Autarky
Etymology
From Greek autárkeia ("self-sufficiency"), from autós ("self") and arkeîn ("to suffice, to be enough"). The core idea is having enough within oneself. It is worth distinguishing carefully from the near-identical "autarchy," which means absolute self-rule and comes from árkhein ("to rule") — autarky is about supplying yourself, not governing yourself.
noun · /AW-tar-kee/
National economic self-sufficiency, in which a country tries to supply all its own needs without relying on trade.
What it names
It names the recurring dream of independence through isolation — the belief that a nation is safest when it needs nothing from anyone else.
Example
Cut off by sanctions, the regime pursued a costly autarky, manufacturing at home what it could once have imported cheaply.
Related idea
Sovereignty is the political right to rule oneself without outside interference; autarky is the economic attempt to sustain oneself without outside trade. A state can guard its sovereignty while trading freely, so the two do not have to go together.