View source for Alderman

{{short description|Member of a municipal assembly or council}}
{{About|a member of an assembly or of a council|people with the surname|Alderman (surname)|other uses|Alderman (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
An '''alderman''' is a member of a [[Municipal government|municipal]] assembly or council in many [[jurisdiction]]s founded upon [[English law]] with similar officials existing in the [[Netherlands]] (wethouder) and [[Belgium]] (schepen). The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a [[borough]] or [[county council]], a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by [[Direct election|popular vote]], or a council member elected by voters.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alderman|title=Alderman|year=2010|work= Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2010.|access-date=11 January 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100221213127/http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alderman| archive-date= 21 February 2010 <!--DASHBot-->| url-status= live}}</ref>
==Etymology==
The title is derived from the [[Old English]] title of ''[[ealdorman]]'', which literally means "elder person", and which was used by the chief nobles presiding over [[shire]]s. Similar titles exist in other Germanic languages, such as ''{{lang|sv|ålderman}}'' in [[Swedish language|Swedish]], ''{{lang|no|oldermann}}'' in [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]], ''{{lang|da|rådmand}}'' in [[Danish language|Danish]] and [[Low German]], ''{{lang|fy|Olderman}}'' in [[West Frisian language|West Frisian]], ''{{lang|nl|ouderman}}'' in [[Dutch language|Dutch]], and ''{{lang|de|Ältermann}}'' in [[German language|German]]. [[Finnish language|Finnish]] also has ''{{lang|fi|oltermanni}}'', which was borrowed from Swedish. All of these words mean "elder person" or "wise man".
==Usage by country==
===Australia===
Many local government bodies used the term "alderman" in Australia. As in the way local councils have been modernised in the United Kingdom and [[Ireland]], the term alderman has been discontinued in a number of places. For example, in the state of [[Queensland]] before 1994, rural "shires" elected "councillors" and a "chairman", while "cities" elected a "mayor" and "aldermen". Since 1994, all local and regional government areas in Queensland elect a "mayor" and "councillors". (Australian capital cities usually have a [[Lord Mayor]]). An example of the use of the term alderman is evident in the City of [[Adelaide]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/manning/adelaide/council/misc.htm |title=Adelaide – City Council, Town Hall and Allied Matters |publisher=Slsa.sa.gov.au |access-date=2011-03-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110310051226/http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/manning/adelaide/council/misc.htm |archive-date=10 March 2011 }}</ref> Aldermen were elected from the electors in all the [[Ward (electoral subdivision)|wards]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.adelaidecitycouncil.com/adccwr/_assets/main/lib60051/representation%20review%20-%20public%20consultation%20-%20harrison%20market%20research%20consultants%20report%20-%20final%20-%20volume%202.pdf |title=Microsoft Word - 7540 ACC Rep Review Stage 1 Consultants Report FINAL - Volume 2.doc|access-date=2011-03-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523170447/http://www.adelaidecitycouncil.com/adccwr/_assets/main/lib60051/representation%20review%20-%20public%20consultation%20-%20harrison%20market%20research%20consultants%20report%20-%20final%20-%20volume%202.pdf |archive-date=23 May 2011 }}</ref>
===Canada===<!-- This section is linked from [[Calgary]] -->
Historically, in [[Canada]], the term "alderman" was used for those persons elected to a municipal council to represent the wards. As women were increasingly elected to municipal office, the term "[[councillor]]" slowly replaced "alderman", although there was some use of the term "alderperson". Today, the title of "alderman" is rarely used except in some cities in [[Alberta]] and [[Ontario]], as well as some smaller municipalities elsewhere in the country, that retain the title for historical reasons.
