Department

A department is a part of a larger organization with a specific responsibility. For the division of organizations into departments, see departmentalization.

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In particular:

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• A government department in the United States and Switzerland corresponds to a ministry in other systems:
• Department (US government)
• Department (Swiss government)
• A geographic area of a centralized country which functions as an administrative unit, modelled on the French départements (in Spanish, departamento):
• Departments of Benin
• Departments of Bolivia
• Departments of Colombia
• Departments of Côte d'Ivoire
• Departments of El Salvador
• Departments of France
• Departments of Guatemala
• Departments of Honduras
• Departments of Nicaragua
• Departments of Niger
• Departments of Paraguay
• Departments of Uruguay
• Part of an institution such as a commercial company (see departmentalization) or a non-profit organization such as a university.
• Academic department
• A department store includes many specialized departments.
• In the US military:
• "Department" is a term used by the US Army, mostly prior to World War I.
• A naval Department is a section devoted to one of several major tasks.
• Part of a state or municipal government:
• Fire department
• Police department