Re: CHAT: postcodes

Thomas R. Wier scripsit:

> They also
> go by different names:  in Louisiana, they're called parishes,
> while in Alaska they are boroughs and in the New England states
> they can be called townships.
Parishes are indeed county-equivalents, but towns/townships (also found in
New York) are not; they are subdivisions of counties.  In New
York, at least, the state is divided into counties, and each county
is fully divided into towns, cities, and Indian reservations.  The
term "village" also has legal significance: a village must be contained
in a county, can overlap various towns, but cannot overlap any cities.
A city can unilaterally (if the state legislature agrees) incorporate
any towns adjacent to it, but cannot incorporate an adjacent city without
a reciprocal agreement.   Therefore, New York City is completely surrounded
by technical cities, some of them quite small.

--
John Cowan
        jcowan@reutershealth.com
                I am a member of a civilization. --David Brin