Municipality

The Ponce City Hall, in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico, is the seat of the government for both the city and the surrounding barrios making up the municipality.

Map of all City Municipalities in Slovenia.

A municipality is usually an urban administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction. The term municipality is also used to mean the governing, ruling body of a municipality.^[1] A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district. The term is derived from French "municipalité" and Latin "municipalis".^[2]

The English word "Municipality" derives from the Latin social contract municipium (derived from a word meaning duty holders), referring to the Latin communities that supplied Rome with troops in exchange for their own incorporation into the Roman state (granting Roman citizenship to the inhabitants) while permitting the communities to retain their own local governments (a limited autonomy).

A municipality can be any political jurisdiction from a sovereign state, such as the Principality of Monaco, or a small village, such as West Hampton Dunes, New York.

The territory over which a municipality has jurisdiction may encompass

• only one populated place such as a city, town, or village
• several of such places (e.g., early jurisdictions in the state of New Jersey (1798–1899) as townships governing several villages, Municipalities of Mexico)
• only parts of such places, sometimes boroughs of a city such as the 34 municipalities of Santiago, Chile.^[3]

Political powers

The power of municipalities range from virtual autonomy to complete subordination to the state. Municipalities may have the right to tax individuals and corporations with income tax, property tax, and corporate income tax, but may also receive substantial funding from the state.

In various countries

Coat of arms of the town Svätý Jur in Western Slovakia.

In various countries, municipalities are usually referred to as "communes", notably in Romance languages (derived from Latin) such as French commune (France, French-speaking areas of Belgium and Switzerland, French-speaking countries of Africa, e.g. Benin), Italian comune, Romanian comună, and Spanish comuna (Chile), and in Germanic languages such as German Kommune (in political parlance, the official term being Gemeinde), Swedish kommun, and Norwegian/Danish kommune.

Similar terms include Spanish ayuntamiento, also called municipalidad (cognate to "municipality"), Polish gmina, Dutch/Flemish Gemeente and Luxembourgish Gemeng.

English-speaking

• In Australia, the term local government area (LGA) is used in place of the generic municipality. Here, the "LGA Structure covers only incorporated areas of Australia. Incorporated areas are legally designated parts of states and territories over which incorporated local governing bodies have responsibility."^[4]
• In Canada, municipalities are local governments established through provincial and territorial legislation, usually within general municipal statutes.^[5][6] Types of municipalities within Canada include cities, district municipalities, municipal districts, municipalities, parishes, rural municipalities, towns, townships, villages, and villes among others.^[6] The Province of Ontario has different tiers of municipalities, including lower, upper, and single tiers.^[7] Types of upper tier municipalities in Ontario include counties and regional municipalities.^[7] Nova Scotia also has regional municipalities, which include cities, counties, districts, or towns as municipal units.^[8]
• In India, a Nagar Palika or Municipality is an urban local body that administers a city of population 100,000 or more. However, there are exceptions to that, as previously Nagar Palikas were constituted in urban centers with population over 20,000, so all the urban bodies which were previously classified as Nagar Palikaa were reclassified as Nagar Palikas even if their population was under 100,000. Under the Panchayati Raj system, it interacts directly with the state government, though it is administratively part of the district it is located in. Generally, smaller district cities and bigger towns have a Nagar Palika. Nagar Palikas are also a form of local self-government entrusted with some duties and responsibilities, as enshrined in the Constitutional (74th Amendment) Act,1992.
• In the United Kingdom, the term was used until 1974 in England and Wales, and until 1975 in Scotland and 1976 in Northern Ireland, "both for a city or town which is organized for self-government under a municipal corporation, and also for the governing body itself. Such a corporation in Great Britain consists of a head as a mayor or provost, and of superior members, as aldermen and councillors".^[9] Since local government reorganisation, the unit in England, Northern Ireland and Wales is known as a district, and in Scotland as a council area. A district may be awarded borough or city status, or can retain its district title.
• In Jersey, a municipality refers to the honorary officials elected to run each of the 12 parishes into which it is subdivided. This is the highest level of regional government in this jurisdiction.
• In the United States, "municipality" is usually understood as a city, town, village, or other local government unit, formed by municipal charter from the state as a municipal corporation.^[10] In a state law context, some U.S. state codes define "municipality" more widely, from the state itself to any political subdivisions given jurisdiction over an area that may include multiple populated places and unpopulated places.^[11][12] (See also Political divisions of the United States.)

