virate

A virate is a political arrangement in which sovereign or executive authority is held jointly by two individuals. The term, derived from the Latin vir meaning "man," is used in historical and political science contexts to describe a diarchy or dual kingship rather than a single ruler.

In a virate, power is generally shared equally, though some models assign different functional domains (for example, one handles military matters while the other oversees civil government) or employ rotating terms to prevent stalemate.

Historically, Sparta's dual kingship is the most famous example of a virate: two kings from different royal houses ruled concurrently and exercised religious and military functions under the oversight of other institutions such as the Gerousia (council) and the Apella (assembly). Carthage is another often-cited case, with two suffetes serving as chief magistrates in a diarchic system.

In other contexts, similar arrangements appeared as two-person executive boards or duumvirates, where offices were shared rather than fused; in Rome, two-person magistracies existed in certain offices, but the state did not operate as a permanent virate at empire-level power.

In modern usage, virate can describe any formal or informal arrangement of two leaders who rule jointly, such as co-presidents or co-chief executives. Its advantages include checks and balance and legitimacy through broad consensus, while its drawbacks include potential deadlock, competition, and incoherence without clear rules and power division.