al·der·man 
(ôldər-mən)
(ôldər-mən)n.
1. A member of the municipal legislative body in a town or city in many jurisdictions.
2. A member of the higher branch of the municipal or borough council in England and Ireland before 1974.
3.
a. A noble of high rank or authority in Anglo-Saxon England.
b. The chief officer of a shire in Anglo-Saxon England.
[Middle English, a person of high rank, from Old English ealdorman : ealdor, elder, chief (from eald, old; see al-2 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots) + man, man; see MAN.]
alder·man·cy (-sē) n.
al′der·manic (-mănĭk) adj.