Verbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde (plural Verbandsgemeinden) is an administrative unit unique to the German Bundesland (federal state) of Rhineland-Palatinate. There are 163 Verbandsgemeinden, which are grouped into the 24 districts and subdivided into nearly 2200 Ortsgemeinden.
Most of the Verbandsgemeinden were established in 1969. Formerly the name of the administrative units was Amt. Most of the functions of municipal government for several villages are consolidated and administered centrally from a larger or more central village among the group, while the individual villages (Ortsgemeinden) still maintain a limited degree of local autonomy.
Other German states have similar administrative units; see: Amt, Samtgemeinde or Verwaltungsgemeinschaft.
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Categories: Rhineland-Palatinate