Public
The people. The spaces and resources that belong to everyone. Funded by all, maintained by few, but controlled by who? (compare with Private)
How We Say It
pub·lik
Where It Comes From
Latin publicus — of the people, of the state. Alteration of older poplicus — pertaining to populus (the people). The modern conception of a public sphere — a space for citizens to deliberate on common concerns — was theorized by Jurgen Habermas in the 1960s.
How It's Been Used
Operates as both adjective and noun. As adjective — public goods, public health, public education — describes what is collectively provided or shared. As noun — the public — describes the imagined collective audience for political communication. The privatization of formerly public goods and the decline of physical public spaces are persistent themes of contemporary analysis.