مقاطعة (الولايات المتحدة)

يرجع تاريخ المقاطعات الي عصر المستعمرات الثلاثة عشر والتي قامت بتاسيس حكومة محلية والتي كونت فيما بعد ذلك الولايات المتحدة. ولاية فيرجينيا قامت بانشاء أول مقاطعة

Counties were among the earliest units of local government established in the المستعمرات الثلاث عشرة that would become the United States. فرجينيا created the first counties in order to ease the administrative workload in جيمستاون (نيويورك). The مجلس بورغيسيس divided the colony first into four "incorporations" in 1617 and finally into eight shires (or counties) in 1634: مقاطعة جيمس سيتي (فيرجينيا), مقاطعة هنريكو (فيرجينيا), مقاطعة تشارلز سيتي (فرجينيا), مقاطعة يورك (فيرجينيا), مقاطعة آيل أوف وايت (فيرجينيا), مقاطعة أكوماك (فيرجينيا), Elizabeth City, and Warwick River.[3] America's oldest intact county court records can be found at إيستفيل، in مقاطعة نورثهامبتون (فيرجينيا), dating to 1632.[4] ماريلاند established its first county, مقاطعة سانت ماري، in 1637, and ماساتشوست followed in 1643. بنسيلفانيا and ولاية نيويورك delegated significant power and responsibility from state government to county governments, and thereby established a pattern for most of the United States, although counties remained relatively weak in نيو إنجلاند.[5]

When يوم الاستقلال came, "the framers of the Constitution did not provide for local governments. Rather, they left the matter to the states. Subsequently, early state constitutions generally conceptualized county government as an arm of the state." In the twentieth century, the role of local governments strengthened and "counties began providing an ever widening range of services".[6]

The newest county in the United States is the مقاطعة بورمفيلد (كولورادو), established in 2001 as a مقاطعة مدينة موحدة.[7][8] The newest county-equivalents are the Alaskan boroughs of سكاغواي established in 2007, رانغل established in 2008, and بطرسبورغ (ألاسكا) established in 2013.[9]

there were 3,007 counties, قائمة مقاطعات ولاية لويزيانا الأمريكية ‏, قائمة مقاطعات ولاية ألاسكا الأمريكية، قائمة مقاطعات ولاية ألاسكا الأمريكية، مدينة مستقلة (الولايات المتحدة), and the واشنطن العاصمة for a total of 3,144 counties and مقاطعة (الولايات المتحدة)s in the United States.[2] The average number of counties per state is 62, with a range from the three counties of ديلاوير to the قائمة مقاطعات ولاية تكساس الأمريكية of تكساس.

جنوب الولايات المتحدة and وسط غرب الولايات المتحدة states generally tend to have more counties than ولايات الغرب الأمريكية or شمال شرق الولايات المتحدة states, as many Northeastern states are not large enough in area to warrant a large number of counties, and many Western states were sparsely populated when counties were created. The five counties of رود آيلاند، the eight counties of كونيتيكت، and eight of the 14 counties of ماساتشوستس no longer have functional county governments, but continue to exist as legal and census entities.

Area

A highway sign designating the border between مقاطعة نيكولاس (فرجينيا الغربية) and مقاطعة غرينبريه (فرجينيا الغربية) counties in فيرجينيا الغربية along a secondary road.

At the تعداد الولايات المتحدة 2000, the وسيط (إحصاء) land area of U.S. counties was 622 ميل² (1,610 كـم²), which is two-thirds of the median land area of a مقاطعات ومناطق إنجلترا المراسيمية، and a little more than a quarter of the median land area of a French أقاليم فرنسا. Counties in the western United States typically have a much larger land area than those in the eastern United States. For example, the median land area of counties in جورجيا (ولاية أمريكية) is 343 ميل² (890 كـم²), whereas in يوتا it is 2,427 ميل² (6,290 كـم²).

The most extensive county or county-equivalent is the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, with a land area of 145,505 square miles (376,856 km²). All nine of the most extensive county-equivalents are in Alaska. The most extensive county is مقاطعة سان بيرناردينو، كاليفورنيا، with a land area of 20,057 square miles (51,947 km²). The least extensive county is مقاطعة كالاواو، with a land area of 11.991 square miles (31.058 km²). The least extensive county-equivalent is the مدينة حرة فولز تشيرش، with a land area of 1.999 square miles (5.177 km²).[1]

The term county equivalents is used to describe divisions whose organization differs from that of most counties:

• Alaska منطقة تعداد: Most of the land area of Alaska is not contained within any of Alaska's 19 organized boroughs. This vast area, larger than فرنسا and ألمانيا combined, is officially referred to by the Alaska state government as the Unorganized Borough, and, outside of other incorporated borough limits, has no independent "county" government, although several incorporated city governments exist within its boundaries; the majority of it is governed and run by the State of Alaska as an extension of state government.^A[›] The مكتب تعداد الولايات المتحدة، in cooperation with the Alaska state government for census and electoral districting purposes, has divided the Unorganized Borough into 11 census areas for statistical purposes only.^B[›]
• مدينة مستقلة (الولايات المتحدة): These are cities that legally belong to no county. They differ from consolidated city-counties—where a city and county have been merged into one unified قضاء. As of 2012, there are 41 such cities in the United States, including بالتيمور (ماريلاند); كارسون سيتي (نيفادا)|.*]]]; سانت لويس (ميزوري); and all 38 cities in فرجينيا، where any incorporated as a city is outside of the county jurisdiction.[18][19]
• واشنطن العاصمة، outside the jurisdiction of any state, has a special status. The city of Washington comprises the entirety of the واشنطن العاصمة، which, in accordance with Article 1, Section 8 of the [[U.S.

• Geographic Areas Reference Manual by the مكتب تعداد الولايات المتحدة
• National Association of Counties
• U.S. County Formation Maps 1617-Present—Cumulative animated graphics.
• Atlas of Historical County Boundaries
• Where Americans are moving, by county, in 2010

• بوابة الولايات المتحدة