autonomy

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
autonomy /ɔːˈtɒnəmi/

▶noun (pl. autonomies)

• 1 the possession or right of self-government.

• 2 freedom of action.

– derivatives
autonomist noun & adjective,
autonomous adjective,
autonomously adverb.

– origin C17: from Gk autonomia, from autonomos ‘having its own laws’, from autos ‘self’ + nomos ‘law’.