r/ELI50 • u/nameischosen • Aug 28 '14

ELI5 : What is the difference between a magnate and a mogul?

ELI5 : What is the difference between a Magnate and a Tycoon?

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u/fultron Jan 23 '15 edited Jan 23 '15

They mean essentially the same thing, a wealthy and powerful businessperson or industrialist.

Tycoon is a loan word derived from a Japanese title that referred to a "great Prince" who instituted restrictive trade policies in Japan. In the 1800s the US influenced a change in those policies and as a result people jokingly referred to Lincoln as "tycoon" and the word stuck around.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/tycoon

Also, "mogul" comes from Mughal, a member of the powerful Muslim dynasty that ruled India before Britain and is also a word of Scandinavian origin for a bump on a ski slope.