mandarinate

== English == === Etymology === From French mandarinat, corresponding to mandarin +‎ -ate (forms nouns denoting rank or office, a body of people performing it, the concrete charge of it). === Noun === mandarinate (plural mandarinates) (obsolete) The status of holding a position as a mandarin. [18th–19th c.] The collective body of mandarins. [from 19th c.] A political form of rule by mandarins. (figuratively) A type of government marked by excessive bureaucracy and Byzantine regulations. ==== Translations ====