illegitimiert

Illegitimiert is a German adjective and past participle of illegitimieren. It denotes lack of recognized legitimacy—either because something has never been legitimized or because its legitimacy has been denied by law, institutions, or social consensus. In discourse, legitimacy refers to the acceptance of authority, claim, or practice as rightful or proper; illegitimiert signals that such acceptance is absent or withdrawn.

Usage and contexts: The term is common in political and legal writing but also appears in sociology and philosophy. It can describe a government or regime that is regarded as lacking legal authority or moral sanction, an illegitimate policy, or illegitimate claims. Examples include illegitimierte Regierung, illegitimierte Ansprüche, or illegitimierte Maßnahmen. It is less commonly used to describe individuals directly, with unehelich or similar terms typically serving that sense in everyday language.

Etymology and related terms: Illegitimieren is formed from legitimieren with the negating prefix il-, deriving from Latin legitimus via German. Related concepts are Legitimität (legitimacy) and Legitimation (the process of legitimating). Illegitimiert contrasts with legal terms such as Legalität (legality) and Rechtmäßigkeit; an entity can be legally valid yet still illegitimate in a political or moral sense.