Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of

authority In the fields of sociology and political science, authority is the legitimate power of a person or group over other people. In a civil state, ''authority'' is practiced in ways such a judicial branch or an executive branch of government.''The N ...

, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived from the Latin word , "to distinguish" or "to set apart", the passive participle () meaning "having been set apart", with the eventual connotation of something private or confidential, as with the English word ''secret.'' A was a person, therefore, overseeing business confidentially, usually for a powerful individual (a king, pope, etc.). The official title of the

leader Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...

of most

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

and

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

political parties is the "General Secretary of the Central Committee" or "First Secretary of the Central Committee". When a communist party is in power, the

general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

is usually the country's ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' leader (though sometimes this leader also holds state-level positions to monopolize power, such as a

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified by a ...

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

ship in order to constitute ''

de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...

'' leadership of the state), such as

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

and

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

. In England, the term ''secretarius'' was used "from the beginning of the thirteenth century in the varying meanings of a confidential clerk, an ambassador, or a member of the king's council".J. Otway-Ruthven, ''The King's Secretary and the Signet Office in the XV Century'' (1939), p. 60. In the fourteenth century, the title became strongly associated with the keeper of the king's

signet Signet may refer to: *Signet, Kenya, A subsidiary of the Kenyan Broadcasting Corporation (KBC), specifically set up to broadcast and distribute the DTT signals * Signet ring, a ring with a seal set into it, typically by leaving an impression in sea ...

. From the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

to the late 19th century, men involved in the daily correspondence and the activities of the powerful assumed the title of secretary. With time, like many titles, the term was applied to more and varied functions, leading to compound titles to specify the authority associated with its use, like general secretary or financial secretary. In some countries, such as the United States, the term ''secretary'' is used to indicate the holder of a

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

-level post. There are a number of popular variations of the title used to indicate that the secretary in question has a high degree of authority, such as general secretary (or, following usage in the

Norman language Norman or Norman French (, french: Normand, Guernésiais: , Jèrriais: ) is a Romance language which can be classified as one of the Oïl languages along with French, Picard and Walloon. The name "Norman French" is sometimes used to descri ...

, secretary-general), first secretary, and executive secretary. In a club or

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

, the secretary is also considered to be, in most cases, the third person in charge of the organization, after the president/chairman and vice president/vice chairman.''Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', 4th edition, Scott, Foresman and Company, Chicago, 1915, pp. 244–247. In smaller organizations, the secretary typically takes

meeting minutes Minutes, also known as minutes of meeting (abbreviation MoM), protocols or, informally, notes, are the instant written record of a meeting or hearing. They typically describe the events of the meeting and may include a list of attendees, a state ...

, notifies members of meetings, contacts various persons in relation to the society, administers the day-to-day activities of the organization, and creates the order of business. The secretary of a

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

or international non-governmental organization can combine the function with that of vice president/vice chairman.

General secretary

General secretary occurs as the title of a ministerial position of authority found in various organizations, such as

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

and

socialist parties Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

, and international non-governmental organizations. Examples include: *

General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress The General Secretary of the TUC is the chief permanent officer of the Trades Union Congress, and a major figurehead in the trade union movement in the United Kingdom. The Secretary is responsible for the effective operation of the TUC and for lead ...

* General Secretary of the New South Wales Labor Party (Australia) * Some church organizations, such as the National Council of Churches and the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most juri ...

* General Secretary of the Labour Party

Communist Party

General secretary or first secretary is the official title of leaders of most Communist political parties. When a Communist party is the ruling party in a Communist-led

one-party state A one-party state, single-party state, one-party system, or single-party system is a type of sovereign state in which only one political party has the right to form the government, usually based on the existing constitution. All other parties ...

, the general secretary is typically the country's

leader. Examples include: *

General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party The general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party () is the head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Since 1989, the CCP general secretary has been the paramount leader o ...

* General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam * General Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba *

General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party is the office of the highest-ranking member of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) and also typically the supreme leader of Laos. Since the party's takeov ...

General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED O ...

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Kampuchea The General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Kampuchea ( km, អគ្គលេខាធិការគណៈកម្មាធិការមជ្ឈិមបក្សកុម្មុយនីស្តកម្ព ...

* General Secretary of the Mongolian People's Party *

General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea The general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (Korean: 조선로동당 총비서) is the head of the Workers' Party of Korea, the ruling party in North Korea, and considered as the supreme leader of North Korea. The general secretary i ...

