Relating to or characteristic of Byzantium or the Byzantine Empire, often describing something elaborate, ornate, or politically complex.
From Byzantine, derived from Byzantion (modern Istanbul), the ancient Greek city that became Constantinople. The term evolved to describe the Eastern Roman Empire and its distinctive artistic and political style.
The word 'Byzantine' became so associated with convoluted political maneuvering that historians use 'Byzantine politics' to describe any situation with secret deals and complex factions—even today!
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