Analderman is a member of amunicipal assembly or council in manyjurisdictions founded uponEnglish law with similar officials existing in theNetherlands (wethouder) andBelgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of aborough orcounty council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than bypopular vote, or a council member elected by voters.^[1]

The title is derived from theOld English title ofealdorman, which literally means "elder person", and which was used by the chief nobles presiding overshires. Similar titles exist in other Germanic languages, such asålderman inSwedish,oldermann inNorwegian,rådmand inDanish andLow German,Olderman inWest Frisian,ouderman inDutch, andÄltermann inGerman.Finnish also hasoltermanni, which was borrowed from Swedish. All of these words mean "elder person" or "wise man".

Many local government bodies used the term "alderman" in Australia. As in the way local councils have been modernised in the United Kingdom andIreland, the term alderman has been discontinued in a number of places. For example, in the state ofQueensland before 1994, rural "shires" elected "councillors" and a "chairman", while "cities" elected a "mayor" and "aldermen". Since 1994, all local and regional government areas in Queensland elect a "mayor" and "councillors". (Australian capital cities usually have aLord Mayor). An example of the use of the term alderman is evident in the City ofAdelaide.^[2] Aldermen were elected from the electors in all thewards.^[3]

Historically, inCanada, the term "alderman" was used for those persons elected to a municipal council to represent the wards. As women were increasingly elected to municipal office, the term "councillor" slowly replaced "alderman", although there was some use of the term "alderperson". Today, the title of "alderman" is rarely used except in some cities inAlberta andOntario, as well as some smaller municipalities elsewhere in the country, that retain the title for historical reasons.

The title "alderman" was abolished forlocal authorities in the Republic of Ireland by theLocal Government Act 2001, with effect from the2004 local elections.^[4] Early usage of the term mirroredthat of England and Wales. Local elections since the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1919 have used thesingle transferable vote in multiple-member electoral areas.^[5][6]

In each electoral area of aborough or county borough, the first several candidates elected were styled "alderman" and the rest "councillor".^[7]

Someone co-opted to fill a seat vacated by an alderman would be styled "councillor".^[8]

In the Netherlands, an alderman (Dutch:wethouder) is part of themunicipal executive and not of themunicipal council, which controls the aldermen's actions in office. The alderman is comparable to the office ofminister at the national level. However, the alderman can not propose bills to the council. The alderman can be forced to resign by avote of no confidence by the council.

In South Africa, the term alderman refers to senior members ofmunicipal councils.^[9] They are distinguished from ordinary councillors for their "long and distinguished service as a councillor".^[10] The title may be awarded on the basis of a long term of service (commonly 20 years), or a combination of term of service along with leadership positions held within the council.^[11] In some councils the title is automatically conferred on themayor regardless of their term of service.

Although the term originated in England, it had no single definition there until the 19th century, as each municipal corporation had its own constitution. It was used in England,Wales andIreland/Northern Ireland (all of Ireland being part of the United Kingdom from January 1801 until December 1922), but was not used inScotland. Under theMunicipal Reform Act 1835,municipal borough corporations consisted ofcouncillors and aldermen. Aldermen would be elected not by the electorate, but by the council (including the outgoing aldermen), for a term of six years, which allowed a party that narrowly lost an election to retain control by choosing aldermen. This was changed by the Municipal Corporations Amendment Act 1910, so that outgoing aldermen were no longer allowed to vote.^[12][13]County councils, created in Great Britain in 1889 and in Ireland in 1899, also elected aldermen, butrural district andurban district councils did not. TheLocal Government Act 1972 finally abolished Aldermen with voting rights, with effect from 1974, except in theGreater London Council and theLondon borough councils, where they remained a possibility until 1978.^[14]

Councils in England, Wales, andNorthern Ireland still have the power to create honorary aldermen and alderwomen, as a reward for their services as a councillor, but must do so at a special meeting, and in each case the granting of the title needs to be approved by two-thirds of those attending.^[15] This power is little used in England and Wales, but is used more often in Northern Ireland, where councils may also designate up to a quarter of their elected councillors as aldermen.

In theCity of London, but not elsewhere inLondon, aldermen are still elected for each of thewards of the City by the regular electorate. To be a candidate to beLord Mayor of the City of London, it is necessary to be an alderman and to have been asheriff of the City of London.

The title "Alderman" is used for both men and women and may be prefixed to a person's name (e.g., Alderman John Smith, Alderman Smith, or for women; Alderman Mrs (or Miss) Smith).

InScotland, the office of "baillie" bore some similarities to that of alderman in England and Wales.

Depending on the jurisdiction, an alderman could have been part of the legislative or judicial local government.

A "board of aldermen" is the governing executive or legislative body of many cities and towns in the United States. Boards of aldermen are used in many rural areas of the United States as opposed to a largercity council orcity commission; its members are typically called "alderman". The term is sometimes used instead ofcity council, but it can also refer to an executive board independent of the council, or to what is essentially an upper house of abicameral legislature (as it was inNew York City until the 20th century).

InIllinois, the Illinois Municipal Code allows for the formation and existence of an aldermanic-city form of municipal government. As an example, inChicago, theChicago City Council is composed of fifty aldermen^[16] (not councilors). As of 2021, Chicago aldermen are legally referred to by theState of Illinois as alderpersons, though the terms alderman and aldermanic remain in common use.^[17][18][19]

Some cities such as,Ithaca, New York identify aldermen as 'alderpersons'. Others, includingNew Haven, Connecticut, use the term "alders".^[20]

Historically the term could also refer to local municipal judges in small legal proceedings (as inPennsylvania^[21] andDelaware). Pennsylvania's aldermen were phased out in the early 20th century.

• Local government in Canada
• Local government in the United States
• Municipal government
• Councillor
• Mayor
• Selectman
• John Alderman