Alcalde, in Spanish, the title of a civil dignitary, either judicial or administrative, with which alcaide is sometimes confounded. (See Alcaide.) Both terms are probably derived from the Arabic al-cadi. The alcalde mayor is a local judge who presides over the tribunals, and is distinct from the municipal alcalde or corregidor, who is not a lawyer. The alcalde pedaneo is a justice of the peace, and is elected by the people. Alcaldes de casa y corte form a bench of judges for the trial of criminal or civil causes within certain circuits, to whom an appeal lies against the decision of any individual of their number.