Sovrane

Sovrane is the feminine plural form of the Italian noun and adjective sovrana, meaning female sovereign or sovereign in general. As a noun, it refers to women who hold supreme authority, such as queens or ruling queens. As an adjective, sovrane denotes sovereignty or supreme status when describing feminine nouns, for example in phrases like regine sovrane or popolazioni sovrane. The corresponding masculine forms are sovrano (singular) and sovrani (plural).

Etymology and related forms

The term derives from the Latin superānus, from superus “above.” Through historical development in the Romance languages, sovrano and sovrana came to signify someone who stands above others in authority, and by extension the concept of sovereignty itself. The feminine plural sovrane extends this meaning to groups of female rulers or to describe bodies or states characterized by female sovereignty.

Usage in language and law

In Italian, sovrane is used both in historical and contemporary contexts to discuss female rulers or to describe the notion of sovereignty in a feminine form. The broader concept of sovereignty is expressed with related terms such as sovranità (sovereignty), stato sovrano (sovereign state), and potere sovrano (sovereign power). The masculine equivalent is sovrano and the feminine singular is sovrana.

Cross-language context

Cognate forms exist in other Romance languages: French souveraine, Spanish soberana, Portuguese soberana, all reflecting the same root and meaning of female sovereignty, with parallel masculine forms such as souverain/souverain and souveraineté in their respective languages.

See also

Sovrano, sovranità, stato sovrano, monarchia.