Historic Counties Standard
The Historic Counties Standard provides a comprehensive definition of the names, areas and borders of the Counties of the United Kingdom. It also provides that the phrase 'historic county' shall be the standard term to refer to them.
By providing a definition for the terminology and the names, areas and borders of the historic counties, the Standard enables a more consistent use of the historic counties to be made in those numerous contexts for which they are the most natural geographical framework, principally in the fields of history, geography, heritage and education.
The codes
| HCS | HCS No. | County | Alternative Spellings/Names |
|---|---|---|---|
| ABN | 01 | Aberdeenshire | |
| AGL | 02 | Anglesey | |
| ANG | 03 | Angus | Forfarshire |
| ANM | 04 | Antrim | |
| ARG | 05 | Argyllshire | |
| ARH | 06 | Armagh | |
| AYS | 07 | Ayrshire | |
| BNF | 08 | Banffshire | |
| BED | 09 | Bedfordshire | |
| BER | 10 | Berkshire | |
| BRW | 11 | Berwickshire | |
| BRN | 12 | Brecknockshire | Breconshire |
| BUC | 13 | Buckinghamshire | |
| BTE | 14 | Buteshire | |
| CRN | 15 | Caernarfonshire | Caernarvonshire |
| CTN | 16 | Caithness | |
| CMB | 17 | Cambridgeshire | |
| CRD | 18 | Cardiganshire | |
| CRM | 19 | Carmarthenshire | |
| CHE | 20 | Cheshire | |
| CLM | 21 | Clackmannanshire | |
| CNW | 22 | Cornwall | |
| CRT | 23 | Cromartyshire | |
| CUM | 24 | Cumberland | |
| DBH | 25 | Denbighshire | |
| DRB | 26 | Derbyshire | |
| DVN | 27 | Devon | Devonshire |
| DRS | 28 | Dorset | Dorsetshire |
| DWN | 29 | Down | Downshire |
| DMF | 30 | Dumfriesshire | |
| DUN | 31 | Dunbartonshire | Dumbartonshire |
| DRH | 32 | Durham | |
| ELT | 33 | East Lothian | Haddingtonshire |
| ESE | 34 | Essex | |
| FRM | 35 | Fermanagh | |
| FFE | 36 | Fife | Fifeshire |
| FLT | 37 | Flintshire | |
| GLM | 38 | Glamorgan | Glamorganshire |
| GLC | 39 | Gloucestershire | |
| HMP | 40 | Hampshire | Southamptonshire |
| HRF | 41 | Herefordshire | |
| HTF | 42 | Hertfordshire | |
| HNT | 43 | Huntingdonshire | |
| INS | 44 | Inverness-shire | |
| KNT | 45 | Kent | |
| KNC | 46 | Kincardineshire | |
| KNR | 47 | Kinross-shire | |
| KCB | 48 | Kirkcudbrightshire | |
| LNK | 49 | Lanarkshire | |
| LCS | 50 | Lancashire | |
| LCR | 51 | Leicestershire | |
| LNC | 52 | Lincolnshire | |
| LDR | 53 | Londonderry | |
| MRN | 54 | Merionethshire | |
| MSX | 55 | Middlesex | |
| MLT | 56 | Midlothian | Edinburghshire |
| MNM | 57 | Monmouthshire | |
| MTG | 58 | Montgomeryshire | |
| MOY | 59 | Morayshire | Elginshire |
| NRN | 60 | Nairnshire | |
| NRF | 61 | Norfolk | |
| NHP | 62 | Northamptonshire | |
| NHB | 63 | Northumberland | |
| NOT | 64 | Nottinghamshire | |
| ORN | 65 | Orkney | |
| OXD | 66 | Oxfordshire | |
| PBS | 67 | Peeblesshire | |
| PMB | 68 | Pembrokeshire | |
| PRT | 69 | Perthshire | |
| RDN | 70 | Radnorshire | |
| RNF | 71 | Renfrewshire | |
| RSS | 72 | Ross-shire | |
| RXB | 73 | Roxburghshire | |
| RTL | 74 | Rutland | |
| SKK | 75 | Selkirkshire | |
| SHT | 76 | Shetland | |
| SHP | 77 | Shropshire | |
| SMS | 78 | Somerset | Somersetshire |
| STF | 79 | Staffordshire | |
| STL | 80 | Stirlingshire | |
| SFF | 81 | Suffolk | |
| SUR | 82 | Surrey | |
| SUS | 83 | Sussex | |
| SRL | 84 | Sutherland | Sutherlandshire |
| TYN | 85 | Tyrone | |
| WRW | 86 | Warwickshire | |
| WLT | 87 | West Lothian | Linlithgowshire |
| WML | 88 | Westmorland | |
| WGT | 89 | Wigtownshire | |
| WTS | 90 | Wiltshire | |
| WRC | 91 | Worcestershire | |
| YRK | 92 | Yorkshire |