A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups.[1] The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of adversaries) during battle, from the Latin congressus.[2]

Meeting in the Hall of Knights in The Hague during the Congress of Europe, 1948

Political congresses

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International relations

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The following congresses were formal meetings of representatives of different nations:

Legislatures

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In the mid-1770s, the British colonies that became the United States of America adopted for their joint convention the word "Congress" - to emphasize each colony's status as a state in its own right.[citation needed] The term has since been adopted by many countries to refer to their legislatures.

Non-presidential systems

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Parties

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Many political parties have a party congress every few years to make decisions for the party and elect governing bodies, while others call it a party convention. Congress is included in the name of several political parties, especially those in former British colonies:

Political organizations

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Labor congresses

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Religious Congresses

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Non-political congresses

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Congress is an alternative name for a large national or international academic conference. For instance, the World Congress on Men's Health is an annual meeting on men's medical issues.

Organizations in some athletic sports, such as bowling, have historically been named "congresses". The predecessors to the United States Bowling Congress (formed in 1995) were the American Bowling Congress (founded in 1895) and the Women's International Bowling Congress (founded in 1927).

 
Chess congress

A chess congress is a chess tournament, in one city, where a large number of contestants gather to play competitive chess over a limited period of time; typically one day to one week, or more.

ICCA Congress & Exhibition

References

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  1. ^ "congress". Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Online. London: Longman. Archived from the original on June 15, 2018. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  2. ^ "congress". Oxford English Dictionary Online. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on September 25, 2016. Retrieved March 9, 2018.
  3. ^ "कांग्रेस पार्टी के अध्यक्ष पद के लिए चुनाव की तारीख की घोषणा कर दी गई है जाने चुनाव की तारीख". TNR NEWS. Archived from the original on 2021-09-17. Retrieved 2021-09-10.
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