(1) situation in which a people or region is tribute to a more powerful entity, this entity, however, has limited autonomy. (2) domain of an overlord.
Suzerainty (pronounced: or ) is a situation in which a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which allows the tributary some limited domestic to control its foreign affairs. The more powerful entity in the suzerainty relationship, or the head of state of that more powerful entity, is called a suzerain. The term suzerainty was originally used to describe the relationship between the Ottoman Empire and its surrounding regions.