Administrative divisions of Mauretia
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|---|---|
| Administrative divisions of Mauretia | |
| First-level | 7 probinciam 1 royal district 1 external territory |
| Second-level | qolnam and diokesim |
| Third-level | cibitàm, uikum |
Mauretia is a semi-decentralized unitary state, wherein some powers have been devolved from the central government to local levels. The present order of governance is defined by the Logenatiu of 1533 and subsequent amendments. The national government is still the supreme law of the state, but provincial and local governments have been granted degrees of authority and manners to advise.
Types of administrative divisions
Mauretia is divided into seven provinces (probinciam), one special administrative district, and an external territory. Provinces are in turn divided into two types of municipalities (municipiam), qolnam and diokesim. A qolna is an independent city that is a centralized second-level municipality immediately below the province level. Qolnam may self-divide into publanem (wards) for administrative or elective purposes, but these do not possess the status of legal entity on a national level. A diokesi (diocese), however, is a regional amalgamation of localities similar in some ways to a county, district, or arrondisement-level government. Dioceses may be comprised of two classes of settlements: cibitàm and uikum. The class of settlement determines the degree of privileges within the diocese each locality may possess. The seat of governance for the diocese is called a sede, which is simply a cibità that holds the seat of diocesan power. The diocesan settlements are the only third-level division of government that has public legal status as defined by the Logenatiu.
| Nation (Sa Nationa) |
Mauretia, national government | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provinces (Sam Probinciam) |
Seven provinces | Qolna Mauretana | Mauretia Externaya | ||||
| Municipalities (Sam Municipiam) |
Diokesim (Diocese) | Qolnam (Independent Cities) | |||||
| Localities (Sum Qommunem) |
Cibità (City) | Uiku (Village) | Urbi (Town) | Uiku (Village) | |||
Provinces (Sam Probinciam)
There are seven provinces in Mauretia: Aziga, Eteya, Litora Aqarella, Massaeya, Salinara, Taladusia, and Tangereya. Each are named for historic regions of the country. These names are in turn mostly derivative of a pre-Romantish tribe that lived in the region during the late first century BC or a key Romantish settlement from that same time period. Provincial boundaries have been relatively fixed over the last seven hundred years, but small territorial transfers have taken place. In practical terms, the provinces are weak political entities but strong cultural ones. To this day, people identify in large part by their province as a means of place and see the province as their direct forum toward petitioning the national government. Provinces do provide coordination amongst the lower-level administrative divisions, distribute finances from the national government, host a sub-national judicial structure for appeals, and host a parliament that works in an advising capacity to the national government but also sends a delegate directly from it to the Qollegia.
There are two special administrative districts on similar structure level as the provinces: the royal city Qolna Mauretana and the overseas territories included in Mauretia Externaya. The sole inhabitants of Qolna Mauretana are the royal family and their attachés. It houses the royal palace, the treasury's central facility, a governmental archive, a national cathedral, highest appeals court (although not the highest court), and the legislative Qollegia am-Adanem. Almost all other governmental buildings and functions are found in nearby Iola. Mauretia Externaya consists of additional territories that Mauretia manages and governs that are direct crown-dependencies and not part of mainland Mauretia. The Ilm Gorgam (Gorgada Islands), for example, is the longest-held of these territories, going back to the tenth century and are culturally and religiously very tied to the mainland despite the distance.
Provinces included on list below include territorial waters.
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| Province name | Largest city | Administrative seat | Size (km2) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aziga | Tinyarita | Qasratinta | Total area∈⊾ƨ: 50539.11 km² Land area∈⊾ƨ: 50494.01 km² | |
| Eteya | Salda | Salda | Total area∈⊾ƨ: 30284.57 km² Land area∈⊾ƨ: 22660.97 km² | |
| Litora Aqarella | Iola | Iola | Total area∈⊾ƨ: 33522.24 km² Land area∈⊾ƨ: 27729.53 km² | |
| Massaeya | Reggia | Qiza | Total area∈⊾ƨ: 18952.00 km² Land area∈⊾ƨ: 15758.21 km² | |
| Salinara | Qolna Sallàt | Qolna Sallàt | Total area∈⊾ƨ: 30550.51 km² Land area∈⊾ƨ: 25528.95 km² | |
| Taladusia | Pomaria | Pomaria | Total area∈⊾ƨ: 30550.51 km² Land area∈⊾ƨ: 25528.95 km² | |
| Tangereya | Har Tanga | Tangia | Total area∈⊾ƨ: 30987.89 km² Land area∈⊾ƨ: 23330.36 km² |
Other boundaries
| Boundary | Standard | Area (km2) | Map (OGF relations) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mauretia (nation) | 
|
Total area: 197533.91 km² Land area: 145576.20 km² |
Total area: Map∈⊾ƨ |
| Mauretia Externaya | Total area: 2696.65 km² Land area: 73.24 km² |
Total area: Map∈⊾ƨ Land area: Map∈⊾ƨ | |
| Qolna Mauretana | 
|
Total area: 0.93 km² | Total area: Map∈⊾ƨ |
Municipalities (Sam Municipiam)
| City | Province | Municipal population | Metropolitan population |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iola | Litora Aqarella | 887,300 | 2,160,900 |
| Tangia | Tangereya | 701,200 | 890,700 |
| Pomalia | Taladusia | 674,400 | 1,555,600^ |
| Salda | Eteya | 531,000 | 709,200 |
| Lissa | Tangereya | 409,500 | 520,800 |
| Qolna Sallàt | Salinara | 373,100 | 510,400 |
| Tinyarita | Aziga | 298,600 | 410,500 |
| Altaba | Taladusia | 297,300 | 1,555,600^ |
| Iqosa | Litora Aqarella | 186,000 | 300,400 |
| Bolubra | Salinara | 159,300 | 208,100 |
| ^Pomaria and Altaba are officially classified as a single, polycentric metropolitan amalgamation despite historically being separate cathedral cities. Their cathedrals are only fifteen miles apart. | |||
The land area of the seven provinces are divided entirely into municipalities without any territory unaccounted. This division of government is where citizens interact the government most. There are two types of municipalities: a diokesi and a qolna.
