Districts are a type of administrative division Administrative divisions are divisions of a political division. In other words, they are designated portions of a country. They are also called subnational entities. They are each granted a certain degree of autonomy, and are required to manage themselves through their own local governments. Countries are divided up into these smaller units to, in some countries managed by a local government Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state. The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government. "Local government" only acts within powers delegated to it by. They vary greatly in size, spanning entire regions Region is most commonly a geographical term that is used in various ways among the different branches of geography. In general, a region may be seen as a collection of smaller units or as one part of a larger whole (as in "the New England region of the United States"). Regions can be defined by physical characteristics, human or counties A county is a land area of local government within a country. A county may have cities and towns within its area. Originally, in continental Europe, a county was the land under the jurisdiction of a count (conte, comte, conde, Graf), several municipalities A municipality is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a city, town, or village, or a small grouping of them. A municipality is typically governed by a mayor and a city council or municipal council, or subdivisions of municipalities.

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Austria

Main article: Districts of Austria Austria is divided into 84 political districts , and 15 Statutarstädte which form their own districts

In Austria Austria /ˈɒstriə/ or /ˈɔːstriə/ (German: Österreich (help·info)), officially the Republic of Austria (German: Republik Österreich), is a landlocked country of roughly 8.3 million people in Central Europe. It borders Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and, a district or Bezirk is an administrative division normally encompassing several municipalities A municipality is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a city, town, or village, or a small grouping of them. A municipality is typically governed by a mayor and a city council or municipal council, roughly equivalent to the Landkreis in Germany A region named Germania, inhabited by several Germanic peoples, has been known and documented before AD 100. Beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire, which lasted until 1806. During the 16th century, northern Germany became the centre of the Protestant Reformation. As a modern nation-state,. The administrative office of a district, the Bezirkshauptmannschaft is headed by the Bezirkshauptmann. It is in charge of the administration of all matters of federal and state administrative law Administrative law is the body of law that governs the activities of administrative agencies of government. Government agency action can include rulemaking, adjudication, or the enforcement of a specific regulatory agenda. Administrative law is considered a branch of public law. As a body of law, administrative law deals with the decision-making and subject to orders from the higher instances, usually the Landeshauptmann Landeshauptmann is German gubernatorial title equivalent to that of a governor of a province or a state (governor) in matters of federal law and the Landesregierung (state government) in state law. While there are matters of administrative law the municipalities themselves are in charge of, or where there are special bodies, the district is the basic unit of general administration in Austria. Officials on the district level are not elected, but appointed by the state government. There are also independent cities Independent cities should not be confused with city-states , which are fully sovereign cities that are not part of any other nation state in Austria. They are called Statutarstadt A Statutory city is a city with its own municipal law or city statute in Austrian administrative law. These urban districts In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council do have the same tasks as a normal district.

Vienna

Main article: Districts of Vienna Legally, they are not districts in the sense of administrative bodies with explicit powers (such as the districts in the other Austrian states, but mere subdivisions of the city administration. However, there are elections on the district level, which gives the representatives of the districts some political power . Also, as a practical matter,

The State of Vienna Vienna is the capital of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.7 million (2.3 million within the metropolitan area,[citation needed] more than 25% of Austria's population), and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and, which is at the same time a municipality, is also subdivided in twenty-three districts, which, however, have a somewhat different function than in the rest of the country. Legally, the Magistratisches Bezirksamt (district office) is a local offices of the municipality's administration. However, representatives (Bezirksräte) on the district level are elected, and they in turn elect the head of the district, the Bezirksvorsteher. Those representative bodies are supposed to serve as immediate contacts for the locals on the political and administrative level. In practice, they have some power, e.g. concerning matters of traffic.

Australia

Main articles: State Electoral Districts, Cadastral divisions of Australia Lands administrative divisions of Australia refers to the parts of Australia which are divided into the cadastral units of counties, parishes, hundreds, and other divisions for the purposes of land ownership. Many property titles in Australia are listed as being in the parish and county

Electoral districts are used in state elections. Districts were also used in several states as cadastral A cadastre , using a cadastral survey or cadastral map, is a comprehensive register of the metes-and-bounds real property of a country. A cadastre commonly includes details of the ownership, the tenure, the precise location (some include GPS coordinates), the dimensions (and area), the cultivations if rural, and the value of individual parcels of units for land titles. Some were used as squatting Squatting consists of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied space or building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have permission to use. According to author Robert Neuwirth, there are one billion squatters globally, that is, about one in every six people on the planet. Yet, according to Kesia Reeve, " districts. New South Wales had several different types of districts used in the nineteenth century.