* General Secretary of the League of Communist of Yugoslavia * General Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of East Germany * General Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia * General Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania *

General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party The Romanian Communist Party ( ro, Partidul Comunist Român, , PCR) was a communist party in Romania. The successor to the pro-Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave ideological endorsement to a communist revolution that woul ...

* General Secretary of the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party * General Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party * General Secretary of the Bulgarian Communist Party

Secretary-general

Examples include:

International intergovernmental organizations

International nongovernmental organizations

Sports governing bodies

First secretary

First secretary is the title of the chief officer or leader in many organizations, and is also a modern diplomatic rank. Examples include: * Some consumer organizations, such as the National Consumers League * Some political parties, especially

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

Socialist Parties Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

* In Workers' Party and Communist Party organizations: **

First Secretary of the Communist Party of Armenia The Communist Party of Armenia ( hy, Հայաստանի կոմունիստական կուսակցություն, russian: Коммунистическая партия Армении) was a branch of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union with ...

First Secretary of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan The Azerbaijan Communist Party ( az, Azərbaycan Kommunist Partiyası; russian: Коммунистическая партия Азербайджана) was the ruling political party in the Azerbaijan SSR, making it effectively a branch of the ...

** First Secretary of the

Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...

—see Party Committee Secretary *** First Secretary of the

Communist Youth League of China The Communist Youth League of China (CYLC), also known as the Young Communist League of China or simply the Communist Youth League (CYL), is a youth movement of the People's Republic of China for youth between the ages of 14 and 28, run by the ...

** First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba ** First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia **

First Secretary of the French Socialist Party The First Secretary of the Socialist Party ( French: ''Premier secrétaire du Parti socialiste'') is the most senior politician within the Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of ...

First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party The First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party (; ) was the leading position in the Georgian Communist Party during the Soviet era. Its leaders were responsible for many of the affairs in Georgia and were considered the leader of the Georgian ...

** First Secretary of the Communist Party of Lithuania **

First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party The Polish United Workers' Party ( pl, Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza; ), commonly abbreviated to PZPR, was the communist party which ruled the Polish People's Republic as a one-party state from 1948 to 1989. The PZPR had led two other lega ...

** First Secretary of the

Communist Party of the Russian Federation , anthem = , seats1_title = Seats in the State Duma , seats1 = , seats2_title = Seats in the Federation Council , seats2 = , seats3_title = Governors , seats3 = , seats4_title ...

** First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union ***

First Secretary of the Moscow Communist Party The First Secretary of the Moscow City Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, was the position of highest authority in the city of Moscow roughly equating to that of mayor. The position was created on November 10, 1917, following t ...

** First Secretary of the Communist Party of Tajikistan ** First Secretary of the Ukrainian Communist Party **

First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Vietnam The General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam ( vi, Tổng Bí thư Ban Chấp hành Trung ương Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam), known as First Secretary ( vi, Bí thư Thứ nhất) from 1960 to 1976, is t ...

* First Secretary of State, a cabinet position in the United Kingdom * First Secretary for Wales, now

First Minister of Wales , insignia = First Minister of Wales logo.png , insigniasize = 120px , insigniacaption = Logo , flag = Flag of Wales.svg , flagsize = 120px , flagborder = yes , flagcaption = Flag of Wales , image = File:Mark Drakeford (cropped).jpg , ...

* First Secretary of the Admiralty—see

Secretary to the Admiralty S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''. History ...

* Some

s, especially in the United Kingdom * The

General Secretariat for Macedonia and Thrace The Ministry of Macedonia and Thrace ( el, Υπουργείο Μακεδονίας και Θράκης, ΥΜΑΘ) is a former ministry (government department), ministry of Greece. Responsible for the geographic regions of Greece, regions of Mace ...

, a government agency for the Greek regions of Macedonia and Thrace

Executive secretary

Examples include: * Executive Secretary (Commonwealth of Independent States) * Executive Secretary (Philippines) *

Executive Secretary for Integral Development The Executive Secretariat for Integral Development (SEDI) is one of six Secretariats that operate under the direction of the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States. The department's stated mission is to support and facilitate th ...

, Organization of American States *

Executive Secretary of the Department of State The Executive Secretary of the United States Department of State is the Director of the Executive Secretariat. The position holds a rank equivalent to an Assistant Secretary. Each Executive Secretary is appointed by the Secretary of State. Th ...

, United States

Secretary-treasurer

Within many organizations, the title of secretary is combined with that of

treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury o ...

References

{{Set index article Chief executive officers Clubs and societies Government occupations Management occupations Positions of authority Titles