county
English
/ˈkaʊnti/
noun
Definitions
- (historical) The land ruled by a count or a countess.
- An administrative region of various countries, including Bhutan, Canada, China, Croatia, Republic of Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, South Korea, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and 48 of the 50 United States (excluding Alaska and Louisiana).
- A definitive geographic region, without direct administrative functions.
- (US) A jail operated by a county government.
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English countee derived from counté borrowed from Old French conté derived from Latin comitātus (jurisdiction of a count, company of soldiers).
Origin
Latin
comitātus
Gloss
jurisdiction of a count, company of soldiers
Timeline
Distribution of cognates by language
Geogrpahic distribution of cognates
Cognates and derived terms
- Countian English
- borough English
- county borough English
- countyhood English
- countyism English
- countylike English
- countywide English
- intercounty English
- multicounty English
- noncounty English
- subcounty English
- tricounty English
- comitātus Latin
- County German
- contea Italian
- condado Spanish, Castilian
- countee Middle English
- contae Irish
- conté Old French
- counté Old French
- comtat Catalan, Valencian
- conmité Norman
- comté Middle French
- conté Middle French
- condado Old Portuguese
- kaunti Swahili
- comtat Occitan
- counté xno
- Kaundi Pennsylvania German