A Vogt , from the Old High German, also Voigt or Fauth); plural Vögte; Dutch (land)voogd; Swedish fogde; Danish foged; ; Finnish vouti; Romanian voit); ultimately from Latin [ad]vocatus, in the Holy Roman Empire was a title of a reeve or advocate, an overlord (mostly of nobility) exerting guardianship or military protection as well as secular justice (Blutgericht) over a certain territory. The territory or area of responsibility of a Vogt is called a Vogtei (from [ad]vocatia). The term also denotes a mayor of a village.