Street
parish
What does parish mean?
Louisiana is the only state that doesn't have counties — it has 64 parishes. Same governmental unit, different name, inherited from the days when the Catholic Church carved up the colony into ecclesiastical districts that later became civil boundaries. Orleans Parish = the city of New Orleans.
"She's a deputy in Jefferson Parish, right across the line from Orleans."
Origin
A legacy of Louisiana's French and Spanish Catholic colonial period; formally adopted as a civil designation when Louisiana became a US territory in 1805.
Frequently asked questions
What does parish mean in Louisiana?
It's Louisiana's word for what every other US state calls a county.
How do you use parish in a sentence?
"He grew up in Orleans Parish."
Why does Louisiana use parish instead of county?
It's the state's distinctive administrative term, reflecting its French and Catholic heritage where parishes were the local divisions.
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