Chinese-speaking

• In the People's Republic of China, a direct-controlled municipality (直辖市 in pinyin: zhíxiáshì) is a city with equal status to a province: Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing (see Municipality of China).
• In Taiwan (Republic of China), a special municipality (直轄市 in pinyin: zhíxiáshì) is a city with equal status to a province: Kaohsiung, New Taipei, Taichung, Tainan, Taipei and Taoyaun (see Special municipality of Taiwan).

Municipalities by country

Country	Term	Example	Subdivision of	Quantity	Notes	Further reading
Albania	bashki (urban) or komunë (rural)			61		Municipalities of Albania
Algeria	baladiyah		daïra (district), which is part of a wilaya (province)	1,541		Municipalities of Algeria
Andorra	parròquia	Sant Julià de Lòria		7
Argentina	municipalidad	Puerto Madryn	Provinces of Argentina, in some provinces they are a subdivision of departments	2100	Smallest administrative division; either a city, town, or township	Municipalities of Argentina
Austria	Gemeinde		district (Bezirk), which is in turn part of a state (Bundesland).	1725	The entire area of Austria is divided into municipalities, with no non-municipal gaps. This leads to some municipalities being very large despite having a small population.	Municipalities of Austria
Bangladesh	Pouroshabha / Pouroshava		Upazila or subdistrict, which is in turn part of a district	311		Municipalities of Bangladesh
Belgium	gemeente/commune		a province (provincie/province) or of the Brussels-Capital Region	589		Municipalities in Belgium
Bolivia	municipio	Arani Municipality	province, which is part of a departamento.	327 (2005)		Municipalities of Bolivia
Bosnia and Herzegovina	općina or opština		in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina : of a canton (kanton). In Republika Srpska, municipality is first order of government after entity government.	144		Municipalities of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Brazil	município	São Paulo (most populous), Borá (least populous)	states (estados)	5,564	Smallest administrative subdivision. Not used in the Federal District or the Fernando de Noronha and St. Peter and St. Paul archipelagos, but encompasses all other territories nationwide	Municipalities of Brazil
Bulgaria	Bulgarian: община, obshtina	Aksakovo Municipality	an oblast	264		Municipalities of Bulgaria
Kingdom of Cambodia	(ស឵ល឵ក្រុង) refers to city hall			1446
Chile	municipalidad		provinces		Specifically the administrative body, while subdivisions are comunas; most municipalities administer one comuna each, but occasional municipalities administer more
China	直辖市	Beijing		4	Status equal to a province	Municipalities of China
Colombia	municipio		a department (departamento)	1102	It is also subdivided into Localities and Neighborhoods in urban municipalities and into Corregimientos and Veredas in rural municipalities	Municipalities of Colombia
Costa Rica	Municipalidad		Province (Provinces of Costa Rica)			Cantones of Costa Rica
Croatia	općina		county (županija)			Municipalities of Croatia
Czech Republic	obec	Karlovy Vary	a kraj (kraj)	6250
Denmark	kommune	Aabenraa Municipality	a region	98	Counties (amter) were abandoned in 2007	Municipalities of Denmark
Dominican Republic	municipio		province			Municipalities of the Dominican Republic
El Salvador	municipio	Ahuachapán, Ahuachapán	departamentos	262		Municipalities of El Salvador
Estonia	omavalitsus	Are vald (Are Parish)	county (maakond)	215	Can be either towns (linn) or parishes (vald)	Municipalities of Estonia
Finland	kunta/kommun			317	Can choose whether to call itself a "city" (kaupunki).	Municipalities of Finland
France	commune		canton, which is part of an arrondissement, which is part of a department (département) which is part of a region (région)	36,600
Germany	Gemeinde		district (Kreis, literally "Circle"). Larger entities of the same level are called Stadt, plural Städte (Cities resp. Towns), which can be part of a Kreis (they are kreisangehörig, meaning "belonging to a Circle") or constituting a district on its own (kreisfrei, meaning "free of a Circle"). In less populated regions, small municipalities are often put together into consolidated superior municipalities (Verbandsgemeinde, Samtgemeinde or Amtsgemeinde)	12013		Municipalities of Germany
Georgia	munits'ipaliteti				self-governing towns/cities (k'alak'i) and communities (t'emi)	Municipalities of Georgia
Greece	demos (δήμος, pl. δήμοι) or koinoteta (κοινότητα, pl. κοινότητες)				Demoi and koinotetes are both considered municipalities; the latter are less populous	Municipalities and communities of Greece
Greenland	kommunea	Kujalleq			First-level administrative division	Municipalities of Greenland
Haiti	commune		an arrondissement, which is part of a department (département).
Honduras	municipio		was in 1895 originally the subdivision of the district (distrito), but as districts have fallen into disuse, it is now the subdivision of the department (departamento).	298		Municipalities of Honduras
