Reeve

Reeve may refer to:

Titles

Other uses

See also

Mayor

In many countries, a mayor (/ˈmɛər/ or /ˈmeɪər/, from the Latin maior [majˈjɔr], meaning "bigger") is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or town.

Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor, as well as the means by which a mayor is elected or otherwise mandated. Depending on the system chosen, a mayor may be the chief executive officer of the municipal government, may simply chair a multi-member governing body with little or no independent power, or may play a solely ceremonial role. Options for selection of a mayor include direct election by the public, or selection by an elected governing council or board.

History

British Isles

Reeve (England)

Originally in Anglo-Saxon England the reeve was a senior official with local responsibilities under the Crown e.g. as the chief magistrate of a town or district. Subsequently, after the Norman conquest, it was an office held by a man of lower rank, appointed as manager of a manor and overseer of the peasants. In this later role, historian H. R. Loyn observes, "he is the earliest English specialist in estate management."

Anglo-Saxon England

Before the Conquest, a reeve (Old English ġerēfa; similar the titles greve/gräfe in Low Saxon languages of Northern Germany) was an administrative officer who generally ranked lower than the ealdorman or earl. The Old English word ġerēfa was originally a general term, but soon acquired a more technical meaning.

Land was divided into a large number of hides - an area containing enough farmable land to support one household. Ten hides constituted a tithings, and the families living upon it (in theory, 10 families) were obliged to undertake an early form of neighbourhood watch, by a collective responsibility system called frankpledge.