Azerbaijan

Main article: Subdivisions of Azerbaijan

Bangladesh

Bangladeshi districts are local administrative units inherited from the British Raj The British Raj is the name given to the period of British colonial rule in South Asia between 1858 and 1947; it can also refer to the dominion itself, and even the region under the rule. The region, commonly called India in contemporary usage, included areas directly administered by Britain, as well as the princely states ruled by individual. In all, there are 64 districts in Bangladesh. Originally, there were 21 greater districts with several subdivisions in each district. In 1984, the government made all these subdivisions into districts. Each district has several sub districts called Upazila in Bengali.

Belgium

In Belgian Belgium (pronounced /ˈbɛldʒəm/ , BEL-jəm), officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters, as well as those of other major international organizations, including NATO. Belgium covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres (11,787 sq mi), and it has a municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants, on initiative of the local council, sub-municipal administrative entities with elected councils may be created. As such, only Antwerp Antwerp (English: /ˈæntwɜrp/ ; Dutch: Antwerpen, [ˈɑntˌʋɛrpə(n)] ( listen); French: Anvers, [ɑ̃vɛʁ, ɑ̃vɛʁs]) is a city and municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Antwerp province in Flanders, one of Belgium's three regions. Antwerp's total population is 472,071 (as of 1 January 2008) and its total area is 204.51 km2 (78.96, having over 460,000 inhabitants, became subdivided into nine districts Antwerp (English: /ˈæntwɜrp/ ; Dutch: Antwerpen, [ˈɑntˌʋɛrpə(n)] ( listen); French: Anvers, [ɑ̃vɛʁ, ɑ̃vɛʁs]) is a city and municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Antwerp province in Flanders, one of Belgium's three regions. Antwerp's total population is 472,071 (as of 1 January 2008) and its total area is 204.51 km2 (78.96 (Dutch Dutch ( Nederlands ) is a West Germanic language spoken by over 22 million people as a native language and over 5 million people as a second language. Most native speakers live in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, with smaller groups of speakers in parts of France, Germany and several former Dutch colonies. It is closely related to other: districten).

The Belgian arrondissements An arrondissement is an administrative division in France, most of the nations which were its former colonies in Africa and some other French-speaking nations, as well as in Belgium and the Netherlands (also in French French is a Romance language spoken as a first language by about 136 million people worldwide. Around 190 million people speak French as a second language, and an additional 200 million speak it as an acquired foreign language. French speaking communities are present in 57 countries and territories. Most native speakers of the language live in as well as in Dutch Dutch ( Nederlands ) is a West Germanic language spoken by over 22 million people as a native language and over 5 million people as a second language. Most native speakers live in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, with smaller groups of speakers in parts of France, Germany and several former Dutch colonies. It is closely related to other), an administrative level between province (or the capital region) and municipality, or the lowest judicial level, are in English English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into South-East Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria. Following the economic, political, military, scientific, cultural, and colonial influence of Great Britain and the United Kingdom from the 18th century, and of sometimes called districts as well.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

In Bosnia and Herzegovina district is a neutral, self-governing administrative unit, under the sovereignty of the Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Brčko District

Brčko District in northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina is formally part of both entities, the Republika Srpska Republika Srpska listen (Serbian Cyrillic: Република Српска) is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Republika Srpska is defined in its constitution as a territorially unified, indivisible and inalienable constitutional and legal entity that shall, and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina listen (Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian: Federacija Bosne i Hercegovine Serbian Cyrillic: Федерација Босне и Херцеговине) is one of the two political entities that compose the sovereign country of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the other entity is the Republika Srpska). The two entities are. There are 29 seats in the Assembly of the Brčko District Brčko District in northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina is a self-governing, entity-neutral, administrative unit under the sovereignty of the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is formally part of both the Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina which are two entities of the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Brazil

