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Information about Wilaya

A wilāyah (Arabic: ولاية) or vilâyet (in Persian and Ottoman Turkish) is an administrative division, usually translated as "province." The word derives from the Arabic root w-l-i, meaning "to govern": a wāli 'governer' governs a wilayah 'that which is governed'. Under the Caliphate, it referred to one of the constituent near-sovereign states.

Use in specific countries

Middle East and North Africa

For Morocco which is divided into provinces and wilāyas the translation "province" would cause the distinction to cease. For Sudan the term state, and for Mauritania the term region is used.

See also: The governorates of Iraq (muhafazah) are often translated as province, in contrast to official Iraqi documents and the general use for other Arab countries. This conflicts somehow with the general translation for muhafazah (governorate) and wilāyah (province).

Malaysia and Indonesia

Wilayah Persekutuan is the Malay term for federal territory. In Malaysia the term wilayah is used to represent central government controlled areas. Wilayah Persekutuan are the areas directly under the control of the federal government, which all other states in Malaysia are subordinate to. States such as Penang and Malacca enjoy far more autonomy from the central government, as they were former Straits Settlements of Britain. A major difference between Penang Island can be seen in automatic granting citizenship to any persons born within the Island of Penang, regardless of the citizenship of the parents. This right is a derived form of a law from the British era called "Jus soli". However neither Penang or Malacca actually practise their autonomy status in the spirit of unity within Malaysia. However east Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah practice a large degree of autonomy from the central government. Passports are required for a Peninsular Malaysian to travel to Malaysian Borneo, although in the spirit of the union, these requirements maybe done away in the future.

Technically, Malaysia is only the areas covered within the Wilayah Persekutuan, all other states in the Federation of Malaysia are subordinate states to the federal government, which may choose to leave the federation. One former state has been expelled in the past; the state of Singapore was expelled from the Malaysian Federation to form a new Republic of Singapore in the mid-Sixties.

However all Malaysians are equal federal citizens, meaning they owe no allegiance to the state, only to the federation of Malaysia, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the Federal Constitution and the Malaysian Flag.

In Indonesian wilayah means area, region or regional, but does not refer to a level of government.

The Ottoman Empire and Central Asia

Main article: Subdivisions of the Ottoman Empire#Administrative reform, 1864
Traditionally the provinces of the Ottoman Empire were known as eyâlets, but beginning in 1864, they were gradually restructured as vilâyets – the Turkish pronunciation of the Arabic word wilāyah.

This Ottoman Turkish name is still used in several similar forms: The current provinces of Turkey are called il in Turkish.

Iran

In Iran, the word is also used unofficially.

South Asia

In Hindi and Urdu, the term Vilayet is used to refer to any Foreign Country. As an adjective Vilayeti is used to indicate an imported article or good.

Other areas

In Arabic, wilāyah is used to refer to the states of the United States, and the United States as a whole is called "الولايات المتحدة" (al Wilāyat al Muttaḥidah) literally meaning "the United States."

In the Tsez language, the districts of Dagestan are also referred to as "вилайат" (wilayat), plural "вилайатйоби" (wilayatyobi). But the term "район" (rayon), plural "районйаби" (rayonyabi) is also used.

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Arabic terms for country subdivisions
muhafazah (محافظة) shabiyah (شعبية‎) dara (دائرة‎) baladiyah (بلدية) imarah (إمارة) wilayah (ولاية) liwa (لواء‎) qadaa (قضاء) mintaqah (منطقة) mudiriya (مديرية‎) nahiya (ناحية)
al-‘Arabiyyah in written Arabic (Kufic script):  
Pronunciation: /alˌʕa.raˈbij.ja/
Spoken in: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman,
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fɒːɾˈsiː in Perso-Arabic script (Nasta`liq style):  
Pronunciation: [fɒːɾˈsiː]
Spoken in: Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and areas of Uzbekistan and Pakistan.
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Ottoman Turkish (Turkish: Osmanlıca or Osmanlı Türkçesi, Ottoman Turkish:
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province is a territorial unit, almost always a country subdivision.

