Counties of the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom has 92 counties or shires. The British counties are the oldest extant national divisions in the world.

Where a distinction has to be made with statutory "counties" so called for administrative purposes, the counties are variously known as historic counties, traditional counties or ancient or geographical counties.

The counties have no administrative function, existing as geographical and cultural areas. Most of the counties have an existence stretching back to the Middle Ages and almost all of the English counties have been established for over a thousand years. Even the relatively young Highland shires, only 450 years old as such, have a much older existence as geographical and cultural areas.

In this time many activities many activities and much social understanding and local identity has grown up intertwined with the counties, and so they have become a vital part of British and Irish culture.

Until the late twentieth century, administrative functions have been carried on using the counties' boundaries or approximations to them, and so centuries of public records have been organised county by county, for which reason an understanding of the counties is vital for genealogical and historic research.

List of the counties

Name	County of	Area (sq m)	Population	Principal towns in the county
Aberdeenshire	Aberdeen	{{#formatnum: 1950|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 380495|0	,}}	Aberdeen, Ellon, Fraserburgh, Huntly, Inverurie, Peterhead, Turriff
Anglesey	Anglesey	{{#formatnum: 277|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 69751|0	,}}	Beaumaris, Amlwch, Holyhead, Llangefni, Menai Bridge
Angus	Forfar	{{#formatnum: 899|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 264044|0	,}}	Forfar, Dundee, Arbroath, Brechin, Carnoustie, Kirriemuir, Montrose
Antrim	Antrim	{{#formatnum: 1175|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 615701|0	,}}	Belfast, Antrim, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Carnlough, Larne, Portrush
Argyllshire	Argyll	{{#formatnum: 3110|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 64819|0	,}}	Lochgilphead, Campbeltown, Dunoon, Inverary, Oban, Tobermory
Armagh	Armagh	{{#formatnum: 512|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 178598|0	,}}	Armagh, Newry
Ayrshire	Ayr	{{#formatnum: 1129|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 367676|0	,}}	Ayr, Cumnock, Irvine, Kilmarnock, Kilwinning, Largs, Saltcoats, Troon
Banffshire	Banff	{{#formatnum: 641|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 46537|0	,}}	Banff, Buckie, Dufftown, Keith, Macduff, Portsoy
Bedfordshire	Bedford	{{#formatnum: 468|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 602847|0	,}}	Bedford, Biggleswade, Dunstable, Leighton Buzzard, Luton, Sandy
Berkshire	Berks	{{#formatnum: 722|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 842804|0	,}}	Reading, Abingdon, Bracknell, Maidenhead, Newbury, Windsor, Wokingham
Berwickshire	Berwick	{{#formatnum: 457|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 26458|0	,}}	Greenlaw, Coldstream, Duns, Eyemouth, Lauder
Brecknockshire	Brecon	{{#formatnum: 742|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 67598|0	,}}	Brecon, Builth Wells, Hay-on-Wye, Llanwrtyd Wells, Talgarth
Buckinghamshire	Buckingham	{{#formatnum: 746|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 916903|0	,}}	Aylesbury, Buckingham, High Wycombe, Milton Keynes, Slough
Buteshire	Bute	{{#formatnum: 225|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 12534|0	,}}	Rothesay, Brodick, Lochranza, Millport
Caernarfonshire	Caernarfon	{{#formatnum: 563|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 139065|0	,}}	Caernarfon, Bangor, Conwy, Llandudno, Porthmadog, Pwllheli
Caithness	Caithness	{{#formatnum: 618|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 26486|0	,}}	Wick, Castletown, Halkirk, Thurso
Cambridgeshire	Cambridge	{{#formatnum: 858|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 460448|0	,}}	Cambridge, Ely, Chatteris, March, Whittlesey, Wisbech
Cardiganshire	Cardigan	{{#formatnum: 693|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 75784|0	,}}	Cardigan, Aberystwyth, Lampeter, New Quay, Tregaron
