Athens, Greece) — anarchist communities with self-governance.
Free communes in the 20th–21st centuries — temporary or local anarchist settlements (Scandinavia, Mexico, USA, Italy).

These experiments were mostly short-lived, but they left a significant mark in the history of ideas.

2. Anarchy in modern (colloquial) usage

In everyday speech, media, or journalism, the word "anarchy" is often used as a synonym for "chaos," "disorder," "breakdown of the system."

For example:

"After the fall of the government, anarchy began in the country" — here it means that there is no order, power has disappeared, chaos ensues.
"There was real anarchy in the streets" — an uncontrollable situation, without rules.

This meaning is not ideological, but emotional, sometimes even propagandistic. It distorts the original idea of anarchism as self-governance and solidarity.

In this sense — “anarchy” as chaos, disorder, breakdown of governance — history knows many real examples. This is not about ideological anarchy, but about the actual absence of power, laws, or order, often temporary or caused by a crisis.

This often occurs during wars, revolutions, coups, or institutional collapses.

Libya after the fall of Gaddafi (2011–present)

After the NATO intervention and the death of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya effectively fragmented into zones of influence of various armed groups.
There is no central authority, the country has parallel governments, paramilitary formations, and tribal conflicts.
A classic example of “anarchy” in the everyday sense — lawlessness, violence, chaos.

Somalia after 1991

After the overthrow of Siad Barre's regime in 1991, central authority disappeared for decades.
The country plunged into a war of all against all: tribes, warlords, pirates, Islamists.
Somalia was long considered a "classic example of a failed state" — a state that ceased to exist as an institution.

Haiti after the earthquake (2010) and the assassination of the president (2021)

After disasters and political crises, the authority on the island often effectively does not function.
Gangs control the streets, there is a lack of police, justice, and state services.
In the media, this has been repeatedly referred to as "anarchy in action."

But it is important to remember: this has nothing to do with anarchism as an ideology — it is simply the result of powerlessness, not its idealized embodiment.