Maybe.
The word anarchy comes from the ancient Greek ἀναρχία (anarchia), which combines ἀ (a), "not, without" and ἀρχή (arkhi), "ruler, leader, authority." Thus, the term refers to a person or society "without rulers" or "without leaders"
If you understand it to mean "without rulers" or "without leaders" (rather than "without laws"), then maybe would a place like Classical Athens qualify?
It was a democracy -- with laws; and at some point in their history they tried to ensure there were no leaders -- no king, no tyrant.
Citizens were selected for public office by lottery. I was told that the overall leader was a figure-head, also selected by lottery ... and changed every day? -- I don't have a reference for that, don't know the details myself, but for example see e.g. here:
Although the process of the next transition is unclear, after 487 BC the archonships were assigned by lot to any citizen and the Polemarch's military duties were taken over by a new class of generals known as strategoi.
V for Vendetta more-or-less explains "anarchy" like this:
- Eve: All this riot and uproar, V... is this Anarchy? Is this the Land of Do-As-You-Please?
Eve: All this riot and uproar, V... is this Anarchy? Is this the Land of Do-As-You-Please?
- V: No. This is only the land of take-what-you-want. Anarchy means "without leaders"; not "without order". With anarchy comes an age or ordnung, of true order, which is to say voluntary order... this age of ordung will begin when the mad and incoherent cycle of verwirrung that these bulletins reveal has run its course... This is not anarchy, Eve. This is chaos.
V: No. This is only the land of take-what-you-want. Anarchy means "without leaders"; not "without order". With anarchy comes an age or ordnung, of true order, which is to say voluntary order... this age of ordung will begin when the mad and incoherent cycle of verwirrung that these bulletins reveal has run its course... This is not anarchy, Eve. This is chaos.
