Until 1979, the smallest administrative unit in West Sumatra was called a "nagari", which had existed before Indonesian independence. With the enactment of Law No. 5 of 1979 concerning village governance, the status of nagari was eliminated and replaced with villages, and several jorong statuses were upgraded to villages. The position of nagari guardians was also removed and government administration was carried out by village heads. But since the onset of government reform and regional autonomy, since 2001, the term "nagari" has been used again in this province.