Carmarthenshire	Carmarthen	{{#formatnum: 937|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 184232|0	,}}	Carmarthen, Ammanford, Kidwelly, Llandovery, Llanelli, St Clears
Cheshire	Chester	{{#formatnum: 1035|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1668894|0	,}}	Chester, Birkenhead, Crewe, Macclesfield, Runcorn, Stockport, Wallasey
Clackmannanshire	Clackmannan	{{#formatnum: 48|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 50957|0	,}}	Clackmannan, Alloa, Dollar, Tillicoultry, Tullibody
Cornwall	Cornwall	{{#formatnum: 1365|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 533594|0	,}}	Bodmin, Truro, Camborne, Falmouth, Newquay, Penzance, Redruth, St Austell
Cromartyshire	Cromarty	{{#formatnum: 370|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 7074|0	,}}	Cromarty, Ullapool
Cumberland	Cumberland	{{#formatnum: 1525|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 306241|0	,}}	Carlisle, Brampton, Keswick, Penrith, Whitehaven, Workington
Denbighshire	Denbigh	{{#formatnum: 668|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 277680|0	,}}	Ruthin, Abergele, Denbigh, Llangollen, Wrexham
Derbyshire	Derby	{{#formatnum: 1017|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1148373|0	,}}	Derby, Ashbourne, Buxton, Chesterfield, Ilkeston, Matlock, Swadlincote
Devon	Devon	{{#formatnum: 2621|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1133463|0	,}}	Exeter, Plymouth, Barnstaple, Newton Abbot, Paignton, Tavistock, Tiverton, Torquay
Dorset	Dorset	{{#formatnum: 1005|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 543296|0	,}}	Dorchester, Poole, Shaftesbury, Sherborne, Weymouth, Wimborne Minster
Down	Down	{{#formatnum: 950|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 528983|0	,}}	Downpatrick, Bangor, Holywood, Newcastle, Strangford
Dumfriesshire	Dumfries	{{#formatnum: 1063|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 77160|0	,}}	Dumfries, Annan, Gretna, Langholm, Lockerbie, Moffat, Sanquhar
Dunbartonshire	Dunbarton	{{#formatnum: 241|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 262419|0	,}}	Dumbarton, Alexandria, Clydebank, Cumbernauld, Helensburgh, Kirkintilloch
Durham	Durham	{{#formatnum: 1022|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1467037|0	,}}	Durham, Gateshead, Darlington, Hartlepool, Stockton-on-Tees, Sunderland, Washington
East Lothian	Haddington	{{#formatnum: 267|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 74882|0	,}}	Haddington, Dunbar, East Linton, North Berwick, Tranent
Essex	Essex	{{#formatnum: 1591|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 2999248|0	,}}	Chelmsford, Basildon, Brentwood, Colchester, Harlow, Romford, Southend-on-Sea, Stratford
Fermanagh	Fermanagh	{{#formatnum: 715|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 61170|0	,}}	Enniskillen, Belleek, Irvinestown
Fife	Fife	{{#formatnum: 504|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 365493|0	,}}	Cupar, Dunfermline, Burntisland, Cowdenbeath, Glenrothes, Kirkcaldy, St Andrews
Flintshire	Flint	{{#formatnum: 260|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 215390|0	,}}	Mold, Connah's Quay, Buckley, Flint, Holywell, Prestatyn, Rhyl, St Asaph
Glamorgan	Glamorgan	{{#formatnum: 827|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1321460|0	,}}	Cardiff, Swansea, Barry, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Merthyr Tydfil, Neath, Pontypridd
Gloucestershire	Gloucester	{{#formatnum: 1293|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1147106|0	,}}	Gloucester, Bristol, Cheltenham, Cirencester, Stroud, Tewkesbury
Hampshire	Southampton	{{#formatnum: 1656|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 2099640|0	,}}	Winchester, Portsmouth, Southampton, Basingstoke, Bournemouth, Newport
Herefordshire	Hereford	{{#formatnum: 837|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 183631|0	,}}	Hereford, Bromyard, Kington, Ledbury, Leominster, Ross-on-Wye
Hertfordshire	Hertford	{{#formatnum: 633|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1157166|0	,}}	Hertford, St Albans, Hatfield, Hemel Hempstead, Stevenage, Watford
