Schultheiss

In medieval Germany, the Schultheiß (German: [ˈʃʊltaɪs] ) was the head of a municipality (akin to today's office of mayor), a Vogt or an executive official of the ruler. As official (villicus) it was his duty to order his assigned village or county (villicatio) to pay the taxes and perform the services due to the ruler. The name originates from this function: Schuld 'debt' + heißen 'to order'. Later, the title was also used for the head of a town (Stadtschultheiß) or village (Dorfschultheiß). The office held by a Schultheiß was called Scholtisei, Scholtisse (around 1400), Schultessy, Schultissīe, Schultissei (15th century); Latinized forms: sculdasia (10th century), scultetia (13th century). The title first appears in the Edictum Rothari of 643 AD, where it is spelled in post-Roman Latin a...