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METROPOLIS (Gr. piir17Pi mother, srGXis, city)
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METROPOLIS (Gr. piir17Pi mother, srGXis, city), properly a mother-city, and so the name of the parent state from which colonies were founded in ancient Greece (see GREECE, sect. History, Ancient). The word was used in post-classical Latin for the chief city of a province, the seat of the government, and in particular ecclesiastically for the seat or see of a metropolitan bishop (see METROPOLITAN). It is thus used now for the capful of a country, which contains the various official buildings of the administrative departments, the Houses of Parliament, &c. In the case of London, the term " metropolitan " is sometimes applied to the whole area including the " City of London," e.g. " Metropolitan Asylums Board "; and sometimes, as in " Metropolitan Police," excludes the City, which has its own police force (see LONDON).