prefecture

Information about prefecture

The term prefecture (from the Latin Praefectura) indicates the office, seat, territorial circumscription of a Prefect. In English the term prefecture is also used to refer to offices deemed equivalent in other languages' cultural traditions.

Literal prefectures

Antiquity

For subsequent types of praefectura, see Praefectus. It has been used most prominently to denote a somewhat self-governing body or area since the tetrarchy, when emperor Diocletian divided the Roman Empire into 4 districts (each divided into dioceses, grouping under a Vicarius a number of Roman provinces, listed under that article), although he maintained two pretorian prefectures as an administrative level above the also surviving dioceses (a few of which were split).

Ecclesiastic

As Canon law is strongly inspired by Roman law, it is not surprising that the Catholic Church has several offices under a prefect. That term occurs also in otherwise styled offices, such as the head of a congregation or department of the Roman curia. Various ecclesiastical areas, too small for a diocese, are termed prefects.

French préfecture

Main article: Prefectures in France


In France, a préfecture is the capital city of a département. As there are 100 départements in France, there are 100 préfectures in France. A préfecture de région'is the capital city of a région.

Analogous prefectures

Brazilian equivalent of prefecture

In Brazil, the prefecture (prefeitura in Portuguese) is the City Hall, home to the Executive of a city and to the mayor's office.

Greek equivalent of prefecture

Main article: Prefectures of Greece
Modern Greece, under its 1975 Constitution, is divided into 51 nomoi (Greek: νομοί) which form the units of local government. These are most commonly translated into English as prefectures.

Each nomos is headed by a prefect (nomarch), who was until recently a ministerial appointee but is nowadays elected by direct popular vote. Municipal elections in Greece are held every four years and voting for the election of nomarchs and mayors is carried out concurrently but with separate ballots.

Chinese equivalents of prefecture

Main article: Prefecture (China)

The ancient sense

Xian (县/縣)
Main article: County (PRC and ROC)
When used in the context of Chinese history, especially China before the Tang Dynasty, the word "prefecture" is used to translate xian (县/縣). This unit of administration is translated as "county" when used in a contemporary context.
Zhou
Main article: Zhou (country subdivision)
In the context of Chinese history during or after the Tang Dynasty, the word "prefecture" is used to translate zhou (州), another ancient unit of administration in China.

The modern sense

In modern-day People's Republic of China, the prefecture (地区; pinyin: dìqū) is an administrative division found in the second level of the administrative hierarchy. In addition to prefectures, this level also includes autonomous prefectures, leagues, and prefecture-level cities. The prefecture level comes under the province level, and in turn oversees the county level.

Japanese sense of prefecture

Main article: Prefectures of Japan
In reference to the Japanese system of administrative subdivisions, prefecture is used as the translation for todōfuken (都道府県). The system of local government in Japan consists of two classes: prefectures as the large-area local governing units and municipalities as the basic local-level governing units. In Asian practice, the administrative segregation of a country or unified nation-state is usually trifold: the state, large-area local governing units, and basic local-level governing units; Japan follows this pattern.

Japan is divided into 47 prefectures, and each is further divided into municipalities. These prefectures and municipalities neither overlap geographically nor leave any area uncovered; all residents of Japan are therefore residents of one municipality and one prefecture. The prefecture plays a sufficiently large role in personal identity that Japanese introducing themselves abroad often mention their prefecture of origin as well as (or instead of) their municipality.

The prefectures and municipalities function as more than just the country's administrative units: they are incorporated bodies—independent from the national government—that possess their own basic spheres of responsibility and local residents as their constituents, holding administrative authority within their respective geographical boundaries. In Hokkaidō and several other prefectures, subprefectures are used as special administrative units, due to peculiarities of governmental evolution and the difficulty in centrally governing certain geographically large or remote areas.

Prefectures are all followed with the suffix -ken (Kanagawa-ken for example). Osaka and Kyoto are both referred to as a -fu, [Osaka-fu and Kyoto-fu respectively] but are also translated as prefectures. There are two government units that are not technically referred to as prefectures in Japan. Tokyo's prefecture-level government and its area is followed by -to, (都 lit. capital) and whose government calls itself "Tokyo Metropolitan Government" in English. Finally Hokkaidō's dō is a suffix for ancient region names but it was so named in 1869. Hokkaidō's government calls itself "Hokkaidō Government" in English. Below a prefecture are -shi (cities) and -ku (wards).

Japan's current prefectural system was established in the Meiji era after the new Meiji government abolished fiefs run by feudal clans known as han. This change is called the abolition of the han system; see "Meiji Restoration" in the History of Japan article and the "Meiji era" article for more historical details of this event.

Mongolian equivalent

Mongolian prefectures (Aimags) were adopted under the Manchu Empire. Today these are usually translated as "provinces".

