Premier is a title for the
head of government in
central governments,
state government
A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonomy, or ...
s 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 government, but is not the
head of state. In
presidential system
A presidential system, or single executive system, is a form of government in which a head of government, typically with the title of president, leads an executive branch that is separate from the legislative branch in systems that use separati ...
s, the two roles are often combined into one, whereas in
parliamentary systems of government the two are usually kept separate.
Relationship to the term "prime minister"
"Premier" is often the title of the heads of government in
sub-national entities, such as the
provinces and territories of Canada,
states of the
Commonwealth of Australia,
provinces of South Africa
South Africa is divided into nine provinces. On the eve of the 1994 general election, South Africa's former homelands, also known as Bantustans, were reintegrated, and the four existing provinces were divided into nine. The twelfth, thirteenth ...
, the island of
Nevis within the Federation of
Saint Kitts and Nevis, and the nation of
Niue. In some of these cases, the formal title remains "Prime Minister" but "Premier" is used to avoid confusion with the national leader. In these cases, care should be taken not to confuse the title of "premier" with "prime minister". In these countries, terms such as "Federal Premier", "National Premier" or "Premier of the Dominion" were sometimes used to refer to prime ministers, although these are now obsolete.
Etymology
The word comes from French which means prime minister. ''Premier'' meaning 'first', coming from Latin ''prīmārius''. This is why in many nations, "premier" is used interchangeably with "
prime minister".
Examples by country
In the
People's Republic of China, "premier" is more common and official, but "prime minister" is still used (see
Premier of the People's Republic of China
The premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, commonly called the premier of China and sometimes also referred to as the prime minister, is the head of government of China and leader of the State Council. The premier is ...
).
In the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
(Taiwan), the head of government is the official name of the President of the
Executive Yuan
The Executive Yuan () is the executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Its leader is the Premier, who is appointed by the President of the Republic of China, and requires confirmation by the Legislative Yuan.
...
, but it can also be abbreviated to Premier.
In
Cambodia, "Premier" means the "Prime Minister". In
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities within the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Republika Srpska. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina consists ...
, sub-national entity of
Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well in
cantons, head of government have formal title of "premier", often anglicized as "prime minister", while national prime minister is
Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but "premier" is sometimes colloquially used.
In the
Czech Republic, the head of government is colloquially called “Premiér”, and the
Czech language translates both “Premier” and “Prime Minister” as “Premiér”. However, although his post is commonly translated in English as “Prime Minister”, the official title as per articles 67 and 68 of the Constitution is “
Předseda vlády”, literally “President of the Government”.
In
Croatia, the head of government is officially called “President of the Government” (''predsjednik vlade'') but “Premier” (''premijer'') is colloquially used.
In
Serbia, the head of government is officially called "President of the Government" (''predsednik vlade'') but "Premier" (''premijer'') is colloquially used.
In
Poland, the
head of government is officially called "President of the Council of Ministers" ( pl, Prezes Rady Ministrów, lit=Chairman of the Council of Ministers) but "Premier" (polish for Prime Minister) is colloquially used.
In
Italy, the
President of the Council of Ministers, an office equivalent to prime minister, is informally referred to as the "Premier".
In
North Macedonia the
head of the government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gr ...
is named premier (Macedonian премиер, ''premier''), usually translated in English as
prime minister.
In the
Soviet Union, the title of premier was applied to the
Chairman
The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
of the
Council of People's Commissars, named
Chairman
The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
of the
Council of Ministers after 1946, which became the
Prime Minister of the Soviet Union in 1991.
By jurisdiction
*
Premiers of Australia
* Premier of Bermuda
* Premier of the British Virgin Islands
* Premier (Canada), Premiers of Canada
* Premier of the Cayman Islands
*
Premier of the People's Republic of China
The premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, commonly called the premier of China and sometimes also referred to as the prime minister, is the head of government of China and leader of the State Council. The premier is ...
* List of premiers of China
* Chancellor of China
* Premier of North Korea
* Premier of Montserrat
* Premier (South Africa), Premiers of South Africa
* Premier of the Soviet Union
* Premier of the Republic of China, Premier of the Republic of China (Taiwan)
* Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands
* President of the Council of Ministers
See also
* Westminster system
* Constitutional monarchy
* Semi-presidential system
* Semi-parliamentary system
* Parliamentary republic
* Parliamentary leader
References
{{reflist
Premiers,
Heads of government
Positions of authority
Positions of subnational authority
Gubernatorial titles