a senior bishop in charge of an archdiocese
From Greek arkhiepiskopos meaning chief overseer
Archbishop has 'arch' like a bridge - he bridges the gap between regular bishops and the top!
Historically exclusively male; the title encodes male-only church leadership from centuries of institutional gender exclusion.
Use 'archbishop' when referring to actual office-holders regardless of gender; the term is now formally inclusive in most denominations.
Women have served as bishops and archbishops in progressive denominations since the 1970s-1990s, expanding institutional representation historically denied them.
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