the.com/mayor
a city's hype-man, scapegoat, and pothole-filler, all wearing the same ceremonial chain
means the elected (or sometimes appointed) head of a city, town, or borough's local government, charged with leading its administration and standing as its public face.
from From Latin 'maior,' meaning 'greater' or 'larger' — the comparative of 'magnus,' 'great.' The same root that gives us 'major' and 'majority.' It traveled through Old French 'maire' into Middle English, picking up a 'y' along the way. So the title quietly asserts that the mayor is the 'greater one' of the town — a Latin boast still hanging around the necks of city officials everywhere.
- oldest office
- London's mayoralty dates to 1189
- power varies
- some are figureheads, some run everything
- key power
- many can only hand you keys
- strange ranks
- villages elect mayors for cats and dogs
- word roots
- from Latin major, meaning greater
eric adams — current mayor of new york city since 2022
london mayor — sadiq khan, elected 2016, represents 9 million people
paris mayor — anne hidalgo, served since 2014