Brazilian Brazil (pronounced /brəˈzɪl/ ; Portuguese: Brasil, IPA: [bɾaˈziw]), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: República Federativa do Brasil, listen (help·info)), is the largest country in South America and the only Portuguese-speaking country in the Americas. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical municipalities are subdivided into districts. Smalls municipalities usually have only one urban district, which contains the city A city is a relatively large and permanent urban settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law itself, consisting of the seat of the local government, where the municipality's prefeitura Prefecture indicates the office, seat, territorial circumscription of a Prefect. The term prefecture is also used to refer to offices analogous to prefectures and câmara de vereadores A city council is the legislative body that governs a city, municipality or local government area (City Hall and City Council, respectively, the Executive On the study of political science the executive branch of government has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the republican idea of the separation of powers and Legislative A legislature is a type of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. Legislatures are known by many names, the most common being parliament and congress, although these terms also have more specific meanings. In parliamentary systems of government, local bodies) are located. The rural districts and groups of urban districts (mainly in larges cities) may also present a sublocal Executive body, named subprefeitura Subprefecture is an administrative division of a country that is below prefecture or province.

Canada

Alberta

In Alberta Alberta is located in western Canada, bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U.S. state of Montana to the south. Alberta is one of three Canadian provinces and territories to border only a single U.S. state . It is also one of only two Canadian, the district (known as municipal districts) acts like a county or a city but not like the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and British Columbia, all districts and counties A county is a land area of local government within a country. A county may have cities and towns within its area. Originally, in continental Europe, a county was the land under the jurisdiction of a count (conte, comte, conde, Graf) are part of census subdivisions The census geographic units of Canada are the country subdivisions defined and used by Canada's federal government statistics bureau Statistics Canada to conduct the country's five-yearly census. They exist on four levels: the top-level divisions are Canada's provinces and territories; these are divided into second-level census divisions, which in of their respective census divisions Census division is an official term in Canada and the United States. The census divisions of Canada are second-level census geographic unit, below provinces and territories, and above "census subdivisions" and "dissemination areas". In provinces where they exist, the census division may correspond to a county, a regional.

British Columbia

In the province of British Columbia, there are several kinds of administrative districts by that name. The usual usage is a reference to district municipalities A district municipality is a designation for a class of municipalities found in several locations, including Canada, Lithuania, and South Africa, which are a class of municipality in the same hierarchy as city, town, or village. Most are styled "District of Mission Mission, the core of which was formerly known as Mission City, is a district municipality, in the province of British Columbia, Canada, is situated on the north bank of the Fraser River, overlooking the Fraser Valley. Mission is the twenty-third largest municipality in British Columbia, with a population of 34,505 . Mission was incorporated in 1892" or "District of Wells", though some are styled "Corporation of Delta" Delta is a district municipality in British Columbia, and forms part of Metro Vancouver. Located south of Richmond, it is bordered by the Fraser River to the north, the United States to the south and the city of Surrey to the east. Delta is composed of three distinct communities: Ladner, Tsawwassen and North Delta or "Township of Langley".

Within the area of municipal powers, regional districts, which are somewhat analogous to counties in other jurisdictions a number of municipalities, and unincorporated areas and to distinguish them from district municipalities and other kinds of district are always referred to as "regional districts".

Other kinds of districts in British Columbia are:

Ontario

In Ontario Ontario is bordered by Manitoba on its west, Hudson Bay on its north, and Quebec on its east, and by five States of the United States to its south : Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania (Lake Erie) and New York. All but a small portion of Ontario's 2,700 km (1,677 mi) border with the United States follow inland waterways: from the west at Lake, a district is a statutory subdivision of the province, but, unlike a county A county is a land area of local government within a country. A county may have cities and towns within its area. Originally, in continental Europe, a county was the land under the jurisdiction of a count (conte, comte, conde, Graf), a district is not incorporated. Most districts are composed of unincorporated lands, mostly Crown land Crown land is a designated area belonging to the Crown, the equivalent of an entailed estate that passed with the monarchy and could not be alienated from it. Originally present-day Southern Ontario Southern Ontario is the portion of the province of Ontario, Canada that lies south of the French River and Algonquin Park. Depending on the inclusion of the Parry Sound and Muskoka districts, its surface area would cover between 14-15% of the province. It is the southernmost region of Canada (then part of the Province of Quebec and after 1791, Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada was a British colony located in what is now the southern portion of the Province of Ontario in Canada. Upper Canada officially existed from 26 December 1791 to 10 February 1841 and generally comprised present-day Southern Ontario. Its name reflected its position higher up the river or closer to the headwaters of the St) was divided into districts in 1788 [1]. Districts continued to operation until 1849 when they were replaced by counties by the Province of Canada.

