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A cathedral (Lat. cathedra, “seat”) is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop. It is a religious building for worship, specifically of a denomination with an episcopal hierarchy, such as the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Orthodox and some Lutheran churches, which serves as a bishop’s seat, and thus as the central church of a diocese.

Duomo is a generic Italian term for a cathedral church. The formal word for a church that is presently a cathedral is cattedrale; a Duomo may be either a present or a former cathedral (the latter always in a town that no longer has a bishop nor therefore a cathedral, as for example Trevi). Such churches are usually referred to simply as “Il Duomo” or “The Duomo”, without regard to the full proper name of the church. Similar words exist in other languages: Dom (German), Dóm (Slovakian), Domkirke (Danish), Dómkirkja (Icelandic), Domkyrka (Swedish), Domkyrkje (Norwegian), Toomkirik (Estonian), Tum (Polish), and Tuomiokirkko (Finnish). Also in these languages the respective terms do not necessarily refer to a church functioning as a cathedral, but also to former cathedrals or simply prominent church buildings, which have never been a cathedral in the exact sense of that word. Therefore the uniform translation of these terms into English as cathedrals may not always be appropriate.

In current English usage, Minster is an honorific title given to particular churches in Great Britain, most famously York Minster. Eventually a minster came to refer more generally to “any large or important church, especially a collegiate or cathedral church”.

As of 2008 the Roman Catholic Church had about 3,000 churches of cathedral and co-cathedral status around the world. List of worldwide cathedrals

Leave a comment about your favorite ones.

1 Sillhouette of Santiago de Compostela's Cathedral, Spain. Credit: Xabier Martínez #

2 The Cathedral of Seville, also known as Catedral de Santa María de la Sede (Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See) is the cathedral of the city of Seville in Andalucia, Spain. It is claimed by some to be the largest Gothic cathedral and the fourth largest Christian church in the world. Credit: arkaninger #

3 Probably one of the worst cathedrals in Spain but it is a nice shot of Catedral de la Almudena, Madrid, Spain. Credit: Héctor Castañón #

4 Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp, Belgium. Credit: Adams K. #

5 Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, France. Credit: Panoramas #

6 Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims, France. Credit: John & Mel Kots #

7 St. Paul's Cathedral - London, UK. Credit: diegoperez74 #

8 York Minster is the second largest Gothic cathedral of Northern Europe. The present building was begun in about 1230 and completed in 1472. Credit: vgm8383 #

9 Bath cathedral and a pig! Credit: Giorgos~ #

10 Berlin Cathedral (German: Berliner Dom), Germany. Credit: Wolfgang Staudt #

11 The Ulm Cathedral is a Lutheran church in Germany, the tallest church in the world, with a steeple measuring of 161.53 m. Credit: bartek.langer #

12 Cologne Cathedral (Köln Dom), Germany. Credit: Rich B-S #

13 Milan - Il Duomo, Italy. Credit: Panoramas #

14 View of the baptistry , cathedral and leaning tower at Pisa, Italy. Credit: gerry balding #

15 Duomo / Cathedral of Fiorence, Italy. Credit: Inti #

16 Catedral de Sal (Salt Cathedral) in Zipaquirá, about 25 miles north of Bogotá, Colombia, is an underground church built in a tunnel of salt mines deep inside a salt mountain. It is built into a space left by salt mining; everything you see here is salt. Credit: zug55 #

17 Sanctuary Cathedral of our Lady of Las Lajas, Colombia. Credit: stevemonty #

18 La Plata Cathedral, Argentina. Credit: J #

19 St. Vitus Cathedral, Prague Czech Republic. Credit: DOS82 #

20 Peter and Paul Cathedral in Peterhof. The construction project was ordered by Emperor Alexander III. The construction lasted from 1894 to 1905. Credit: Oleg Mirabo #

21 Saint Sophia's Cathedral, Kiev , Ukraine. Credit: Stuck in Customs / Trey Ratcliff #

22 St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery is a functioning monastery in Kiev, Ukraine. Credit: EugeniusD80 #

23 Blagovishensky Cathedral, Ukraine. Credit: Stuck in Customs / Trey Ratcliff #

24 The Tbilisi Holy Trinity Cathedral, Georgia. Constructed between 1995 and 2004. Credit: fatboyke #

25 Sant Basily Cathedral in the Red Square in Moscow, Russia. Credit: Pedro J Pacheco #