All Topics  
Iron Lady

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Iron Lady
 
 
  Topics Iron Lady Topic Home

Iron Lady is a nickname
Nickname

A nickname is a descriptive name given in place of or in addition to the official name of a person, place or thing. Another class of nickname is the familiar or truncated form of the proper name, such as Bob, Bobby, Rob, Robbie, and Bert for Robert, more properly called a short name....
 that has frequently been used to describe female heads of government around the world. The term describes a "strong willed" woman. This iron metaphor
Iron (metaphor)

Iron, when used metaphorically, refers to certain traits of the metal iron. Used as an adjective and sometimes as a noun, it refers to something stern, harsh, unyielding, inflexible, rigid, sturdy, strong, robust....
 was most famously applied to Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher Order of the Garter, Order of Merit, Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, Fellow of the Royal Society was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990....
, nicknamed so in 1976 by the Soviet
Soviet Union

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a Constitution of the Soviet Union socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991.The name is a translation of the , romanization of Russian Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik, abbreviated ????, SSSR....
 media for her staunch opposition to communism
Communism

Communism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarianism, classlessness, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general....
.

Leaders who have earned the unofficial title (some of them postfactum) include:



Some female politicians have been given similar nicknames:

"Iron Lady of the Seas", a 1984 video, and Iron Lady at Sea, a 1988 book, are about Star of India
Star of India (ship)

Star of India was built in 1863 as Euterpe, a full-rigged iron windjammer ship in Ramsey, Isle of Man, Isle of Man. After a full career sailing from Great Britain to India then to New Zealand, she became a salmon hauler on the Alaska then to California route....
, the oldest iron
Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a Group 8 element and period 4 element. Iron is lustrous and silvery in color....
-hulled merchant ship afloat launched in 1863.

Iron Lady is also the title of a song by Phil Ochs
Phil Ochs

Philip David Ochs was a United States protest song and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and haunting voice....
.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Iron Lady'
Start a new discussion about 'Iron Lady'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Iron Lady is a nickname
Nickname

A nickname is a descriptive name given in place of or in addition to the official name of a person, place or thing. Another class of nickname is the familiar or truncated form of the proper name, such as Bob, Bobby, Rob, Robbie, and Bert for Robert, more properly called a short name....
 that has frequently been used to describe female heads of government around the world. The term describes a "strong willed" woman. This iron metaphor
Iron (metaphor)

Iron, when used metaphorically, refers to certain traits of the metal iron. Used as an adjective and sometimes as a noun, it refers to something stern, harsh, unyielding, inflexible, rigid, sturdy, strong, robust....
 was most famously applied to Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher Order of the Garter, Order of Merit, Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, Fellow of the Royal Society was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990....
, nicknamed so in 1976 by the Soviet
Soviet Union

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a Constitution of the Soviet Union socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991.The name is a translation of the , romanization of Russian Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik, abbreviated ????, SSSR....
 media for her staunch opposition to communism
Communism

Communism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarianism, classlessness, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general....
.

Leaders who have earned the unofficial title (some of them postfactum) include:

  • Golda Meir
    Golda Meir

    Golda Meir was the fourth prime minister of the Israel.Meir was elected Prime Minister of Israel on 17 March 1969, after serving as Minister of Labour and Foreign Minister....
    , the Prime Minister of Israel
    Prime Minister of Israel

    The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of the Israeli government and is the most powerful political officer in Israel . He or she wields executive power in the country, and has an official residence in Jerusalem....
     from 1969 to 1974
  • Barbara Castle
    Barbara Castle

    Barbara Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn Privy Council of the United Kingdom, Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo was a British left-wing politician, born Barbara Anne Betts in Chesterfield, Derbyshire , who adopted her family's politics, joining the Labour Party ....
    , a British left-wing politician (1910-2002).
  • Indira Gandhi
    Indira Gandhi

    Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi was the Prime Minister of the Republic of India for three consecutive terms from 1966 to 1977and for a fourth term from 1980 until her Assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984, a total of fifteen years....
    , the Prime Minister of India
    Prime Minister of India

    The Prime Minister of India is the head of government of the India, and head of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of India, appointed by the President of India to assist the latter in the administration of the affairs of the Executive in India....
     from 1966 to 1977 & 1980 to 1984
  • Margaret Thatcher
    Margaret Thatcher

    Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher Order of the Garter, Order of Merit, Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, Fellow of the Royal Society was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990....
    , the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
    Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

    The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom and the head of government Her Majesty's Government....
     from 1979 to 1990
  • Eugenia Charles
    Eugenia Charles

    Dame Eugenia Charles, Order of the British Empire was the Prime Minister of Dominica of Dominica from July 21 1980 until June 14 1995. She was the first female prime minister in the Caribbean, and the first woman elected in her own right as head of government in North America....
    , the Prime Minister of Dominica
    Prime Minister of Dominica