The current Ontario districts such as Algoma and Nipissing were first created by the Province of Canada in 1858 prior to Confederation for the delivery of judicial and provincial government services to sparsely populated areas from the district seat (e.g. Sault Ste. Marie). Some districts may have District Social Service Administration Boards, which are designed to provide certain social services. The boundaries of a federal census division may correspond to those of a district.

Northwest Territories

In western and northern Canada, the federal government created districts as subdivisions of the Northwest Territories 1870-1905, partly on the model of the districts created in the Province of Canada[citation needed]. The first district created was the District of Keewatin in 1876 followed by four more districts in 1882. Gradually, these districts became separate territories (such as Yukon, separate provinces (such as Alberta and Saskatchewan) or were absorbed into other provinces.

Quebec

In Quebec, districts are municipal electoral subdivisions of boroughs, which are subdivisions of cities. They function in a similar manner to what is elsewhere known as a ward.

People's Republic of China

Main article: District (PRC)

In China, the district or qū (市辖区, pinyin: shì xiá qū) is a subdivision of any of various city administrative units, including municipalities, sub-provincial cities and prefecture-level cities. Districts have county level status.

Modern districts are a recent innovation. In the context of pre-modern China, the English translation "district" is typically associated with xian, another Chinese administrative division. The xian is translated as "county" in the context of modern China.

Colombia

Barranquilla is designated a Special Industrial Port District; Cartagena is a Tourism and Cultural District; Bogotá is the Capital District and Santa Marta Historical, Tourism and Cultural District. There are also the Historical and Cultural District of Tunja; Special, Ecotouristic, Historical and Universitarian District of Popayán; Special Portuarial District of Turbo; Special Industrial, Portuarial, Biodiverse and Ecotouristic District of Tumaco; Special Border and Touristic District of Cúcuta and Special Industrial, Portuarial, Biodiverse and Ecotouristic District of Buenaventura.

France

Then, in the XXth century, districts were a type of intercommunality, they've been replaced by communauté de communes and communautés d'agglomération after 1999.

Germany

Main article: Districts of Germany

Hong Kong

Main article: Districts of Hong Kong

Hong Kong is divided into eighteen districts, each with a district council.

India

Main article: Districts of India See also: Subdivisions of India

India's districts (Hindi: ज़िला or जनपद; /zilɑː/ or /ɟənpəd/ or mavattam Tamil: மாவட்டம் Bengali: জেলা) Malayalam ( മലയാളം-ജില്ല) are local administrative units inherited from the British Raj. They generally form the tier of local government immediately below that of India's subnational states and territories. Where warranted, districts may further be grouped into administrative divisions, which form an intermediate level between the district and the subnational state (or union territory).

A district is headed by a Deputy Commissioner/ Collector, who is responsible for the overall administration and the maintenance of law and order. The district collector may belong to IAS (Indian Administrative Service). Other key responsibilities include the collection of revenue, and criminal prosecution in the district and sessional courts. Usually, the Deputy Commissioner/District Collector is conferred with magisterial powers under section 20 of Criminal Procedure Code, and designated as the District Magistrate. The official designations are, "Collector and District Magistrate" or "Deputy Commissioner and District Magistrate".

Districts are most frequently further sub-divided into smaller administrative units, called either tehsils or talukas or mavattams, depending on the region. These units have specific local responsibilities, including in particular coordinating revenue collection. An intermediate level (the sub-division) between district and tehsil/taluka may be formed by grouping these units under the oversight of assistant commissioners or sub-collectors. Each district includes one or two cities (or large towns), a few smaller towns and dozens of villages. Most of the Indian districts have the same name as their main town or city.

As of June 2008, a total of 610 districts are defined in India, more than the number of paliamentary constituencies(545). In A.P.districts (23) are less than M.P.seats (42).

District revenue administration in A.P.

  1. District headed by collector
  2. A district is composed of four or five revenue divisions administered by R.D.O./sub collector,
  3. Revenue Divisions divided into taluks/mandals headed by tahsildars,
  4. Mandals composed of a ten or more villages administered by village revenue officers and village servants.

