(Redirected from Senator)
A 'senate' is a
deliberative body, often the
upper house or chamber of a
legislature. There have been many such bodies in history, the first of which was the
Roman Senate.
Overview
The word ''senate'' is derived from the
Latin word ''senatus'' (senate), which comes from ''senex'', "old man". The members or legislators of a senate are called 'senators'. The Latin word ''senator'' was adopted into English with no change in spelling. Its meaning comes from a very ancient form of even simple social organization in which decision-making powers are reserved for the eldest men. For the same reason, the word ''senate'' is correctly used when referring to any powerful authority characteristically composed by the eldest members of a community, as a deliberative body of a faculty in an institution of higher learning is often called a senate. The original senate was the
Roman Senate, which lasted until
580. In the
Eastern Roman Empire, the
Byzantine Senate continued until the
Fourth Crusade.
Modern democratic states with
bicameral parliamentary systems are sometimes equipped with a senate, often distinguished from an ordinary parallel
lower house, known variously as the "
House of Representatives", "
House of Commons", "
Chamber of Deputies", "
National Assembly" or "
House of Assembly", by electoral rules. This may include minimum age required for voters and candidates, proportional or
majoritarian or
plurality system, and an electoral basis or ''collegium''. Typically, the senate is referred to as the upper house and has a smaller membership than the lower house. In some
federal states senates also exist at the subnational level. In the
United States all states other than
Nebraska have a state senate. In
Australia all states other than
Queensland have an upper house known as a
legislative council. Several Canadian provinces also once had legislative councils, but these have all been abolished.
Senate membership can be determined either through elections or appointments. For example, elections are held every three years for half the membership of the
Australian Senate, the term of a senator being six years. In contrast, members of the
Canadian Senate are appointed by the
Governor General upon the recommendation of the
Prime Minister of Canada, holding the office until they resign, are removed, or retire at the mandatory age of 75. Some states have a combination of these two approaches, such as the
Jamaican Senate, where thirteen are appointed by the prime minister and eight by the
leader of the opposition. In larger countries, the senate often serves a balancing effect by giving a larger share of power to regions or groups which would otherwise be overwhelmed under strictly popular
apportionment.
Alternate meanings
The terms Senate and Senator, however, do not necessarily refer to a second chamber of a legislature:
★ In Finland, until 1919, the
Senate was the executive branch and the supreme court.
★ In the German
Bundesländer of
Berlin,
Bremen and
Hamburg, the Senates (or '' in
German) are the executive branch, with Senator (''Senator'') being the holders of ministerial portfolios. Moreover, also in Germany, bodies of usually five
judges in higher
courts of appeal hearing and deciding cases are called "senates", although the judges are not called "senators". However, in the Land of
Bavaria, the Senate was the upper house of parliament until its abolition in
1999.
★ In
Scotland, judges of the
High Court of Justiciary are called
Senators of the College of Justice.
★ In some, mostly federal countries with a unicameral legislature, some of the legislators are elected differently from the others and are called Senators. In federal countries, such Senators represent the territories, while the other members represent the people at large (this device is used to allow a federal representation without having to establish a bicameral legislature); this is the case with
St. Kitts and Nevis,
Comoros and
Micronesia. In other, non-federal countries, the use of the term Senator marks some other difference between such members and the rest of the legislators (such as the method of selection); this is the case of
Jersey and
Dominica.
★ The Senate can be the ruling body of a university
National senates in the world
Defunct senates
fictional
★
Galactic senate of the republic
★
Imperial senate
★
New Republic senate
★
Galactic Alliance senate
★
Romulan senate
See also
★
Senator for life
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