The term prestige is from 1650s, "trick," from French prestige (16c.) "deceit, imposture, illusion" (in Modern French, "illusion, magic, glamour"), from Latin praestigium "delusion, illusion."

Prestige can translate into negotiating power while also serving individual ambitions. The ongoing competition between the United States and China may be seen as a competition over the hierarchy of prestige. China wants to replace the US as the most prestigious state in the international system within the next thirty years. Asia is where China must establish its prestige or ‘reputation for power.’ The US will do everything in its power to maintain its top position because the state with the greatest reputation for power gets to govern.

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Prestigious events, an illusion of grandeur, trickery in space