Panchayati Raj

Tiers of administration

  1. Grama panchayath: sarpanch
  2. village clusters: M.P.T.C.
  3. Mandal/Taluk: M.P.P./Z.P.T.C.
  4. District: Z.P.Chairperson.

Indonesia

In Papua (province) and West Papua, two of 33 provinces of Indonesia, a district is subdivision of a regency or a city. Formerly it was called as kecamatan, which translates into English as subdistrict. However, even though both taking each places on the same level as before, the translation is ambiguous. In many newer translation of official documents kecamatan itself is translated into English as district, while some other still translate it to subdistrict. Districts or subdistricts in Indonesian context do not have legal autonomy to govern themselves, because they are only administration extensions of a regency or a city.

Iraq

Main article: Districts of Iraq

In Iraq, they use the word qadaa for districts. There are over a hundred districts, each district being within one of 18 Iraqi governorates, sometimes known as provinces. The district generally (but not always) bears the name of a city within that district, usually the capital of that district.

Japan

A district (gun in Japanese) is a local administrative unit comprising towns and villages but not cities. See districts of Japan for more complete description. In 1923, its administrative role was abolished although it is still in use for addressing purposes. "District" is also a translation of chiku, defined by Japan's planning law.

Kenya

In Kenya, a district (wilayah) is a subdivision of a Province and is headed by a District Officer (DO).

Korea (South)

Main article: Subdivisions of South Korea

A district (gu) is a subdivision of larger cities in South Korea. Smaller cities have no districts, whereas districts in Seoul and six Metropolitan Cities are treated as a city in its own right.

Malaysia

Main article: Districts of Malaysia

A district is known as Daerah in Malay. A district governed directly by the federal government is known as a Federal Territory, and they are Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, and Labuan.

In Peninsular Malaysia, a district is a division of a state. A mukim is a subdivision of a district. The mukim is however of less importance with respect to the administration of local government.

In East Malaysia, a district is a subdivision within a division of a state. For example, Tuaran is a district within the West Coast Division of Sabah. A district is usually named after the main town or its administrative capital, for example, Sandakan town is the capital of the district of Sandakan, as well the capital of Sandakan Division. (Note: Sandakan district is a sub-division of Sandakan Division.)

In Malaysia, each district will have a District Office, headed by a district officer, and is administered by a local government either being a District Council, Municipal Council, or a City Council. In some highly urbanised districts, there may be further subdivisions. For example, the district of Petaling in Selangor is administered by 3 local governments: Shah Alam City Council, Petaling Jaya City Council, and Subang Jaya Municipal Council. Another example is the district of Kinta in Perak, which has 3 subdivisions: Ipoh City Council, West Kinta District Council, and South Kinta District Council. Conversely, there may be one local government administering more than one district, for example, Seberang Perai Municipal Council administers the districts of Central Seberang Perai, North Seberang Perai, and South Seberang Perai.

An administrative district border and an electoral district border (constituency) transcends each other and does not correspond with each other in most instances.

Nauru

The districts of Nauru are the only subdivisions of the whole state.

New Zealand

Main article: Territorial Authorities of New Zealand

A district in New Zealand is a territorial authority (second-tier local government unit) that has not gained the distinction of being proclaimed a city. Districts tend to be less urbanised, tend to cover more than one population centre and a larger amount of rural area, and tend to have a smaller population than cities. While cities and districts are generally considered to be two different types of territorial authority, the area covered by a city is often known as its district—for example the term district plan is used equally in districts and cities. The Chatham Islands Territory is neither a district nor a city.

A district is not always a simple division of a region: several district lie within two regions, and the Taupo District lies in four.

Norway

Main article: Districts of Norway

Pakistan

Main article: Districts of Pakistan

Pakistan's districts are local administrative units inherited from the British Raj. Districts were generally grouped into administrative divisions, which in turn formed provinces. Pakistan has 130 districts (including seven in Azad Jammu and Kashmir). They comprise villages, towns and cities. A district is headed by a district nazim (mayor), who is an elected official and the local controller of the district level officers of all the departments under provincial government. The district nazim heads an elected district council composed of councilors, who represent various district-level constituencies. The councils have a constitutional requirement to be composed of a minimum of 33% women, there is no upper limit to that; so women can comprise 100% of these councils but men cannot.

