Христиан шіркеулеріндегі примат лауазымы

High ranking bishop in certain Christian churches

Primate ('/p//r//aɪ//m//ə//t/) is a title or rank bestowed on some important archbishops in certain Christian churches. Depending on the particular tradition, it can denote either jurisdictional authority (title of authority) or (usually) ceremonial precedence (title of honour).

In the Latin Church, a primate is an archbishop—or, rarely, a suffragan or exempt bishop—of a specific (mostly metropolitan) episcopal see (called a primatial see) who has precedence over the bishoprics of one or more ecclesiastical provinces of a particular historical, political or cultural area. Historically, primates of particular sees were granted privileges including the authority to call and preside at national synods, jurisdiction to hear appeals from metropolitan tribunals, the right to crown the sovereign of the nation, and presiding at the investiture (installation) of archbishops in their sees. The office is generally found only in older Catholic countries, and is now purely honorific, enjoying no effective powers under canon law—except for the archbishop of Esztergom (Gran) in Hungary. Where the title of primate exists, it may be vested in one of the oldest archdioceses in a country, often based in a city other than the present capital, but which was the capital when the country was first Christianized. The city may no longer have the prominence it had when the title was granted. The political area over which primacy was originally granted may no longer exist: for example, the Archbishop of Toledo was designated "Primate of the Visigothic Kingdom", and the Archbishop of Lyon is the "Primate of the Gauls". The president is generally elected by the conference, but by exception the President of the Italian Episcopal Conference is appointed by the Pope, and the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference has the Primate of All Ireland as president and the Primate of Ireland as vice president. Other former functions of primates, such as hearing appeals from metropolitan tribunals, were reserved to the Holy See by the early 20th century. The closest equivalent position in the Eastern Churches in 1911 was an Exarch. As stated above, this is merely an honorary title involving no additional power. A right of precedence over other bishops and similar privileges can be granted even to a bishop who is not a Primate. Thus, in 1858, the Holy See granted the Archbishop of Baltimore precedence in meetings of the United States bishops. The Archbishop of Westminster has not been granted the title of Primate of England and Wales, which is sometimes applied to him, but his position has been described as that of "Chief Metropolitan" and as "similar to" that of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The title of Primate is sometimes applied loosely to the Archbishop of a country's capital, as in the case of the Archbishops of Seoul in South Korea and of Edinburgh in Scotland. Functions can sometimes be exercised in practice (de facto), as by a de facto government, without having been granted by law; but since "Primate" is today a title, not a function, there is no such thing as a "de facto" primate. The pre reformation metropolitan Archbishop of Nidaros was sometimes referred to as Primate of Norway, even though it is unlikely that this title ever was officially granted to him by the Holy See.

Historically, the primatial title in Western Christianity corresponded to the title and office of supra metropolitan exarch in Eastern Christianity. Such exarchs, or primates, were archbishops of Ephesus (for the Diocese of Asia), Heraclea (for the Diocese of Thrace) and Caesarea (for the Diocese of Pontus).