vicarias

Vicarias is the plural form of vicaria, a term used in Catholic Church organization to denote a territorial division governed by a vicar. The English equivalents are vicariate or vicarship. A vicaria may refer to a division within a diocese, where a vicar exercises certain administrative and pastoral responsibilities on behalf of the diocesan bishop; it can also denote an apostolic vicariate, a jurisdiction established in mission territories that are not yet a diocese, led by an apostolic vicar with the authority of a bishop.

The term derives from Latin vicaria, feminine of vicarius, meaning deputy or substitute. In ecclesiastical use, vicarias describe how the pope or a bishop delegates governance and pastoral care across territories that require localized administration while remaining under the broader jurisdiction of the church hierarchy.

In practice, vicarias appear in official church documents and can be referenced in discussions of church structure in various language contexts, especially Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese, where vicaria is a common term for these jurisdictions. The plural vicarias is used when discussing multiple such jurisdictions, whether within a single country or across regions.

Outside strictly ecclesiastical contexts, vicarias as a term are uncommon, and the concept is primarily of interest for ecclesiology, church administration, and the study of how Catholic organizational units are divided and governed.