Peru

Main article: Districts of Peru

Philippines

The usage of the term 'district' (distrito) in the Philippines has similarities to that in the United States.

Legislative

National

Main article: Legislative districts of the Philippines

A constituency with a representative in the lower house of Congress is a congressional district. However, the term congressional district has become synonymous in local parlance as 'representative district,' because, just like in the US, the word 'congress' (konggreso) has come to refer especially just to the lower house (the House of Representatives).

A legislative district, which has an average population of about 250,000 to 500,000 may be composed of: (a.) an entire province, (b.) within a province, a group of municipalities and cities (sometimes even including independent and highly urbanized cities geographically located in the province), (c.) a single city, (d.) a group of geographically adjacent independent cities and independent municipalities (currently the only example is the Pateros-Taguig, or (e.) a group of barangays within a city.

Each province is guaranteed at least one representative to the lower house, even though it may not come close to having the same population as that of other more populated legislative districts. Only voters within each district are allowed to vote in the election for the member of the House of Representatives from that district.

From 1916 to 1935, the Philippines was divided into 12 senatorial districts, of which 11 elected two members each, for a total of 22 out of the 24 members of the upper house of Congress (the Senate). Since 1935 senators have been elected at large.

Regional

In addition, each congressional district that falls under the jurisdiction of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (a total of 8) elects three members each to the country's only subnational legislative assembly.

Provincial

There are provincial districts for the purpose of electing Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Council) members, which follow the congressional district arrangement, except that independent and highly urbanized cities whose charters prevent them from electing provincial officials are excluded. Also, provinces that comprise a lone congressional district are divided into at least two provincial districts.

City

There are also city councilor districts for the purpose of electing Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Council) members, which follow the congressional district arrangement. In cases where the city does not form two or more congressional districts by itself, it is divided into at least two city council districts.

Administrative

Current

Districts exist as an administrative entity only in local government, with limited powers or responsibilities. Certain cities, such as Manila, Iloilo and Davao, for administrative purposes, formally divide their jurisdictions into city districts composed of several barangays, but the extent of these district-level administrative powers vary. Several barangays (the lowest level of government) also have the word 'district' in their names — examples are those in Jala-jala and Zamboanga City. However, this is solely for the purpose of nomenclature, and does not imply a higher level of local government.

Historical

During Spanish and early American colonial rule, certain areas of the Philippines were designated as 'districts,' mainly those that have not been formally organized into provinces or incorporated into existing ones. In the American era, cities and municipalities were divided into city and municipal districts, which served as the lowest level of government before the creation of the barangay.

Special-purpose districts

Special-purpose districts also exist in the Philippines, created for government departments and agencies. Examples are school districts for the Department of Education (DepEd), engineering districts for the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and coast guard districts for the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

Informal districts

Some cities and municipalities also extend the usage of the word 'district' to refer to certain areas, even without having any formal administrative purposes. Examples are the central business districts in Naga City and Makati City.

Poland

Main article: powiat

The second-level unit of local government and administration in Poland, equivalent to a county, district or prefecture (LAU-1) in other countries is called a powiat. As of 2008 there are 379 powiat-level entities in Poland: 314 land counties and 65 city counties. For a complete alphabetical listing, see list of counties in Poland.

Portugal

Districts (distritos) are administrative divisions of Portugal. They do not have an elected government; they are governed by a "civil governor" appointed by the central government. See Districts of Portugal.

Russia

Main article: raion

In the Russian Federation, districts (raions) are administrative and municipal divisions of the federal subjects, as well as administrative divisions of larger cities ("city districts").

In historical context (for the Russian Empire), the term "district" is often used to refer to uyezds.

Scotland

Main article: Regions and districts of Scotland

In Scotland, local government districts were used from 1975 to 1996.

Serbia

Main article: Districts of Serbia

Serbia is divided into twenty-nine districts (okrug) and the city of Belgrade, each of which is further divided into municipalities (opština)

Slovakia

Main article: Districts of Slovakia

In Slovakia, a district (okres) is a local administrative unit.

South Africa

Districts of South Africa Main article: Districts of South Africa

In South Africa, the district municipality forms the layer of government below the provinces. A district municipality is in turn divided into several local municipalities. This structure varies in the six largest urban areas (Cape Town, Durban, East Rand, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth and Pretoria), where a metropolitan municipality is both a district and a local municipality.