===Ireland===
The title "alderman" was abolished for [[Local government in the Republic of Ireland|local authorities in the Republic of Ireland]] by the [[Local Government Act 2001]], with effect from the [[2004 Irish local elections|2004 local elections]].<ref name="CallananKeogan2003">{{cite book|first=Terry |last=O'Sullivan |chapter=Local Areas and Structures |editor1-last=Callanan|editor1-first=Mark|editor2-last=Keogan|editor2-first=Justin F.|title=Local Government in Ireland: Inside Out|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P6OdT7MIflgC&pg=PA49|year=2003|publisher=Institute of Public Administration|isbn=9781902448930|page=49}}</ref> Early usage of the term mirrored [[#England, Northern Ireland and Wales|that of England and Wales]]. Local elections since the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1919 have used the [[single transferable vote]] in multiple-member electoral areas.<ref name="DeignanHistoryIreland">{{cite journal|last=Deignan|first=Patrick|date=May–June 2009|title=PR & the Sligo borough election of 1919|volume=17|issue=3|journal=History Ireland|url=http://www.historyireland.com/20th-century-contemporary-history/pr-the-sligo-borough-election-of-1919/|access-date=18 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/government_in_ireland/elections_and_referenda/local_elections/local_elections.html|quote=The electoral system is based on proportional representation with single transferable vote.|title=Local Elections in Ireland|date=23 January 2014|publisher=Citizens Information Board|access-date=8 June 2017|location=Ireland|archive-date=26 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180126012555/http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/government_in_ireland/elections_and_referenda/local_elections/local_elections.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
In each electoral area of a [[List of Irish local government areas 1898–1921|borough or county borough]], the first several candidates elected were styled "alderman" and the rest "councillor".<ref>Originally {{cite web|url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Local_Government_(Ireland)_Act,_1919#Triennial_election_of_aldermen_and_councillors_in_boroughs.|title=Local Government (Ireland) Act 1919|date=3 June 1919|work=[[Wikisource]]|page=Section 4 (2) |no-pp=y|access-date=8 June 2017}}
* Replaced by {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1963/act/19/enacted/en/print#sec82|no-pp=y|pages=Sections 82(2)(xvi) and 87 |title=Electoral Act 1963|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=8 June 2017}} and {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1965/si/128/made/en/print#article77|title=S.I. No. 128/1965 – Local Elections Regulations, 1965.|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|pages=Article 77 |no-pp=y|access-date=8 June 2017}}
* Continued by {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1991/act/11/section/12/enacted/en/html|title=Local Government Act 1991, Section 12|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=8 June 2017}}
* Replaced by {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1994/act/8/section/24/enacted/en/html|title=Local Government Act 1994, Section 24|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=8 June 2017}} and {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1995/si/297/made/en/print#article125|title=Local Elections Regulations 1995|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|pages=Article 125 |no-pp=y|access-date=8 June 2017}}</ref>
Someone co-opted to fill a seat vacated by an alderman would be styled "councillor".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1941/act/23/section/42/enacted/en/html|title=Local Government Act, 1941, Section 42|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=8 June 2017}}</ref>
===Netherlands===
In the Netherlands, an alderman (Dutch: {{lang|nl|wethouder}}) is part of the [[municipal executive]] and not of the [[Municipal council (Netherlands)|municipal council]], which controls the aldermen's actions in office. The alderman is comparable to the office of [[Minister (government)|minister]] at the national level. However, the alderman can not propose bills to the council. The alderman can be forced to resign by a [[Vote of no-confidence|vote of no confidence]] by the council.
===South Africa===
In South Africa, the term alderman refers to senior members of [[municipal council]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://westcoastdm.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/confernment_of_aldermanship.pdf |title=Policy: Conferment of Aldermanship on Councillors of the West Coast District Municipality. West Coast District Municipality. |access-date=4 June 2017 |archive-date=27 October 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211027221726/http://westcoastdm.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/confernment_of_aldermanship.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> They are distinguished from ordinary councillors for their "long and distinguished service as a councillor".<ref>[http://www.sedibeng.gov.za/a_keydocs/20100914_honours_policy.pdf Policy Relating to the Conferment of Civic Honours], [[Sedibeng District Municipality]].</ref> The title may be awarded on the basis of a long term of service (commonly 20 years), or a combination of term of service along with leadership positions held within the council.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.iol.co.za/bolander/news/councillor-made-alderman-5238998|title=Councillor made alderman {{!}} IOL|access-date=2017-06-04|language=en}}</ref> In some councils the title is automatically conferred on the [[mayor]] regardless of their term of service.
===United Kingdom===
====England, Northern Ireland and Wales====
Although the term originated in England, it had no single definition there until the 19th century, as each municipal corporation had its own constitution. It was used in England, [[Wales]] and [[Ireland]]/[[Northern Ireland]] (all of Ireland being part of the United Kingdom from January 1801 until December 1922), but was not used in [[Scotland]]. Under the [[Municipal Reform Act 1835]], [[municipal borough]] corporations consisted of [[councillor]]s and aldermen. Aldermen would be elected not by the electorate, but by the council (including the outgoing aldermen), for a term of six years, which allowed a party that narrowly lost an election to retain control by choosing aldermen. This was changed by the Municipal Corporations Amendment Act 1910, so that outgoing aldermen were no longer allowed to vote.<ref>{{cite web|author=<!--Staff author(s); no by-line--> |url=http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/nostalgia/Political-battlefield-alderman-Terry/article-392745-detail/article.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002125512/http://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/Political-battlefield-alderman-Terry/story-12581190-detail/story.html |archive-date=2015-10-02 |title=Political battlefield of alderman Terry |work=Stoke Sentinel |access-date=2011-03-02}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/lords/1910/jul/20/aldermen-in-municipal-boroughs-bill |title=Aldermen in Municipal Boroughs Bill |work=[[Hansard|Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)]] |date=20 July 1910 |access-date=2011-03-02}}</ref> [[County council]]s, created in Great Britain in 1889 and in Ireland in 1899, also elected aldermen, but [[rural district]] and [[Urban district (England and Wales)|urban district councils]] did not. The [[Local Government Act 1972]] finally abolished Aldermen with voting rights, with effect from 1974, except in the [[Greater London Council]] and the [[London borough councils]], where they remained a possibility until 1978.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/council-elections-candidate-results-ward-2006/resource/8510479a-6c2d-47c4-b9a1-7d1986ad73d8/proxy |title=London Borough Council Elections 4 May 2006 |author1-first=Michael |author1-last=Minors |author2-first=Dennis |author2-last=Grenham |date=March 2007 |publisher=[[Greater London Authority]] |isbn=9781852612320|access-date=29 September 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150930162739/http://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/council-elections-candidate-results-ward-2006/resource/8510479a-6c2d-47c4-b9a1-7d1986ad73d8/proxy |archive-date=30 September 2015 }}</ref>
=====Honorary aldermen=====
Councils in England, Wales, and [[Northern Ireland]] still have the power to create honorary aldermen and alderwomen, as a reward for their services as a councillor, but must do so at a special meeting, and in each case the granting of the title needs to be approved by two-thirds of those attending.<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=act|year=1972|chapter=70|act=Local Government Act 1972|section=249}}</ref> This power is little used in England and Wales, but is used more often in Northern Ireland, where councils may also designate up to a quarter of their elected councillors as aldermen.
