Egemenlik Kavramı ve Siyasi Düşünürler

The concept of sovereignty has taken in a central place in political science and public law as one of the most important issues regarding the state since its emergence. The notion of Sovereignty, which is one of the constituent elements of the state, has emerged in Europe with the burgeoning of modern state. Important political thinkers such as Machiavelli, Bodin, Hobbes and Rousseau had a big influence in transforming sovereignty, which first appeared effectively in the form of absolute monarchies, into a concept. The notion of sovereignty has not remained in the same vein since its emergence, the developments in the historical process have lead to the concept to transform into new aspect. Sovereignty, originally thought to have its source in God, was evaluated as a transcendent concept. Over time, it has been severed from its divine bonds. First, the concept gained a secular quality and then took on a democratic identity. In the study, the different dimensions of the concept of sovereignty and its changing meaning in the historical process were examined in the context of the opinions of political thinkers. It was concluded that the concept still has a transcendent and metaphysical character.