Sri Lanka

Main article: Districts of Sri Lanka

For purposes of local government, the country of Sri Lanka is divided into nine provinces: Western, Central, Southern, Northern, Eastern, North Western, North Central, Uva and Sabaragamuwa. (The Northern and Eastern Provinces have however, technically been jointly administered since 1988.)

Each of the districts is divided into divisions. These were originally based on the feudal counties, the korales and ratas. They were formerly known as 'D.R.O. Divisions' after the 'Divisional Revenue Officer'. Later the D.R.O.s became 'Assistant Government Agents' and the Divisions were known as 'A.G.A. Divisions'. Currently, the Divisions are administered by a 'Divisional Secretary', and are known as a 'D.S. Divisions'. Rural D.S. Divisions are also administered by a 'Pradeshiya Sabha' (Sinhala for 'Regional Council'), which is elected.

Sweden

Main article: Districts of Sweden

Some municipalities in the Kingdom of Sweden have divided their territory into smaller areas, which often are assigned an administrative board responsible for certain elements of municipal governance within their district. These areas take a variety of different Swedish names, however "district" is usually the official English term for them. The term "borough" is sometimes used in unofficial contexts.

Switzerland

Main article: Districts of Switzerland

In Switzerland, some cantons organise themselves into districts, while others dispense with districts and govern themselves at the Wahlkreise (constituency or electoral district) level.

Thailand

A district ("amphoe") is a subdivision of a province ("changwat") in Thailand. Some provinces also contain minor districts ("king amphoe"), which are smaller than the average district.

Turkey

In Turkey, a district (Turkish: ilçe) is an administrative subdivision of a province (Turkish: il). See also Districts of Turkey.

United Kingdom

England

Main article: Districts of England

Districts are the most recognisable form of local government in large parts of England. For those areas that retain two-tier local government, districts usually form the lower tier of that arrangement, with counties forming the upper tier. Districts tend to have responsibility for a number of areas including:

Each district raises taxes from residents on behalf of itself, and the upper tier authority through the Council Tax. It also raises income from business through the Non-Domestic Rates system, which is co-ordinated nationally.

Wales

There is no official use of the word 'district' in Wales. The country is broken up into 22 unitary authorities. The term district may be used informally to describe a whole or unofficial part of a ward in a city.

Scotland

Main article: Regions and districts of Scotland

In Scotland, local government districts were use from 1975 to 1996.

Northern Ireland

Main article: Districts of Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is divided into twenty-six districts for local government purposes. The councils do not carry out the same range of functions as those in the rest of the United Kingdom, e.g. they have no responsibility for education, for road building or for housing (though they do nominate members to the advisory Northern Ireland Housing Council).

Their functions do include waste and recycling services, leisure and community services, building control and local economic and cultural development. They are not planning authorities, but are consulted on some planning applications. Collection of rates (local tax) is handled by the Rate Collection Agency.

United States

Satellite photograph of the District of Columbia.

There are several types of district in the United States.

A constituency with a representative in Congress is a congressional district. Each state is organized into one or more such districts; the exact number within each state is based on the most recent census. Only voters within each district are allowed to vote in the election for the member of the House of Representatives from that district. Overall, there are 435 congressional districts in the United States; each has roughly 630,000 people, with some variance.

A constituency with a representative in a state legislature is a legislative district; the territory over which a federal court has jurisdiction is a federal judicial district.

The District of Columbia is the only part of the United States, excluding territories, that is not located within any of the fifty states.

The United States also has many types of special-purpose districts with limited powers of local government. School districts are the most common, but other types of districts include college districts, hospital districts, utility districts, irrigation districts, port districts, and public transit districts.

Many cities in the late 20th century adopted names for non-governmental districts as a way of increasing recognition and identity of these distinct areas. Perhaps most apparently in Los Angeles, various areas and neighborhoods within the city are specified as districts. For instance, Hollywood is a district of Los Angeles, whereas Beverly Hills is an independent city, with its own government and police department. This can often lead to confusion among foreigners and natives alike, as the difference between districts, suburbs and neighboring cities is often quite ambiguous, for they all make up the greater LA area. As with any city, the important distinction is that areas classified as districts are still part of the parent city.

