There are many cases where a subnational
administrative division (a
federated state,
municipality, or other unit) is
governed from a
capital city that is not itself a part of that territory. In most of these cases, the city itself is constituted as a separate local government unit, but also administers a surrounding or neighbouring territory.
Current
Africa
Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia - capital of the
region of
Oromia (in addition to being the national capital city), itself an independently governed chartered city that is not part of Oromia.
Ontario,
Canada - since the municipal restructuring of the 1990s, many of the remaining two-tier counties are administered from separated municipalities that are no longer included within the county; for example, the seat of
Wellington County is in
Guelph.
Paramaribo,
Suriname – the vast and sparsely populated
Sipaliwini District in the South of the country does not have a capital, and is administered from a distance directly by the central government, in the national capital city of Paramaribo on the coast. Paramaribo does not even border the Sipaliwini District.
Recife,
Brazil – seat of the administration of the
Fernando de Noronha islands. The
Atlanticarchipelago of Fernando de Noronha is a unique case in Brazil of a state district, not part of any municipality and administered directly by the government of the
state of
Pernambuco. The administrative offices are located in the state capital city of Recife, on the mainland, 540 kilometres (340 mi) away from the islands.[1]
Thessalon,
Ontario,
Canada – seat of
Cockburn Islandtownship, itself a separate municipality on the mainland. Cockburn Island, in
Lake Huron, has no longer any permanent population, yet it is still legally incorporated as a township of the
province of Ontario, with the administrative offices located in Thessalon.
Bishkek,
Kyrgyzstan – capital of
Chüy Region which surrounds the city, though the city itself is not part of the region but rather a region-level unit of Kyrgyzstan
Fort Pikit,
Malidegao,
Philippines – the
barangay which serves as the site of the municipal hall of
Pikit in
Cotabato province.[2] The barangay was previously part of Pikit, until the creation of
Malidegao in 2024.
Hyderabad, India – since 2 June 2014, the de jure capital of the states of
Telangana and
Andhra Pradesh. Hyderabad itself is located in Telangana, which was newly carved out of Andhra Pradesh on that date. The
Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 determines that Hyderabad will remain the capital of both states "for such period not exceeding ten years."[3] Many Andhra Pradesh state government institutions have moved to
Amaravati, which has become de facto the new state capital.
Ishigaki,
Japan – government seat both of the
Yaeyama District of
Okinawa Prefecture, and of the town of
Taketomi, located in that district. Ishigaki itself is a city, outside any district and with its own separate administration.
Several provinces of the
Philippines technically have their capitals outside their borders when the cities are classified as highly urbanized (independent); by law these cities are not included in any province, although most of the time these cities are tightly connected and were sometimes once part of the province that surrounds them. See
cities of the Philippines for a more extensive explanation and the Virginia entry above for a comparison.
In
Germany, several rural Kreise (districts of a
state) have their capitals in larger nearby cities that have their own separate administration (being self governing cities that have both Kreis and city level functions) and are not part of the usually homonymous rural Kreis. Some examples are
Karlsruhe,
Offenbach,
Kaiserslautern,
Munich,
Kassel, and
Osnabrück, but there are many other cases.
Port Augusta, South Australia - one of the two seats that share the administrative functions of the immense but very sparsely populated
Outback Communities Authority local government area of South Australia, itself its own separate government area as the City of Port Augusta, which does not even border the Outback Communities Authority area. The other seat is the town of
Andamooka, which is within the Outback Communities Authority area.
Calicut (Kozhikode),
India – until 1964, the administration of the then Union Territory of the Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindivi Islands (now
Lakshadweep) was conducted from offices in the city of Kozhikode (better known in English as Calicut), located on the mainland, in the state of
Kerala. The territory's government is now seated on the island of
Kavaratti.[4]
Isabela,
Philippines – former capital of
Basilan, designated as
component city since April 25, 2001. Basilan is previously part of
Zamboanga Peninsula and the province of Basilan is transferred to the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Isabela is still considered part of the region and still considered part of the province. Since 2017, the seat of the provincial government of Basilan was moved to
Lamitan. Isabela still remains part of Basilan provincial services but regional services remains in Zamboanga Peninsula instead of ARMM where the province of Basilan belongs.
Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia – former capital of the state of
Selangor. In 1974, Kuala Lumpur was separated from the state and made into a
federal territory. Kuala Lumpur remained the state capital until 1978, when
Shah Alam was declared as the new capital.
Pasig,
Philippines – former capital of
Rizal and designated as a
highly urbanized city since January 21, 1995. Pasig was made a part of
Metro Manila since November 7, 1975, taking it outside the border of Rizal. Rizal has moved its provincial government seat to
Antipolo, the de facto capital and a component city within its borders, in 2009. Antipolo was made its de jure capital in 2020.
Xindian, Taiwan – capital of the province of
Fukien, Republic of China from 1956 to 1996, itself located in
Taiwan Province. Before 1956, the capital was
Jincheng; it was moved back to Jincheng in 1996.
Europe
Berlin,
Germany - from 1945 to 1990, the whole city of Berlin was de jure under the authority of the
Allied Control Council and part of neither the
Federal Republic of Germany nor the
German Democratic Republic (GDR), but Allied jurisdiction over
East Berlin (officially just the
Soviet sector of Berlin in the view of the Western Allies) was not recognized by the GDR. The Eastern half of the city was treated de facto as part of the GDR, it was the seat of the GDR government, and was proclaimed Berlin, Hauptstadt der DDR ("Berlin, capital city of the GDR").
Burtscheid,
Germany – as described above, there are many examples of a German city that serves as capital of an eponymous rural district, but is independent of that district. However, there are many places where this either wasn't the case initially, or where it isn't the case anymore. The former town of Burtscheid (now a neighborhood in
Aachen) provides an example of both. It was the capital of
Landkreis Aachen from that district's creation until 1897, when Burtscheid was absorbed into the city of Aachen. The district administration did not relocate, meaning the capital of the Landkreis was no longer within its own borders. In 2009, the Landkreis and the city were merged, becoming the Städteregion Aachen, with the administration still located in the Burtscheid neighborhood of Aachen.
Cwmbran,
Wales,
United Kingdom - Between 1996 and 2013, Cwmbran, located in the principal area of
Torfaen, was the administrative headquarters of the neighbouring principal area of
Monmouthshire.
There are many cases where a subnational
administrative division (a
federated state,
municipality, or other unit) is
governed from a
capital city that is not itself a part of that territory. In most of these cases, the city itself is constituted as a separate local government unit, but also administers a surrounding or neighbouring territory.
Current
Africa
Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia - capital of the
region of
Oromia (in addition to being the national capital city), itself an independently governed chartered city that is not part of Oromia.
Ontario,
Canada - since the municipal restructuring of the 1990s, many of the remaining two-tier counties are administered from separated municipalities that are no longer included within the county; for example, the seat of
Wellington County is in
Guelph.
Paramaribo,
Suriname – the vast and sparsely populated
Sipaliwini District in the South of the country does not have a capital, and is administered from a distance directly by the central government, in the national capital city of Paramaribo on the coast. Paramaribo does not even border the Sipaliwini District.
Recife,
Brazil – seat of the administration of the
Fernando de Noronha islands. The
Atlanticarchipelago of Fernando de Noronha is a unique case in Brazil of a state district, not part of any municipality and administered directly by the government of the
state of
Pernambuco. The administrative offices are located in the state capital city of Recife, on the mainland, 540 kilometres (340 mi) away from the islands.[1]
Thessalon,
Ontario,
Canada – seat of
Cockburn Islandtownship, itself a separate municipality on the mainland. Cockburn Island, in
Lake Huron, has no longer any permanent population, yet it is still legally incorporated as a township of the
province of Ontario, with the administrative offices located in Thessalon.
Bishkek,
Kyrgyzstan – capital of
Chüy Region which surrounds the city, though the city itself is not part of the region but rather a region-level unit of Kyrgyzstan
Fort Pikit,
Malidegao,
Philippines – the
barangay which serves as the site of the municipal hall of
Pikit in
Cotabato province.[2] The barangay was previously part of Pikit, until the creation of
Malidegao in 2024.
Hyderabad, India – since 2 June 2014, the de jure capital of the states of
Telangana and
Andhra Pradesh. Hyderabad itself is located in Telangana, which was newly carved out of Andhra Pradesh on that date. The
Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 determines that Hyderabad will remain the capital of both states "for such period not exceeding ten years."[3] Many Andhra Pradesh state government institutions have moved to
Amaravati, which has become de facto the new state capital.
