Who is the burgomaster? The definition has several meanings. First of all, the burgomaster is the name of the administrative position held by the head of the city government. There are also other definitions. For example, there is a kind of gull with that name.
The history of the word "burgomaster"
The burgomaster is the warped German word Burgmeister, which literally means "head of the city." The name of the post of burgomaster appeared at the turn of the XVI-XVII centuries in some European countries for which the German legal tradition was acceptable: Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg, Denmark, Belgium, Hungary, Germany, the Baltic states. At that time, the meaning of the word "burgomaster" was defined as the position held by the head of the city government.
In Russia, the mayor until the 60s of the XIX century was called the head of the city administration. Such an official was determined by the election results of urban societies. The elected burgomaster presided over the town halls and magistrates. It was a replacement for the former "Zemstvo head." In the provincial cities, the burgomaster was considered a civil servant of the ninth grade, and in district towns - an official of the tenth grade. The degree of class determined the advantages that the mayor used. These were mainly differences in monetary allowances and housing conditions.
The election of the burgomaster was carried out every three years, and the salary for his maintenance stood out from the income of the city. The diligent work of such an official was noted by meritorious notes, an increased salary, and the release of a departmental residential building from the presence of a constant stand. Currently, of all post-Soviet republics, the name of such a post has been preserved only in Latvia. The post of “vowel burgomaster” exists in Riga.
Mayor in Germany
For an example, let’s find out what a burgomaster in Germany is: position, rank or admin, for example, the mayor of the city of Berlin (what he does, what are his responsibilities).
The ruling mayor of Berlin is chosen not only as the head of the executive city government, but also as a civil servant, combining two parallel functions: the mayor of the city and the prime minister of Berlin. The current burgomaster is at the same time the head of the Berlin government (Senate).
By the way, until 1948, the mayor in Germany bore the name "Ober-burgomaster." And the definition of “ruling burgomaster” is the name that the German mayor received from the Soviet authorities after the war. Of course, it acted only on the territory of the GDR. In Germany, there was no such term, because Western countries had influence there.
What is a burmistra?
If the burgomaster is the city chief, then the burgomaster is the village chief. In Russia, it could be a village headman, who supervised the fulfillment by peasants of their duties. He was also entrusted with the duty of ensuring order in the village.
Sometimes a barmist was called a person appointed by the landowner to manage his estate. Under the reign of Emperor Peter the Great, the bermister and burgomaster are the same name for an official who was planted to rule the city and is subordinate to the bourmister town hall or chamber of Moscow. Such an official was responsible for the placement of buildings, their reconstruction, and the collection of resources for new buildings. He was asked for the presence of the capital’s flag and the combat effectiveness of the regional troops.
Modern definition of burgomaster
At present, the burgomaster is the mayor of the city, the acting head of the administration. In his hands is the entire executive branch of a certain locality. In Russia, the name of such a post was fixed after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Now this name has become official.
When the election of the governor of the city was abolished, the mayoral elections were held from deputies, representatives of the city duma. And accordingly, the new mayor must be from the deputy faction.
Related posts
The burgomaster is the highest city official in Germany and several European countries. But there existed and still exist other names for similar posts of heads of city authorities.
- Mayor - a name that still exists in the Balkan countries: Macedonia, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro;
- Mayor - a public official position in Ukraine, Russia, Estonia until 1918;
- Warden - an employee in the cities of Lithuania and the Czech Republic;
- city ​​president - name of the mayor of Poland;
- The head of the city administration is a civil servant in Russia and Kazakhstan;
- the head of the municipality - the head of a village or village in Russia;
- The chairman of the commune is the manager of city government in Albania.
Zoological definition
What does a burgomaster mean in terms of zoology? It is unlikely that anyone knows that this is not only an administrative unit, but also the name of a large polar gull! This name is due to the place of the bird’s settlement, which is a cluster of birds called the “bird market”. Here, the seagull “levies tribute” from a gathering of migratory colonial birds in the form of their eggs and chicks. The distribution area of ​​seagulls is the polar regions of America, Asia, Europe. Bird habitats are rocky shores, coastal tundra, and arctic islands.
In conclusion, we note that at the beginning of the 20th century in Moscow and St. Petersburg published printed dictionaries of common foreign words, often used in Russian. According to their definition, the burgomaster is:
- “An employee elected by the city, a native of the merchant class to attend general Duma meetings and to watch over urban needs”;
- "Mayor in all German cities";
- "The pre-eminent city chief in city administration."
And the burgomaster is a word that has become very popular due to its peculiar ancient sound. It gave the name to the most unusual, at first glance, things. With this name, a new mini-brewery was opened in the city of Lviv (Ukraine), and the Burgomistr beer restaurant operates in Moscow, on Theater Square. The same name is given to the ruler of the fabulous country, Esgaroth, in the science-fiction movie “The Hobbit”.