Hungary	település		a county (megye).	3,168 (in 2005)
Iceland	sveitarfélag	Reykjavík	Regions	74	The country's only self-governing local administrative units	Municipalities of Iceland
India	Nagaraatchi nagar palika				Excludes both villages and large cities; typically has more than twenty thousand residents, but cannot exceed five hundred thousand	Municipalities of India
Israel					Includes city councils (large municipalities), local councils (small municipalities), and regional councils (a group of communities; often rural)
Italy	comune		a province (provincia) which is part of a region (regione).	8058	Solely used for subdivisions of larger comuni, especially in Rome; municipio indicates the city hall; in some case, they are joined in mountain communities (comunità montane)[13]	List of comuni of Italy
Japan					Below the prefecture; includes shi (cities), cho (towns), and son (villages)	Municipalities of Japan
Kenya					a municipality is one of four types of local authorities. Nearly 50 major towns are given the municipality status.
Latvia	singular: novads, plural: novadi	Aglonas novads (Aglona Municipality)			A municipality normally consists of amalgamated parishes (singular: pagasts, plural: pagasti).	Municipalities of Latvia
Lebanon			a district (Arabic: Qadaa‎) which is part of a Governorate (Region or Province, Arabic: Mouhafazah).
Libya					the municipality level is that of the Basic People's Congress. Large cities are subdivided.	Municipalities of Libya
Lithuania	savivaldybė	Kalvarijos savivaldybė (Kalvarija Municipality)	a district (apskritis) and is subdivided into elderates (seniūnija).			Municipalities of Lithuania
Luxembourg	commune (in French); Gemeng, plur. Gemengen (in Luxembourgish)		part of a canton (Luxembourgish: Kantoun) which itself is part of a district	105	are the lowest divisions
Macedonia	opština	Aračinovo Municipality	the country (top-level) or the City of Skopje	84 (2004)	current set established in 2004, reduced from 123 created in 1996.	Municipalities of the Republic of Macedonia
Malta	Kunsill Lokali (Local Council)	Valletta Local Council	none	68	established 1993, one new council created since then (Mtarfa)	Local councils of Malta
Mauritius					a municipality: The administration of all the main towns in Mauritius is done by the municipality of the respective towns.Most of the towns are found in the district of Plaines Wilhems. The capital city, Port-Louis is managed by the Municipality of Port-Louis, found in the district of Port Louis. The other seven districts are administered by are called district councils.
Mexico	municipio / delegación	Asientos Municipality	a state (estado) or the DF		a borough (delegación) is a subdivision of the Federal District	Municipalities of Mexico and boroughs of the Mexican Federal District
Moldova	municipiu	Municipiul Chișinău			is a main city or town and surrounding villages ranked by law at this level.	Moldova#Administrative divisions
Montenegro	opština	Andrijevica Municipality	the country (top-level)			Municipalities of Montenegro
Nepal	Nagarpalika			58 (after the census in 2001)	a municipality is a town not large enough in population or infrastructure to qualify as a sub-metropolitan city.
Netherlands	gemeente		a province (provincie)	403 + 3 special municipalities		Municipalities in the Netherlands
New Zealand					a municipality is part of either a "city" (mostly urban) or a "district" (mostly rural). The term "municipality" has become rare in New Zealand since about 1979 and has no legal status. (See territorial authorities of New Zealand.)
Nicaragua	municipio		a department (departamento) or of one of the two Autonomous Regions, North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region and South Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region.		Municipalities of Nicaragua
Norway	kommune	Røyken kommune	a county (fylke)	430 (2009)		Municipalities of Norway
Palestinian National Authority				105	municipalities are localities with populations over 4,000 and have 13-15 council members.	Municipality (Palestinian Authority)
Pakistan			of a tehsil/taluka or sub-district of a "district".			Local government in Pakistan
Paraguay	municipalidad		a departament (departamento)
Peru	municipio		a province (provincia), which is part of a department (departamento). As of 2002 a department is now called a region (región).		is another term for district (distrito) and is the lower-level administrative subdivision.
Philippines	bayan or munisipyo		a province		is a town with a popularly elected administration including a mayor and is part of a province (lalawigan or probinsya) (except for the independent municipality of Pateros, Metro Manila in the National Capital Region). Municipalities are not the smallest division of local government and are composed of barangays.
Poland	gmina	Gmina Annopol	county (powiat).
