Describing an Eastern Orthodox Christian church that is self-governing and does not answer to any other church's authority.
From Greek auto- (self) + kephale (head) + -ous (full of or having the quality of). Literally means 'self-headed' or 'its own head'.
The Russian Orthodox Church declared itself autocephalous in 1448—it was basically saying 'we're breaking up with Constantinople and running ourselves now!'
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