Roman provinces

The word is attested in English since c.1330, deriving from Old French province (13th c.
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A caliphate (from the Arabic خلافة or khilāfah), is the Islamic form of government representing the political unity and leadership of the Muslim world.
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In Morocco, the second-level administrative subdivisions are prefectures and provinces. They are subdivisions of the Regions of Morocco. Each prefecture and province are subdivided into districts (cercles, sing. cercle), municipalities (communes, sing.
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Motto
"Al-Nasr Lana"   (Arabic)
"Victory is Ours"
Anthem
نحن جند للہ جند الوطن   (Arabic)

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Motto
شرف إخاء عدل    (Arabic)
"Honneur, Fraternité, Justice"   (French)
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Algeria

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Algeria

  • Constitution
  • President
  • Abdelaziz Bouteflika
  • Prime Minister
  • Abdelaziz Belkhadem

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Mauritania

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Mauritania

  • President
  • Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi
  • Prime Minister
  • Zeine Ould Zeidane

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Below is a list of the 26 states of Sudan organized by their original provinces under British rule. Arabic language versions are, as appropriate, in parentheses. States that were not provinces before 1994 are marked with (*).
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Kenya

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Politics of Kenya

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  • Moody Awori
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Tunisia
This article is part of the series:
Politics and government of
Tunisia

  • President
  • Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
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  • Mohamed Ghannouchi

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Iraq

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Iraq

  • Constitution
  • Presidency Council
  • President (Jalal Talabani)
  • Council of Ministers

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محافظة) shabiyah (شعبية‎) dara (دائرة‎) baladiyah (بلدية
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A governorate is a country subdivision. The term is mostly used to translate the Arabic muhafazah (plural muhafazat), also spelled mohafazah (mohafazat).
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States and Territories of Malaysia
Wilayah Persekutuan
ولايه ڤرسكوتوان
Federal Territory


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Malay}}} 
Writing system: Rumi (Latin alphabet) (official) and Jawi (Arabic script); historically written in Pallava, Kawi and Rencong 
Official status
Official language of:
The template is . Please use instead.

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Federal Territories may mean one of several things:
  • Australia
  • The Federal Territories of Malaysia, a set of territories governed by the Malaysian federal government.
  • Any territory ruled directly by any central government within a federation.

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Motto
"Bersekutu Bertambah Mutu"
"Unity Is Strength" 1
Anthem
Negaraku
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States and Territories of Malaysia
Pulau Pinang
Penang


Flag'' Coat of arms''

State motto: Bersatu dan Setia (United and Loyal) (formerly Let Penang Lead)
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States and Territories of Malaysia
Melaka
Malacca


Flag'' Coat of arms''

State motto: Bersatu Teguh

State anthem: Melaka Maju Jaya
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Straits Settlements were a collection of territories of the British East India Company in Southeast Asia, which were given collective administration in 1826 as a crown colony, as distinct from the native princely states, some of which later formed the Federated Malay States.
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For issues specific to the U.S., see .
Jus soli (Latin for "right of the soil" or, somewhat figuratively, "right of the territory"), or birthright citizenship
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States and Territories of Malaysia
Sarawak
سراو?


Flag'' Coat of arms''

State motto: Bersatu, Berusaha, Berbakti

State anthem:
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States and Territories of Malaysia
Sabah


Flag'' Coat of arms''

State motto: Sabah Maju Jaya

State anthem: Sabah Tanah Airku

Capital Kota Kinabalu


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Malaya or Peninsular Malaysia (Malay: Semenanjung Malaysia) is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula, and shares a land border with Thailand in the north. To the south is the island of Singapore.
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Malaysia

This article is part of the series:
Politics of Malaysia

  • Constitution
  • Social contract
  • Yang di-Pertuan Agong
  • Mizan Zainal Abidin
  • Cabinet

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