Portugal	concelho or município				Concelho is a directly elected local area authority generally consisting of a main city or town and surrounding villages, with wide-ranging local administration powers. Apart from the municipality of Corvo, however, municípios are not the smallest administrative unit in Portugal, that being the freguesia (civil parish). For central government purposes, Portuguese municipalities are grouped into districts (distritos). In Portugal, a municipality (município/concelho) is the primary local administrative unit. Although part of a district (distrito) for certain national administrative purposes, the municipality is not subordinate to the district and decentralization is doing away with the districts. A municipality contains one or more freguesias.	Municipalities of Portugal
Puerto Rico	municipio				municipality consists of an urban area (termed a city or town) plus all of its surrounding barrios comprising the municipality. It has a popularly elected administration and a municipal mayor. The seat of the municipal government is located in such urban area and serves the entire municipal jurisdiction.[14][15]	Municipalities of Puerto Rico
Romania	comună / oraș / municipiu				A commune (comună) is the rural subdivision of a judeţ. Urban areas, such as towns and cities within a county, are given the status of city (oraș) or municipality (municipiu).	Communes of Romania
Russia					several types of municipalities ("municipal formations") exist; see subdivisions of Russia
San Marino					there are also eight minor municipalities, castelli.
Serbia	opština		a district (okrug)
Slovakia	obec		district (okres)	2,891
Slovenia	občina		region (regija)	212	a municipality (občina) is the primary local administrative unit. There are 212 of them, 11 of which have a special "Urban" status with additional autonomy.	Municipalities of Slovenia
South Africa					district municipalities and metropolitan municipalities are subdivisions of the provinces, and local municipalities are subdivisions of district municipalities.
Spain	municipio / municipi / concello / udalerria				a municipality (municipio) is the primary local administrative unit. It is a part of a province (provincia) for all national administrative purposes. In the Galicia region, the municipalities are called, in Galician language, concellos, and in the Principality of Asturias region, a municipality is called a concejo (in Spanish language) or a conceyu (in Asturian language). In these two regions a municipality contains one or more parroquias (parishes).	Municipalities of Spain
Sweden	kommun	Stockholm Municipality Gothenburg Municipality Malmö Municipality Nacka Municipality Ale Municipality	County Councils of Sweden (Swedish: landsting) self-governing local authority, covering 21 counties, each comprising one or more of the municipalities.	290	is self-governing according to the Swedish constitution and constitutes local government. Before 1971, a municipality could be called a town (stad), a köping or a rural municipality (landskommun); present municipalities which used to be towns are still commonly called towns. Sweden is also divided in 2 512 parishes (Swedish: församlingar).	Municipalities of Sweden
Switzerland	commune/Gemeinde/comune		a canton (canton/Kanton/cantone) and defined by cantonal law.			Municipalities in Switzerland
Thailand	thesaban		None	1,602	There are three levels of municipalities, and municipalities are not self-governed except for Bangkok and Pattaya. Municipalities introduced in 1935, Bangkok became self-governed in 1972, and Pattaya became self-governed in 1978.	Thesaban
Turkey	belediye	Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality	il(province)	2,920	is a local government authority and there are two types of municipalities: metropolitan (büyükşehir) municipality, district (alt/ilçe) municipality.
Ukraine					there are two types of municipalities: urban and rural. Both are referred to after their governing body as council (i.e. miskrada, selyshchna rada or silrada). They are considered the lowest administrative division in the country and better known as the local government. Urban municipalities are more complex and divided into city municipalities (miskrada) and town municipalities (selyshchna rada). The most complex municipalities are the cities of regional significance which are referred to simply as cities and create a sort of ambiguity.
United Arab Emirates			an emirate		is defined by the law of the specific emirates.
Uruguay	municipio			89		Municipalities of Uruguay
Venezuela	municipio	Anaco Municipality	a state, as well as a subdivision of the Capital District (estado)			Municipalities of Venezuela
Vietnam	Direct-controlled municipality	Ho Chi Minh City (largest)		5	A direct-controlled municipality (Thành phố trực thuộc trung ương) is a city with equal status to a province	Municipalities of Vietnam

