Prague has a local-government structure of two or three tiers, depending on the area of town. At the top is the Magistrate of the Capital City of Prague (Czech: Magistrát hlavního města Prahy), which is responsible for public transport; waste collection; municipal police; firefighting; ambulance services; cultural activities; care of historical sites; the Prague Zoo; and other activities of citywide significance.
Since 1990, the city has been divided into 56 (since 1992, 57) self-governing municipal districts (Czech: městské části). The districts are responsible for parks and environmental protection; ordering equipment for schools and volunteer firefighters; some cultural and sports activities; activities for seniors; some social and health programs; cemeteries; and collection of fees for dog tags and the like. Another important activity of the municipal districts is the ownership, maintenance and, sometimes, sale of public property, especially public housing.
Since 2001, the 57 municipal districts have been grouped into 22 numbered administrative districts (Czech: správní obvody), for national-government purposes. One municipal district in each administrative district has responsibility for providing certain services for the entire administrative district. Those services include providing business licenses, identity cards and passports. The municipal district with such responsibility shares a name with the administrative district it serves. For example, the municipal district of Prague 19 provides those services to the municipal districts of Prague 19, Prague-Čakovice, Prague-Satalice and Prague-Vinoř. Residents of Satalice can get dog tags in their neighborhood but must go to Kbely, home of the Prague 19 government, to get an identity card.
Both the citywide government and the municipal districts have elected councils and mayors. The mayor of the Capital City of Prague is known as the primátor, which is sometimes translated into English as "lord mayor" (even though the Czech title carries no connotations of nobility).
From 1960 to 1990, Prague was divided into 10 districts. Those 10 districts are still used for addressing and transportation purposes and, for example, the organisation of courts and prosecutions. Street signs additionally add the name of the cadastral area (Czech: katastrální území), which usually reflects the name of an old municipality before its assimilation into the city of Prague. Thus, a sign in Kbely will say "Praha 9-Kbely," not "Praha 19." Prague residents are much more likely to use the name of a cadastral area or a 1960 municipal district than the name of a post-1990 district in everyday communication.
Contents |
| "Old" district | Current administrative district | Current municipal districts |
|---|---|---|
| Prague 1 | Prague 1 | Prague 1 |
| Prague 2 | Prague 2 | Prague 2 |
| Prague 3 | Prague 3 | Prague 3 |
| Prague 4 | Prague 4 | Prague 4, Kunratice |
| Prague 11 (part) | Prague 11, Šeberov, Újezd u Průhonic | |
| Prague 12 | Prague 12, Libuš | |
| Prague 5 | Prague 5 | Prague 5, Slivenec |
| Prague 13 | Prague 13, Řeporyje | |
| Prague 16 | Prague 16 (formerly Radotín), Lipence, Lochkov, Velká Chuchle, Zbraslav | |
| Prague 17 (part) | Zličín | |
| Prague 6 | Prague 6 | Prague 6, Lysolaje, Nebušice, Přední Kopanina, Suchdol |
| Prague 17 (part) | Prague 17 (formerly Řepy) | |
| Prague 7 | Prague 7 | Prague 7, Troja (district Troja has been separated additionelly, of 1992-01-01) |
| Prague 8 | Prague 8 | Prague 8, Březiněves, Dolní Chabry, Ďáblice |
| Prague 9 | Prague 9 | Prague 9 |
| Prague 14 | Prague 14, Dolní Počernice | |
| Prague 18 | Prague 18 (formerly Letňany), Čakovice (since 2007 Čakovice is part of administrative district 18) | |
| Prague 19 | Prague 19 (formerly Kbely), Miškovice, Satalice, Vinoř, Třeboradice | |
| Prague 20 | Prague 20 (formerly Horní Počernice) | |
| Prague 21 | Prague 21 (formerly Újezd nad Lesy), Běchovice, Klánovice, Koloděje | |
| Prague 10 | Prague 10 | Prague 10 |
| Prague 11 (part) | Křeslice | |
| Prague 15 | Prague 15, Dolní Měcholupy, Dubeč, Petrovice, Štěrboholy | |
| Prague 22 | Prague 22 (formerly Uhříněves), Benice, Kolovraty, Královice, Nedvězí |
Notes:
| To-do list for Districts of Prague: | |
|---|---|
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put those data into a table, thus make it inle sortable by columns.
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Key: Cadastral area (year joined to Prague) -- municipal district
Source: Kuča, Karl (2002). Města a městečka v Čechách, na Moravě a ve Slezsku Par-Pra (V. díl). ISBN 80-7277-039-X.
Beyond these 112 cadastral areas, many other Prague settlements, quarters and housing estates are perceived as districts although they don't constitute their own cadastral areas. For example Barrandov, Spořilov, Sídliště Košík, Zahradní Město, Pankrác, Letná, Bubny, Zlíchov, Klíčov, Butovice, Klukovice, Kačerov, Jenerálka, Šárka, Strahov, Chodovec, Litochleby, Dubeček, Lázeňka, Netluky, Zmrzlík, Cikánka, Kateřinky, Hrnčíře, Pitkovičky, Lahovičky, Dolní Černošice, Kazín, Závist, Baně, Strnady and many others. The biggest panelák complexes are Jižní Město (South City), Severní Město (North City) a Jihozápadní Město (South-West City), all of which consist of partial housing estates. Most of Prague's panel housing estates from 1960's to 1980's have names including the Czech word sídliště', which refers to a post-World War 2 eastern bloc housing estate. Many local names originate from names of historic villages in today's Prague area.