Meanings
plural prefectures · alternative archaic præfecture
- The jurisdiction of a prefect; the region administered by a prefect, especially as a translation of certain French, Chinese, and Japanese administrative divisions.
In particular, Kumamoto prefecture in southwestern Japan is quickly becoming a hotbed for tech investment from companies including TSMC and Fujifilm Holdings Corp (FUJIF).
2023 May 18, Reuters, “Chipmakers look to Japan as worries about China grow”, in CNN Business1 more example
The top anti-corruption watchdog in Southwest China’s Yunnan province said on Friday the governor of the burgeoning aluminium hub of Wenshan had been placed under investigation. Zhang Xiulan, who has been governor of Wenshan prefecture since March 2015, is suspected of “grave violations of discipline and the law,” the Yunnan Province Commission for Discipline Inspection said in a statement, without elaborating.
2021 April 30, Tom Daly, “China graft watchdog probes governor of emerging aluminium hub”, in Richard Chang, editor, Reuters, archived from the original on 06 Jul 2023, ALUMINUMSynonyms: jun, fu, chun, foo, commandery
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe jurisdiction of a prefect; the region administered by a prefect, especially as a translation of certain French, Chinese, and Japanese administrative divisions.
Origin
- Latinpraefectūra
- Middle Frenchpréfecture
- Englishprefecture
Borrowed from Middle French préfecture, from Latin praefectūra. Equivalent to prefect + -ure. As an East Asian administrative division, a calque of Chinese 府 (fǔ) and 郡 (jùn), also used to describe 縣 /县 (xian, “county”) and 州 (zhou, “province”) in some eras.
More words from Middle French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic مَبْنَى الْوِلَايَة, وِلَايَة
- مَبْنَى الْوِلَايَة (mabnā l-wilāya)The office of a prefect
- وِلَايَة (wilāya)The district governed by a prefect
Catalan prefectura, prefectura
- prefecturaThe office of a prefect
- prefecturaThe district governed by a prefect
Chinese Mandarin 郡, 地區 /地区
- 郡 (jùn)The district governed by a prefect
- 地區 /地区 (dìqū)The district governed by a prefect
- 都道府縣 /都道府县 (dūdàofǔxiàn)The district governed by a prefect
- 省 (shěng)The district governed by a prefect
- 縣 /县 (xiàn)The district governed by a prefect
Dutch prefectuur, prefectuur
- prefectuurThe office of a prefect
- prefectuurThe district governed by a prefect
Finnish prefektuuri, prefektuuri
- prefektuuriThe office of a prefect
- prefektuuriThe district governed by a prefect
French préfecture
- préfectureThe district governed by a prefect
German Präfektur, Präfektur
- PräfekturThe office of a prefect
- PräfekturThe district governed by a prefect
Greek νομός
- νομός (nomós)The district governed by a prefect
Hebrew מחוז
- מחוזThe district governed by a prefect
Indonesian prefektur
- prefekturThe district governed by a prefect
Japanese 県, 府
- 県 (ken)The district governed by a prefect
- 府 (fu)The district governed by a prefect
- 都道府県 (to-dō-fu-ken)The district governed by a prefect
Korean 현, 도도부현
- 현 (hyeon)The district governed by a prefect
- 도도부현 (dodobuhyeon)The district governed by a prefect
Latin praefectūra, praefectūra
- praefectūraThe office of a prefect
- praefectūraThe district governed by a prefect
Lithuanian prefektūra, prefektūra
- prefektūraThe office of a prefect
- prefektūraThe district governed by a prefect
Malay prefektur
- prefekturThe district governed by a prefect
Norwegian Bokmål prefektur, prefektur
- prefekturThe office of a prefect
- prefekturThe district governed by a prefect
Polish prefektura, prefektura
- prefekturaThe office of a prefect
- prefekturaThe district governed by a prefect
Portuguese prefeitura
- prefeituraThe district governed by a prefect
Romanian prefectură, prefectură
- prefecturăThe office of a prefect
- prefecturăThe district governed by a prefect
Russian префекту́ра, префекту́ра
- префекту́ра (prefektúra)The office of a prefect
- префекту́ра (prefektúra)The district governed by a prefect
Spanish prefectura, prefectura
- prefecturaThe office of a prefect
- prefecturaThe district governed by a prefect
Swedish prefektur
- prefekturThe district governed by a prefect
Turkish valilik
- valilikThe office of a prefect
Vietnamese tỉnh
- tỉnhThe district governed by a prefect
Cite this entry
prefecture. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prefecture
“prefecture.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prefecture. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “prefecture,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/prefecture.
Source: prefecture on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.