An emirate is a political territory that is ruled by a dynastic Arabic or Islamic monarch-styled emir. The term "emirate" comes from the Arabic word "imārah," which means the quality, dignity, office, or territorial competence of any emir (prince, commander, governor, etc.). Emirate can be considered equivalent to a principality in non-Muslim contexts. The United Arab Emirates is a federal state that comprises seven federal emirates, each administered by a hereditary emir, these seven forming the electoral college for the federations President and Prime Minister. As most emirates have either disappeared, been integrated into a larger modern state, or changed their rulers styles, such true emirate-states have become rare.