• In Portuguese language usage, there are two words to distinguish the territory and the administrative organ. When referring to the territory, the word concelho is used, when referring to the organ of State, the word município is used. This differentiation is still in use in Portugal and some of its former overseas provinces, but it’s no longer in use in Brazil.

See also

• Council of European Municipalities and Regions
• Council-manager government
• Creature of statute
• Lists of municipalities
• Mayor-council government
• Municipal corporation
• Municipal government

References

1. "Municipality". Merriam-Webster.
2. "municipality definition". Yourdictionary.com.
3. "Santiago de Chile – Comunas". Mapas de Chile, Castor y Polux Ltda.
4. "Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC)". Australian Bureau of Statistics.
5. "Municipal Government". The Canadian Encyclopedia > Government > Government, General > Municipal Government. Historica Foundation of Canada. 2009. Retrieved 2011-07-17.
6. "Interim List of Changes to Municipal Boundaries, Status, and Names – From January 2, 2010 to January 1, 2011" (PDF). Statistics Canada. April 2011. Retrieved 2011-07-17.
7. "List of Ontario Municipalities". Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. 2011-07-04. Retrieved 2011-07-17.
8. "Municipal Government Act" (PDF). Office of the Legislative Counsel, Nova Scotia House of Assembly. 2010-01-07. Retrieved 2011-07-17.
9. Wikisource:1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Municipality
10. "Legal Dictionary: Municipal Law". FindLaw.
11. "2009 Nevada Code". Justia.
12. "Kansas Statues". Lesterama.
13. The law provides for the possibility of overlapping of the office of President of the mountain community with that of mayor of one of the municipalities of the community: Buonomo, Giampiero (2001). "Compatibile il sindaco-dirigente della locale Comunità montana". Diritto&Giustizia edizione online.  – via Questia (subscription required)
14. Ayuda: Divulgación de Resultados de la Comisión Estatal de Elecciones – Municipio. Comision Estatal de Elecciones. Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. San Juan, Puerto Rico. 2004. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
15. Autonomous Municipalities Law. (in Spanish) Retrieved 24 October 2011.

External links

•  Elton, Charles Isaac (1884). "Municipality". Encyclopædia Britannica 17 (9th ed.).