Various federal, regional and local agencies such as the National Register of Historic Places recognize historic districts.

Prior to the Act of Consolidation in 1854, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania had some districts acting like cities or towns.

Vietnam

A district (quận) is an administrative unit lying between a province (or lower province) and higher village.

See also

References

Types of administrative country subdivisions
Smallcaps indicate a type used by ten or more countries.
Current English terms

Autonomous area · Bailiwick · Banner (Autonomous banner) · Block · Borough (County borough · Metropolitan borough) · Cadastral division · Canton · Capital (Federal capital) · Circle · Circuit · City (Autonomous city · Chartered city · Independent city) · Colony · Commune · Community (Autonomous community · Residential community) · Condominium · Constituency · Council · County (Administrative county · Autonomous county · Metropolitan county) · Department · District (Autonomous district · Capital district · City district · Federal district · Metropolitan district · Municipal district · Subdistrict · Regional district) · Division · Duchy · Eldership · Federal dependency · Governorate · Hamlet · Insular area · Local administrative unit · Local Government Area · Municipality (Direct-controlled municipality · District municipality · Regional municipality · Regional county municipality · Rural municipality) · Neighbourhood · Parish (Civil parish) · Periphery · Prefecture (Autonomous prefecture · Subprefecture) · Principality (Co-principality) · Protectorate · Province (Autonomous province) · Quarter · Regency · Region (Autonomous region · Capital region · Special administrative region) · Republic (Autonomous republic) · Reservation (Reserve) · Riding · Shire · State · Suzerainty · Territory (Autonomous territorial unit · Capital territory · Dependent territory · National territory · Union Territory) · Town · Townland · Township (Civil township) · Urban (urbanized) area · Village · Ward
Current non-English and loanword terms

Amt · Arrondissement · Bairro · Bakhsh · Baladiyah · Barangay · Bezirk / Regierungsbezirk · Comarca · Comune · Daïra · Frazione · Freguesia · Gmina · Judeţ · Kommun · Liwa · Località · Megye · Oblast · Okrug · Ostān · Powiat · Raion · Ranchería · Shabiyah · Shahr · Shahrestān · Sýsla · Taluka · Tehsil · Vingtaine · Voivodeship · Wilayah · Woreda
Defunct and historical English terms

Agency · Barony · Burgh · Diocese · Exarchate · Free imperial city · Hide · Hundred · Imperial Circle · March · Praetorian prefecture · Presidency · Residency · Rural district · Sanitary district · Tithing · Urban district · Viscountcy (Viscounty)
Defunct and historical non-English terms

Commote · Deme · Heerlijkheid · Katepanikion · Naucrary · Nome · Pargana · Plasă · Satrapy · Theme
See also: Census division · Electoral division · Political division

Categories: Administrative divisions

 

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'Districts' News
Officials: Unfunded Mandates Will Challenge School Districts - NBC4i.com
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Officials: Unfunded Mandates Will Challenge School Districts - NBC4i.com
Fri, 09 Jul 2010 13:32:21 GMT+00:00
NBC4i.com School districts want the best for their students, but often, state mandates make it challenging. (more) By Denise Yost School districts want the best for ...
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'Districts' Blogs
The Fergus Falls Daily Journal - VFW in EGF for Districts
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The Fergus Falls Daily Journal - VFW in EGF for Districts

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ue, 20 Jul 2010 12:49:00 GM

The Fergus Falls Post 612 VFW baseball team finished their regular season Sunday with a 10-6 loss to Perham. With a 6-9 record, Post 612 will be the No. 6 seed in the . District. 9 Tournament in East Grand Forks this weekend. ...

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'Districts' Answers
What book is this where people lived in five different colour coded districts?
Q. This is driving me crazy! theres this book i read as a child and it was very fun and imaginative, about this different world i think where people were divided into different coloured districts by their social standing. I remember there was a maroon district for the rich and an orange district etc. does any know this book?
Asked by David O - Sun Jan 25 07:27:55 2009 - - 2 Answers - 0 Comments

A. The Windsinger its the first part of The Wind on Fire Trilogy by William Nicholson you can visit his website here www.williamnicholson.com btw i lovveee these books :D
Answered by Rida S - Sun Jan 25 07:55:15 2009

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