Dioceses (diokesim) were devised as primarily rural districts, and most dioceses remain this way today. Dioceses are semi-decentralized, with some localities possessing a fair amount of devolved power. As a principal level of government for citizen interaction, diokesim are permitted to collect taxes, are governed by a municipal council, provide and oversee basic civil services (health, education, roads, zoning, records and licenses, and basic police/fire protections), among other things. The cities within a diocese may levy a small tax to support additional functions, such as maintaining select infrastructure and having their own civil protection units (police, fire, ambulance). Cities are otherwise subordinate to the diocese. A village is an official division that has little independent institutional function, although it does have a volunteer advisory board that helps shape local policy and advises the diocese.
A qolna is a centralized independent city that operates equivalent to but separate from a diocese. It is subordinate to the province and must fulfill all essential functions of the municipal level. These independent "archcities" (often called "colonias" internationally) have all the privileges and responsibilities of a diocese and diocesan cities. Most but not all independent cities are large, and some were split out from a diocese for more effective management. A referendum of separation is triggered when any diocesan cibità reaches 100,000 people; although it has not yet happened, a diocesan city is automatically reclassed as a qolna, separated from the diocese, at 150,000 people. Officially, an independent city is a unitary entity. At the same time, some self-divide into wards (publanem) for their own administration and management, but these divisions lack legal status and recognition outside the city itself.
History of municipalities
As legal entities, the current municipal structure was created in the 1700s as a compromise to address the different needs of rural and urban municipalities. Its roots go back much further, however. In the early-kingdom period of Mauretia, settlements had classes based on administrative rights and privileges. The highest rank settlement at the time was a "qolna", a reinterpreted corruption of the Romantish word for colonia. The various qolnam were major settlements in the country with an archcathedral, forum rights, market rights, and typically a standing garrison. The second highest rank settlement at the time was a cathedral city (sede), as it was a city with market rights, a cathedral, and oversaw the administration of the nearby countryside. A cathedral city was the administrative head of the diocese (diokesi). Next, a "city" (cibità), which had market rights and city rights, was a settlement that fell partially under the jurisdiction of a diocesan seat but remained a significant amount of local autonomy. Some important cities had been granted rights as "market towns" (fororia) or designated as "castle towns" (qasra) with standing fortifications around them. The lowest level of settlements to be organized was a village (uiku). It exercised few rights and was almost entirely subject to the diocesan seat.
In 1703, as part of a compromise between urban and rural administrations, the arcane system that had evolved naturally out of granted rights was simplified and flattened. The "archcity" (qolna) and diocese (diokesi) were made equivalent as the primary level of government for national administration. All territory of the country fell under the jurisdiction of one of these two types of governance. Inside the diocese, the various other designations were collapsed into simply cities and villages (cibità and uiku). The qasra and foria designations were removed from official use and were reclassed as cities in most cases, although the terms remained in historical or cultural use. The designation of a sede was retained only as a means of designating where the religious diocese has its cathedral and the city wherein the diocese has its administrative hub. Villages retain some local municipal rights, and they remain official designations. Later amendments to the state's governance in 1771 allowed for municipal annexation, mergers, and detachments under certain circumstances. At that time, there were only seven independent "archcities" in the country (Auzeya, Iola, Pomalia, Qamerata, Sallàt, Salda, and Tangia).
The boundaries and status of municipalities are not fixed in law, although changes are rare. Iqosa and Bolubra, for example, transitioned from diocesan cities to independent cities around the turn of the 20th century. There are now 19 independent "archcities" in the country. A few independent cities are small, as historical political quirks. Some diocesan cities have resisted becoming independent cities, because it means they lose the ability to politically influence the surrounding diocesan land.
Province of Aziga
Province of Eteya
Province of Litora Aqarella
Province of Massaeya
Province of Salinara
Province of Taladusia
Province of Tangereya
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