=====City of London=====
{{Main|Court of Aldermen}}
In the [[City of London]], but not elsewhere in [[London]], aldermen are still elected for each of the [[wards of the City of London|wards of the City]] by the regular electorate. To be a candidate to be [[Lord Mayor of the City of London]], it is necessary to be an alderman and to have been a [[sheriff of the City of London]].
The title "Alderman" is used for both men and women and may be prefixed to a person's name (e.g., Alderman John Smith, Alderman Smith, or for women; Alderman Mrs (or Miss) Smith).
====Scotland====
In [[Scotland]], the office of "[[baillie]]" bore some similarities to that of alderman in England and Wales.
===United States===
Depending on the jurisdiction, an alderman could have been part of the legislative or judicial local government.
A "board of aldermen" is the governing executive or legislative body of many cities and towns in the United States. Boards of aldermen are used in many rural areas of the United States as opposed to a larger [[city council]] or [[city commission]]; its members are typically called "alderman". The term is sometimes used instead of [[city council]], but it can also refer to an executive board independent of the council, or to what is essentially an upper house of a [[bicameral legislature]] (as it was in [[New York City]] until the 20th century).
In [[Illinois]], the Illinois Municipal Code allows for the formation and existence of an aldermanic-city form of municipal government. As an example, in [[Chicago]], the [[Chicago City Council]] is composed of fifty aldermen<ref>{{Cite web|url= https://www.chicityclerk.com/city-council-news-central/council-agenda|title= About City Government & the Chicago City Council|date= 21 September 2015|access-date= 7 July 2021|archive-date= 9 July 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210709190036/https://www.chicityclerk.com/city-council-news-central/council-agenda|url-status= dead}}</ref> (not councilors). As of 2021, Chicago aldermen are legally referred to by the [[Government of Illinois|State of Illinois]] as alderpersons, though the terms alderman and aldermanic remain in common use.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Illinois General Assembly - Bill Status for SB0825 |url=https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/billstatus.asp?DocNum=0825&GAID=16&GA=102&DocTypeID=SB&LegID=133452&SessionID=110&SpecSess= |access-date=2023-12-10 |website=www.ilga.gov}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url= https://news.wttw.com/2021/06/01/goodbye-alderman-hello-alderperson|title= Goodbye, Alderman. Hello, Alderperson}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url= https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/06/17/state-adopts-alderperson-to-describe-chicago-city-council-members-but-some-alderpeople-arent-thrilled/ |title= State Adopts 'Alderperson' To Describe Chicago City Council Members — But Some Alderpeople Aren't Thrilled|date= 18 June 2021}}</ref>
Some cities such as, [[Ithaca, New York]] identify aldermen as 'alderpersons'. Others, including [[New Haven, Connecticut]], use the term "alders".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newhavenct.gov/gov/depts/alders/default.htm|title=Board of Alders}}</ref>
Historically the term could also refer to local municipal judges in small legal proceedings (as in [[Pennsylvania]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Potter |first=Chris |title=Have Pittsburgh city councilors ever been called "aldermen"? I used to see "alderman" signs on an old building. |url=http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A20837 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516225820/http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A20837 |archive-date=16 May 2011 |access-date=2011-03-02 |publisher=Pittsburghcitypaper.ws}}</ref> and [[Delaware]]). Pennsylvania's aldermen were phased out in the early 20th century.
==See also==
{{Wiktionary}}
* [[Local government in Canada]]
* [[Local government in the United States]]
* [[Municipal government]]
* [[Councillor]]
* [[Mayor]]
* [[Selectman]]
* [[John Alderman]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{authority control}}
[[Category:Government occupations]]
[[Category:Local government in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Local government in the United States]]
[[Category:Titles]]