''Mepe'' ( ka, მეფე ) is a title used to designate the Georgian monarch, whether it is a King or a Queen regnant. The word is derived from Georgian word ''"me-u-pe"'' which literally means

sovereign ''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'. The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...

and lord. Even though ''mepe'' has a female equivalent, დედოფალი (''dedopali,'' literally meaning ''queen'') it is only applied to the king's consort and does not have a meaning of a ruling monarch.Royal Imagery in Medieval Georgia, Antony Eastmond, p109 Later, after David IV, the official style of Georgian kings became "mepetmepe" (

King of Kings King of Kings; grc-gre, Βασιλεὺς Βασιλέων, Basileùs Basiléōn; hy, արքայից արքա, ark'ayits ark'a; sa, महाराजाधिराज, Mahārājadhirāja; ka, მეფეთ მეფე, ''Mepet mepe'' ...

), similar to the Byzantine "Basileus Basileōn" and Persian Shahanshah. Title Shahanshah was also separately used by Georgian monarchs, denoting sovereignty over several Persianate subjects such as Shirvanshahs and Atabegate of Azerbaijan.

References

Royal titles Georgian words and phrases Honorifics Noble titles of Georgia (country) Bagrationi dynasty Monarchs of Georgia {{italic title

See also

References