    The Prime Minister of Dominica is the head of government in the Commonwealth of Dominica. Nominally, the position was created on November 3 1978 when Dominica gained independence from the United Kingdom....
     from 1980 to 1995 known as the "Iron Lady of the Caribbean"
  • Angela Merkel
    Angela Merkel

    , is the Chancellor of Germany . Merkel, elected to the Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, has been the chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union since 9 April 2000, and Chairwoman of the CDU-CSU parliamentary party group from 2002 to 2005....
    , the Chancellor of Germany since 2005
  • Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf
    Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf

    Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is the current President of Liberia of Liberia. She served as Minister of Finance under President William R. Tolbert, Jr....
    , the President of Liberia since 2005


Some female politicians have been given similar nicknames:
  • The Iron Butterfly is a nickname
    Nickname

    A nickname is a descriptive name given in place of or in addition to the official name of a person, place or thing. Another class of nickname is the familiar or truncated form of the proper name, such as Bob, Bobby, Rob, Robbie, and Bert for Robert, more properly called a short name....
     of former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos
    Imelda Marcos

    Imelda redirects here; for other uses see Imelda .'Imelda Remedios Visitacion Romualdez-Marcos' , is the widow of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos, and is herself an influential political figure in the Philippines....
    .
  • Iron Rita is a nickname of former Dutch
    Politics of the Netherlands

    The politics of the Netherlands take place within the framework of a parliamentary system representative democracy, a constitutional monarchy and a decentralization unitary state....
     minister Rita Verdonk
    Rita Verdonk

    Doctorandus Maria Cornelia Frederika "Rita" Verdonk is a The Netherlands Politician who was Ministry of Justice in Cabinet Balkenende II and Balkenende III....
  • "Jern-Erna" (meaning; "Iron-Erna") is a nickname of the leader of the Norwegian Conservative Party, Erna Solberg
    Erna Solberg

    Erna Solberg is a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party of Norway.She was elected to the Storting from Hordaland in 1989, and was re-elected on four occasions....
    .
  • Former United States Secretary of State
    United States Secretary of State

    The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the President's United States Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in United States presidential line of succession and United States order of precedence....
     Madeleine Albright
    Madeleine Albright

    Madeleine Korbel Albright was the List of female United States Cabinet Secretaries to become United States Secretary of State.She was appointed by President Bill Clinton on December 5, 1996, and was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate 99-0....
     was given the nickname "Titanium Lady", playing on some of her similarities with Thatcher.
  • in response to Manuela Ferreira Leite
    Manuela Ferreira Leite

    Maria Manuela Dias Ferreira Leite , commonly "Manuela Ferreira Leite", is a Portugal economist and politician....
    's nickname "Dama de Ferro Portuguesa" (Portuguese Iron Lady), her hardest opponents and critics ironicaly started referring to her as "Dama de Latão" (Yellow brass Lady) and popularising the term.


"Iron Lady of the Seas", a 1984 video, and Iron Lady at Sea, a 1988 book, are about Star of India
Star of India (ship)

Star of India was built in 1863 as Euterpe, a full-rigged iron windjammer ship in Ramsey, Isle of Man, Isle of Man. After a full career sailing from Great Britain to India then to New Zealand, she became a salmon hauler on the Alaska then to California route....
, the oldest iron
Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a Group 8 element and period 4 element. Iron is lustrous and silvery in color....
-hulled merchant ship afloat launched in 1863.

Iron Lady is also the title of a song by Phil Ochs
Phil Ochs

Philip David Ochs was a United States protest song and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and haunting voice....
. In this song, the Iron Lady is a metaphor for the electric chair. This song was also performed by Diamanda Galás
Diamanda Galás

Diamanda Gal?s is an American-born avant-garde performance artist, vocalist, keyboardist, and composer of Greek people heritage.Known for her expert piano as well as her distinctive, operatic voice, which has a three and a half octave range, Gal?s has been described as "capable of the most unnerving vocal terror"....
 on her live album Malediction & Prayer
Malediction & Prayer

Malediction & Prayer is an album by Diamanda Gal?s. It was released in 1998 by Asphodel Ltd....
 in dedication to Aileen Wuornos
Aileen Wuornos

Aileen Carol Wuornos was an United States serial killer who killed seven men in Florida between 1989 and 1990, later claiming they raped or attempted to rape her while she was working as a prostitute....
.

Iron Lady is a Warcraft III LAN
Lan

Lan , in Polish language means "field," and is a unit of land measurement used in Poland. Since the 13th century, its value has varied from one location to another....
 gaming competition held by SteelSeries
SteelSeries

SteelSeries is a manufacturer, distributor and online retailer of a line of products targeted primarily at professional equipment for Computer_game....
 and directed at female Chinese players. The event was created in 2007 and has completed 2 seasons already. Some well known players include Zhang 'Cang' Xiangliang and Xu "Sara" Yinghua, both of whom played in the IronLady.2 Final.

See also

  • Iron Queen


External links