A Village (definition)

A village (in the UK) is defined as a place larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand.

Generally, a village consists of a group of houses, together with other buildings such as a church and a school, in a country area. Although, some towns and cities now have suburbs that were former villages and some retain their village "feel" or are thought still to be villages by their inhabitants.

To qualify as a village, the place:

• Has to be a parish of a Church of England (or Church of Wales/Church of Scotland) with an operating church building - it may also be the centre of or part of a civil parish (sometimes containing a number of places, with a number of churches) 
• Should not have a regular agricultural market (different from a Farmer's Market), although today such markets are uncommon even in settlements which clearly are towns
• Does not have a town hall nor a mayor but can have a Parish Council.- in Wales the ruling body would be called a Community Council and in Scotland, the local administrative body is also called a Community Council, although under Scottish law they have no statutory powers
• There should be green fields or clearly laid out open spaces between the village and the next place, be it a hamlet, another village, a town or a city - this not a modern requirement for urban villages/suburbs