Ishigaki,
Japan – government seat both of the
Yaeyama District of
Okinawa Prefecture, and of the town of
Taketomi, located in that district. Ishigaki itself is a city, outside any district and with its own separate administration.
Several provinces of the
Philippines technically have their capitals outside their borders when the cities are classified as highly urbanized (independent); by law these cities are not included in any province, although most of the time these cities are tightly connected and were sometimes once part of the province that surrounds them. See
cities of the Philippines for a more extensive explanation and the Virginia entry above for a comparison.
In
Germany, several rural Kreise (districts of a
state) have their capitals in larger nearby cities that have their own separate administration (being self governing cities that have both Kreis and city level functions) and are not part of the usually homonymous rural Kreis. Some examples are
Karlsruhe,
Offenbach,
Kaiserslautern,
Munich,
Kassel, and
Osnabrück, but there are many other cases.
Port Augusta, South Australia - one of the two seats that share the administrative functions of the immense but very sparsely populated
Outback Communities Authority local government area of South Australia, itself its own separate government area as the City of Port Augusta, which does not even border the Outback Communities Authority area. The other seat is the town of
Andamooka, which is within the Outback Communities Authority area.
Calicut (Kozhikode),
India – until 1964, the administration of the then Union Territory of the Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindivi Islands (now
Lakshadweep) was conducted from offices in the city of Kozhikode (better known in English as Calicut), located on the mainland, in the state of
Kerala. The territory's government is now seated on the island of
Kavaratti.[4]
Isabela,
Philippines – former capital of
Basilan, designated as
component city since April 25, 2001. Basilan is previously part of
Zamboanga Peninsula and the province of Basilan is transferred to the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Isabela is still considered part of the region and still considered part of the province. Since 2017, the seat of the provincial government of Basilan was moved to
Lamitan. Isabela still remains part of Basilan provincial services but regional services remains in Zamboanga Peninsula instead of ARMM where the province of Basilan belongs.
Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia – former capital of the state of
Selangor. In 1974, Kuala Lumpur was separated from the state and made into a
federal territory. Kuala Lumpur remained the state capital until 1978, when
Shah Alam was declared as the new capital.
Pasig,
Philippines – former capital of
Rizal and designated as a
highly urbanized city since January 21, 1995. Pasig was made a part of
Metro Manila since November 7, 1975, taking it outside the border of Rizal. Rizal has moved its provincial government seat to
Antipolo, the de facto capital and a component city within its borders, in 2009. Antipolo was made its de jure capital in 2020.
Xindian, Taiwan – capital of the province of
Fukien, Republic of China from 1956 to 1996, itself located in
Taiwan Province. Before 1956, the capital was
Jincheng; it was moved back to Jincheng in 1996.
Europe
Berlin,
Germany - from 1945 to 1990, the whole city of Berlin was de jure under the authority of the
Allied Control Council and part of neither the
Federal Republic of Germany nor the
German Democratic Republic (GDR), but Allied jurisdiction over
East Berlin (officially just the
Soviet sector of Berlin in the view of the Western Allies) was not recognized by the GDR. The Eastern half of the city was treated de facto as part of the GDR, it was the seat of the GDR government, and was proclaimed Berlin, Hauptstadt der DDR ("Berlin, capital city of the GDR").
Burtscheid,
Germany – as described above, there are many examples of a German city that serves as capital of an eponymous rural district, but is independent of that district. However, there are many places where this either wasn't the case initially, or where it isn't the case anymore. The former town of Burtscheid (now a neighborhood in
Aachen) provides an example of both. It was the capital of
Landkreis Aachen from that district's creation until 1897, when Burtscheid was absorbed into the city of Aachen. The district administration did not relocate, meaning the capital of the Landkreis was no longer within its own borders. In 2009, the Landkreis and the city were merged, becoming the Städteregion Aachen, with the administration still located in the Burtscheid neighborhood of Aachen.
Cwmbran,
Wales,
United Kingdom - Between 1996 and 2013, Cwmbran, located in the principal area of
Torfaen, was the administrative headquarters of the neighbouring principal area of
Monmouthshire.