Huntingdonshire	Huntingdon	{{#formatnum: 366|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 211776|0	,}}	Huntingdon, Ramsey, Godmanchester, St Ives, St Neots, Yaxley
Inverness-shire	Inverness	4211	118077	Inverness, Fort William, Kingussie, Newtonmore, Portree
Kent	Kent	{{#formatnum: 1611|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 2747715|0	,}}	Maidstone, Canterbury, Bromley, Dover, Folkestone, Greenwich, Rochester
Kincardineshire	Kincardine	{{#formatnum: 380|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 77670|0	,}}	Stonehaven, Banchory, Inverbervie, Laurencekirk
Kinross-shire	Kinross	73	11223	Kinross, Milnathort
Kirkcudbrightshire	Kirkcudbright	{{#formatnum: 899|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 47546|0	,}}	Kirkcudbright, Castle Douglas, Dalbeattie, New Galloway
Lanarkshire	Lanark	{{#formatnum: 879|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1008014|0	,}}	Lanark, Glasgow, Coatbridge, Carluke, East Kilbride, Hamilton, Motherwell
Lancashire	Lancaster	{{#formatnum: 1909|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 4942364|0	,}}	Lancaster, Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Barrow-in-Furness, Bolton, Warrington
Leicestershire	Leicester	{{#formatnum: 836|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 975403|0	,}}	Leicester, Coalville, Hinckley, Loughborough, Lutterworth, Melton Mowbray
Lincolnshire	Lincoln	{{#formatnum: 2687|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1038510|0	,}}	Lincoln, Boston, Grantham, Grimsby, Louth, Scunthorpe, Skegness, Stamford
Londonderry	Londonderry	{{#formatnum: 816|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 247971|0	,}}	Londonderry, Coleraine, Limavady
Merionethshire	Merioneth	{{#formatnum: 676|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 37874|0	,}}	Bala, Barmouth, Blaenau Ffestiniog, Dolgellau, Harlech, Tywyn
Middlesex	Middlesex	{{#formatnum: 285|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 4000927|0	,}}	London, Brentford, Westminster, Ealing, Enfield, Harrow, Potters Bar, Staines, Twickenham
Midlothian	Edinburgh	{{#formatnum: 362|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 621610|0	,}}	Edinburgh, Bonnyrigg, Dalkeith, Musselburgh, Penicuik
Monmouthshire	Monmouth	{{#formatnum: 542|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 514723|0	,}}	Monmouth, Newport, Abergavenny, Blackwood, Chepstow, Cwmbran, Tredegar
Montgomeryshire	Montgomery	{{#formatnum: 796|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 61956|0	,}}	Montgomery, Llanidloes, Machynlleth, Newtown, Welshpool
Morayshire	Elgin/Moray	{{#formatnum: 476|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 67654|0	,}}	Elgin, Fochabers, Lossiemouth, Forres, Rothes
Nairnshire	Nairn	{{#formatnum: 200|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 13894|0	,}}	Nairn, Auldearn, Cawdor
Norfolk	Norfolk	{{#formatnum: 2057|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 807721|0	,}}	Norwich, Cromer, East Dereham, Great Yarmouth, Hunstanton, King's Lynn
Northamptonshire	Northampton	{{#formatnum: 998|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 838786|0	,}}	Northampton, Peterborough, Corby, Kettering, Wellingborough
Northumberland	Northumberland	{{#formatnum: 2019|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 797006|0	,}}	Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Alnwick, (Berwick-upon-Tweed), Hexham, Morpeth
Nottinghamshire	Nottingham	{{#formatnum: 843|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1096617|0	,}}	Nottingham, Mansfield, Newark-on-Trent, Retford, Southwell, Worksop
Orkney	Orkney	{{#formatnum: 376|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 21349|0	,}}	Kirkwall, Balfour, Stromness
Oxfordshire	Oxford	{{#formatnum: 754|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 512345|0	,}}	Oxford, Banbury, Bicester, Carterton, Henley-on-Thames, Thame, Witney
Peeblesshire	Peebles	{{#formatnum: 548|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 19074|0	,}}	Peebles, Innerleithen, West Linton
Pembrokeshire	Pembroke	{{#formatnum: 625|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 122122|0	,}}	Pembroke, Fishguard, Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, Tenby, St David's