Venezuelan equivalent

Traditionally the prefecture as being the City Hall and the prefect as being the equivalent of a mayor and commissioner until recently; now the prefectures and prefect are analogous with the figure of Town Clerk

See also

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Types of country subdivision
Contemporary
Amt Arrondissement Bailiwick Bakhsh Baladiyah Banner Autonomous banner Barangay Bairro Barrio Bezirk / Regierungsbezirk Block Borough County borough Metropolitan borough Capital Federal capital Canton Census division Census geographic unit Census metropolitan area Census subdivision Circle Circuit City Autonomous city Independent city Co-Principality Colony Comarca Commonwealth Commune Comune Community Autonomous community Residential community Condominium Constituency County Administrative county Autonomous county Metropolitan county Council Croft Department Dependent territory Federal dependency District Autonomous district Capital district City district Federal district Metropolitan district Municipal district Division Dara Duchy Eldership Frazione Freguesia Governorate Hamlet Insular area Judeţ Local administrative unit Local government area Liwa Localit Municipality District municipality Regional municipality Regional county municipality Rural municipality Neighbourhood Oblast Okrug Ostān Parish Civil parish Periphery Prefecture Autonomous prefecture Principality Protectorate Province Autonomous province Quarter Regency Region Autonomous region Capital region Special administrative region Republic Autonomous republic Ranchera Reservation Indian reserve Shabiyah Shahr Shahrestān Shire State Subdistrict Subprefecture Suzerainty Taluka Tehsil Territory Autonomous territorial unit Capital territory Union territory National territory Town Townland Township Civil township Urban (urbanized) area Village Vingtaine Voivodeship Wilayah Ward
Historical
Agency Barony Burgh Cantref City-State Commote Free Imperial City Hundred Imperial Circle Imperial province March Pargana Presidency Residency Riding Rural district Sanitary district (rural urban) Urban district Viscounty Viscountcy Boldface indicates a type used by ten or more countries; loanwords in italics.
prefect (from the Latin praefectus, perfect participle of praeficere: "make in front", i.e., put in charge) is an official of various different types.
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prefect (from the Latin praefectus, perfect participle of praeficere: "make in front", i.e., put in charge) is an official of various different types.
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Tetrarchy (Greek: "leadership of four people") can be applied to any system of government where power is divided between four individuals but is rarely used. The most famous Tetrarchy is that instituted by Roman Emperor Diocletian in 293 and lasted until c. 313.
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Diocletian
Emperor of the Roman Empire

Diocletian
Reign November 20 284 - 286 (alone);
286 - May 1 305 (as Augustus of the East, with Maximian as Augustus of the West)
Full name Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus

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The Roman Empire is the name given to both the imperial domain developed by the city-state of Rome and also the corresponding phase of that civilization, characterized by an autocratic form of government. This article however is about the latter.
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diocese is an administrative territorial unit administrated by a bishop, hence also referred to as a bishopric or Episcopal Area (as in United Methodism) or episcopal see, though more often the term episcopal see means the office held by the bishop.
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province (Latin, provincia, pl. provinciae) was the basic, and until the Tetrarchy (circa 296), largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of the Italian peninsula (long without full citizenship).
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Canon Law, the ecclesiastical law of the Catholic Church, is a fully developed legal system, with all the necessary elements: courts, lawyers, judges, a fully articulated legal code and principles of legal interpretation. The academic degrees in canon law are the J.C.B.
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A prefecture (French: préfecture) in France can refer to :
  • the Chef-lieu de département, the town in which the administration of a département is located ;
  • the Chef-lieu de région

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Motto
Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité
"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity"
Anthem
"La Marseillaise"


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capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has a second meaning based on an alternative sense of "capital") is the center of government.
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A department (French: département, Spanish: departamento) is a geographically defined area of a centralized state which functions as an administrative unit, usually at provincial level, with
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Administrative divisions of France

Main article

Regions
(incl. overseas regions)
Departments
(incl.
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Motto
Ordem e Progresso   (Portuguese)
"Order and Progress"
Anthem
Hino Nacional Brasileiro
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Portuguese}}} 
Writing system: Latin alphabet (Portuguese variant) 
Official status
Official language of: Angola
Brazil
Cape Verde
East Timor
Equatorial Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Macau (PRC)
Mozambique
Portugal
São Tomé and Príncipe
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city hall or town hall is the headquarters of a city or town's administration and usually houses the city or town council, its associated departments and their employees. It is also usually the base of the city, town, borough, or county mayor.
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In political science and constitutional law, the executive is the branch of government responsible for the day-to-day management of the state. In many countries, it is referred to simply as the government, but this usage can be confusing in an international context.
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A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning "larger", "greater") is the modern title of the highest ranking municipal officer.

In many systems, the mayor is an elected politician who serves as chief executive and/or ceremonial official of many types of
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Greece

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Greece


  • Constitution
  • Parliament
  • Presidium

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Motto
Ελευθερία ή θάνατος
Eleftheria i thanatos  
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Nomos (plural: Nomoi) can refer to:
  • the subdivisions of Ancient Egypt, see Nome (Egypt)
  • the prefectures of Greece, the administrative division immediately below the peripheries of Greece (Greek:

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Greek}}} 
Writing system: Greek alphabet 
Official status
Official language of:  Greece
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recognised as minority language in parts of:
 European Union
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Regulated by:
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English}}} 
Writing system: Latin (English variant) 
Official status
Official language of: 53 countries
Regulated by: no official regulation
Language codes
ISO 639-1: en
ISO 639-2: eng
ISO 639-3: eng  
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Prefecture, in the context of China, is used to refer to several unrelated political divisions in both ancient and modern China.

In a modern context, prefecture-level
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In the context of Political divisions of China, county is the standard English translation of 县 (xiàn). In the People's Republic of China, counties are found in the third level of the administrative hierarchy, a level that is known as "county-level
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The history of China is told in traditional historical records that refer as far back as the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors about 5,000 years ago, supplemented by archaeological records dating to the 16th century BC. China is one of the world's oldest continuous civilizations.
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The zhōu (州) was a historical political division of China. First established during the Han Dynasty, zhou continued to exist until the establishment of the Republic of China — a period of over 2000 years.
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Anthem
March of the Volunteers (义勇军进行曲)
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