prefecture

Meaning

1. The office or position of a prefect.
2. The jurisdiction of a prefect; the region administered by a prefect, especially as a translation of certain French, Chinese, and Japanese administrative divisions.

Synonyms

province

district

state

police station

officials

region

area

Prefectures of Japan

county

directors

office

🏢

Translations

préfecture

prefectura

Präfektur

prefeitura

makam

νομαρχία

prefettura

prefectuur

Präfekturen Japans

διεύθυνση αστυνομίας

νομός

الولاية

région

Préfectures du Japon

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈpɹiˌfɛkt͡ʃəɹ/

Etymology

Cognate with Chinese: 府

In summary

Borrowed from Middle French préfecture, from Latin praefectūra. Equivalent to prefect + -ure. As an East Asian administrative division, a calque of Chinese 府 (fǔ) and 郡 (jùn), also used to describe 縣 /县 (xian, “county”) and 州 (zhou, “province”) in some eras.