Perthshire	Perth	{{#formatnum: 2493|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 156371|0	,}}	Perth, Blairgowrie, Callander, Coupar Angus, Crieff, Kincardine, Pitlochry, Rattray
Radnorshire	Radnor	{{#formatnum: 470|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 25821|0	,}}	Presteigne, Knighton, Llandrindod Wells, New Radnor, Rhayader
Renfrewshire	Renfrew	{{#formatnum: 245|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 508064|0	,}}	Renfrew, Barrhead, Greenock, Johnstone, Kilmacolm, Paisley, Port Glasgow
Ross-shire	Ross	3089	69503	Dingwall, Alness, Invergordon, Stornoway, Tain
Roxburghshire	Roxburgh	{{#formatnum: 666|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 50800|0	,}}	Jedburgh, Hawick, Kelso, Melrose, Roxburgh
Rutland	Rutland	{{#formatnum: 152|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 37677|0	,}}	Oakham, Cottesmore, Uppingham
Selkirkshire	Selkirk	{{#formatnum: 267|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 16010|0	,}}	Selkirk, Galashiels
Shetland	Shetland	{{#formatnum: 551|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 23167|0	,}}	Lerwick, Baltasound, Scalloway
Shropshire	Shrewsbury/Salop	{{#formatnum: 1342|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 472027|0	,}}	Shrewsbury, Bridgnorth, Ludlow, Market Drayton, Oswestry, Telford, Whitchurch
Somerset	Somerset	{{#formatnum: 1633|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1053504|0	,}}	Taunton, Bath, Bridgwater, Glastonbury, Wells, Weston-super-Mare, Yeovil
Staffordshire	Stafford	{{#formatnum: 1176|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 2159392|0	,}}	Stafford, Lichfield, Stoke-on-Trent, Wolverhampton, Cannock, Walsall
Stirlingshire	Stirling	{{#formatnum: 447|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 244092|0	,}}	Stirling, Bridge of Allan, Denny, Falkirk, Grangemouth, Kilsyth
Suffolk	Suffolk	{{#formatnum: 1505|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 775099|0	,}}	Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds, Bungay, Felixstowe, Haverhill, Lowestoft, Sudbury
Surrey	Surrey	{{#formatnum: 759|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 2975836|0	,}}	Guildford, Brixton, Croydon, Egham, Farnham, Kingston upon Thames, Southwark, Sutton, Wandsworth, Wimbledon, Woking
Sussex	Sussex	{{#formatnum: 1466|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1612454|0	,}}	Chichester, Bognor Regis, Brighton, Crawley, Eastbourne, Hastings, Horsham, Worthing
Sutherland	Sutherland	{{#formatnum: 2028|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 12803|0	,}}	Dornoch, Brora, Durness, Golspie, Helmsdale, Lairg, Tongue
Tyrone	Tyrone	{{#formatnum: 1260|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 178440|0	,}}	Omagh, Cookstown, Dungannon, Strabane
Warwickshire	Warwick	{{#formatnum: 918|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1632885|0	,}}	Warwick, Birmingham, Coventry, Nuneaton, Rugby, Solihull, Stratford-upon-Avon
West Lothian	Linlithgow	{{#formatnum: 120|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 154830|0	,}}	Linlithgow, Armadale, Bathgate, Bo'ness, Broxburn, Livingston, Whitburn
Westmorland	Westmorland	{{#formatnum: 785|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 87466|0	,}}	Appleby, Ambleside, Kendal, Kirkby Lonsdale, Windermere
Wigtownshire	Wigtown	{{#formatnum: 487|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 26618|0	,}}	Wigtown, Newton Stewart, Stranraer, Whithorn
Wiltshire	Wilts	{{#formatnum: 1374|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 682380|0	,}}	Salisbury, Chippenham, Devizes, Marlborough, Swindon, Trowbridge, Warminster
Worcestershire	Worcester	{{#formatnum: 709|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 1125037|0	,}}	Worcester, Dudley, Evesham, Great Malvern, Halesowen, Kidderminster, Stourbridge
Yorkshire	York	{{#formatnum: 6081|0	,}}	{{#formatnum: 5218838|0	,}}	York East Riding: Kingston upon Hull, Beverley, Bridlington, Driffield, Filey, Hornsea North Riding: Middlesbrough, Northallerton, Redcar, Scarborough, Whitby West Riding: Bradford, Leeds, Sheffield, Wakefield, Halifax, Harrogate

See also

• Counties of the Republic of Ireland
• The Association of British Counties
• The Historic Counties Trust

External references

• The Gazetteer of British Place Names