As recognized by the Editor in the book’s Foreword, at the heart of this work lies a «concept that is not unequivocally labelled» in the legal systems included in the scope of the analysis, which is part of a broader comparative research aimed at enquiring on the exercise of public functions as a criterion for the application of administrative law. On the one hand, the awareness of the existence of such labelling risks – which are, to a large extent, intrinsic in every comparative effort, since they concern the relationship between law, language, and legal translation – is reflected by the book’s subtitle, which explicitly refers to public function, öffentliche Verwaltung, puissance publique, potestà amministrativa, potestad administrativa and wladza publiczna. On the other hand, the issue is posed as a caveat in the Introduction of Diana-Urania Galetta, who raises the fundamental question – and provides methodological coordinates to answer it – whether we are «comparing the incomparable».