'Chamber of Deputies' is the name given to a legislative body, be it the
lower house of a
bicameral legislature, or the name of a
unicameral legislature.
Historically,
France's "Chamber of Deputies" was the lower house of parliament during the
Bourbon Restoration,
July Monarchy and
French Third Republic; the name is still informally used for the
National Assembly under the nation's current
Fifth Republic.
The term "Chamber of Deputies" is not widely used by
English-speaking countries, the more popular equivalent being
House of Representatives, although it was used as the name of the lower house of parliament in
Burma, a former
British colony. It was also the official description of
Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the
Irish parliament) during the
Irish Free State.
In
Malta, the
House of Representatives is known in
Maltese as ''Kamra tad-Deputati''
[1], although ''Kamra tar-Rappreżentanti'' has also been used.
[2] In
Lebanon, the Arabic name of the country's
parliament translates as 'Chamber of Deputies', although in French and English, the name 'National Assembly' is used.
Members of these bodies are generally called "deputies", similar to "
congressperson", "
member of parliament". The term "deputy" may be extended to refer to any member of a legislative body; this usage is particularly common among those parliaments or legislative chambers in
French and
Spanish-speaking countries that style themselves
National Assemblies, as well as in
Portugal's
Assembly of the Republic. The term is often used in
Ireland as a form of address when referring to members of
Dáil Éireann.
Lower house in bicameral legislature
In the following countries, the Chamber of Deputies is the name of the
lower house of the
bicameral legislature.
Unicameral legislatures
In the following countries, 'Chamber of Deputies' is the name given to the
unicameral parliaments :
Defunct Chambers of Deputies
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Burma1
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Egypt2
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Ethiopia1
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Chamber of Deputies of France1
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Iraq1
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Libya1
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Nicaragua2
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Peru2
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Venezuela2
1. Legislature disbanded
2. New constitution, unicameral system adopted
See also
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List of national legislatures