A warden is a custodian, defender, or guardian. Warden is often used in the sense of a watchman or guardian, as in a

prison warden The warden ( US, Canada) or governor ( UK, Australia), also known as a superintendent (US, South Asia) or director (UK, New Zealand), is the official who is in charge of a prison. Name In the United States, Mexico, and Canada, warden is the m ...

. It can also refer to a chief or head official, as in the

Warden of the Mint Warden of the Mint was a high-ranking position at the Royal Mint in England from 1216 to 1829. The warden was responsible for a variety of minting procedures and acted as the immediate representative of the current monarch inside the mint. The role ...

. ''Warden'' is etymologically identical to ''guardian'', both terms deriving from the

Old French Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France approximately between the late 8th Germanic origin, ''wartēn'' meaning to watch or protect. It is also related to the native Anglo Saxon derived word ''ward'' Types of wardens include: * Prison warden, the chief administrative official of a prison * Warden (college), head of some university colleges and academic institutions in the United Kingdom and Australia *

, historical highest-ranking officer of the Royal Mint of the United Kingdom * Warden, rank of seniority within a City of London

livery company A livery company is a type of guild or professional association that originated in medieval times in London, England. Livery companies comprise London's ancient and modern trade associations and guilds, almost all of which are Style (form of a ...

Churchwarden A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish or congregation of the Anglican Communion, Lutheran Churches or Catholic Church, usually working as a part-time volunteer. In the Anglican tradition, holders of these positions are ''ex officio'' mem ...

, a lay officer in an Anglican or Episcopal church *

Fire warden Firefighting is a profession aimed at controlling and extinguishing fire. A person who engages in firefighting is known as a firefighter or fireman. Firefighters typically undergo a high degree of technical training. This involves structural fir ...

, a person designated to aid firefighters at a building or community level *

Game warden A conservation officer is a law enforcement officer who protects wildlife and the environment. A conservation officer may also be referred to as an environmental technician/technologist, game warden, park ranger, forest watcher, forest guar ...

, an officer empowered to enforce the hunting and trapping laws of a jurisdiction * Mining warden, presiding officer in a

warden's court A warden's court is a special court established to deal with disputes relating to mining and mineral tenements. It is presided over by a mining warden. Historically all Australian states had warden's courts, which were established in the late 19 ...

ARP Warden Air Raid Precautions (ARP) refers to a number of organisations and guidelines in the United Kingdom dedicated to the protection of civilians from the danger of air raids. Government consideration for air raid precautions increased in the 1920s a ...

, responsible for enforcing Air Raid Precautions in the United Kingdom during World War II air raids * Warden, the chief royal official of a

royal forest A royal forest, occasionally known as a kingswood (), is an area of land with different definitions in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The term ''forest'' in the ordinary modern understanding refers to an area of wooded land; however, the ...

Street warden A street warden is someone who patrols the streets in order to aid the police at a community level. Examples include the Red Caps of London. Street wardens (sometimes referred to as community wardens) do not have police powers, nor are they the ...

, an officer aiding police at a community level * Warden, an officer in a

Knights of Columbus The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic Church, Catholic Fraternal and service organizations, fraternal service order founded by Michael J. McGivney, Blessed Michael J. McGivney. Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men. ...

council * Warden, a rank of

Masonic lodge officer In Craft Freemasonry, sometimes known as Blue Lodge Freemasonry, every Masonic lodge elects or appoints Masonic lodge officers to execute the necessary functions of the lodge's life and work. The precise list of such offices may vary between the j ...

* County warden, the head of county governments in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

and

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, Canada, similar to mayors in cities *

Resident assistant A resident assistant (RA), also known by a variety of other names, is a trained peer leader who coordinates activities in residence halls in colleges and universities, mental health and substance abuse residential facilities, or similar establish ...

, may be referred to as a warden at some educational institutions *

Park ranger A ranger, park ranger, park warden, field ranger, or forest ranger is a person entrusted with protecting and preserving parklands and Protected area, protected areas – private, national, state, provincial, or local parks. Their duties include ( ...

, also called a park warden or forest ranger, a person entrusted with protecting and preserving parklands *

Parking enforcement officer A parking enforcement officer (PEO),United State ...

, also called a traffic warden or parking inspector, an officer who issues tickets for parking violations *

Sheltered housing Sheltered housing or sheltered accommodation are terms covering a wide range of rented housing for older and/or disabled or other vulnerable people. In the United Kingdom most commonly it refers to grouped housing such as a block or "scheme" ...

officers, referred to formerly (and still by some) as "wardens" *

Wardens of the Coast The Wardens of the Coast, originally called the Keepers of the Coast or Keepers of the Sea, were officials appointed in the Kingdom of England and placed under the jurisdiction of one of the regional admiralties of England, those of the North, Sout ...

Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports is the name of a ceremonial post in the United Kingdom. The post dates from at least the 12th century, when the title was Keeper of the Coast, but it may be older. The Lord Warden was originally in charge of the ...

, a ceremonial office of the Confederation of Cinque Ports of the southeast coast of England **

Lord Warden of the Marches The Lord Warden of the Marches was an office in the governments of Scotland and England. The holders were responsible for the security of the border between the two nations, and often took part in military action. They were also responsible, al ...

, a historical office in Scotland and England *

Lord Warden of the Stannaries The Lord Warden of the Stannaries (from for Tin, Tin, Sn) used to exercise judicial and military functions in Cornwall, England, UK, and is still the official who, upon the commission of the British monarchy, monarch or Duke of Cornwall for the ...

, a historical office in Cornwall *

Warden of the Swans The Warden of the Swans is an office in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwes ...

, an office in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, created in 1993 * Warden, a hostile mob in the sandbox game ''

Minecraft ''Minecraft'' is a 2011 sandbox game developed and published by the Swedish video game developer Mojang Studios. Originally created by Markus Persson, Markus "Notch" Persson using the Java (programming language), Java programming language, the ...

References

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See also