Districts of the Czech Republic



In 1960, Czechoslovakia was re-divided into districts (okres, plural okresy) often without regard to traditional division and local relationships. In the area of the Czech Republic, there were 75 districts; a 76th Jeseník District was split in the 1990s from Šumperk District. Three consisted only of statutory cities (statutární města, sing. město) Brno, Ostrava and Plzeň which gained the status of districts only in 1971; the capital city of Prague (Hlavní město Praha) had a special status, but ten districts of Prague (obvody) were in some ways equivalent to okres.

A reform in effect since January 2003 replaced the districts with 204 Municipalities with Extended Competence (obce s rozšířenou působností; also obce III. stupně - third-level municipalities, unofficially also called "little districts" (malé okresy) which took over most of the administration of the former district authorities. Some of these are further divided between Municipalities with Commissioned Local Authority (obce s pověřeným obecním úřadem, shortened to pověřená obec, pl. pověřené obce; "second-level municipalities"). The old districts still exist as territorial units and remain as seats of some of the offices, especially courts. In 2007 the borders of the districts were slightly adjusted and 119 municipalities are now within different districts.