Editing London Borough of Hackney (section)

===Neighbourhoods===
{{Further|List of districts in Hackney}}
The borough was formed by the merger of the metropolitan boroughs of [[Metropolitan Borough of Hackney|Hackney]], [[Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch|Shoreditch]] and [[Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington|Stoke Newington]], with the boundaries of these very closely based on the Ancient Parishes of the same name; these areas have been consistently defined for many centuries. Historically, the River Lea formed the boundary between the predecessor counties of [[Middlesex]] and [[Essex]].
[[File:hackney districts.gif|frame|right|Localities in the London Borough of Hackney]]

Within these parish areas are a large number of sub-districts, some of which have sub-districts of their own. These sub-districts are generally based on former hamlets that expanded and merged as the area urbanised. These sub-districts have never been administrative units so have never had any formal boundaries, however a degree of informal definition has developed.
 
The sub-districts typically take [[Metropolitan Borough]]\[[Civil Parish#Ancient parishes|Ancient Parish]] boundaries where available, and can also have informal customary boundaries such as road and railways. Despite this, many areas have only a weakly or partially understood extent and it is not unusual for perceptions of place to overlap or change over time.

The area of the former parish and borough of [[Stoke Newington]] includes the [[Woodberry Down]] area, while the former parish and borough of [[Shoreditch]] includes [[Hoxton]] and [[Haggerston]].

The former parish and borough of [[Hackney, London|Hackney]] is much larger and includes [[Hackney Central]], [[Hackney Downs]], [[West Hackney]], [[Dalston]], [[De Beauvoir Town]], [[Shacklewell]], [[Stamford Hill]], [[London Fields]], [[Clapton, London|Upper and Lower Clapton]], [[Hackney Wick]] and [[Homerton]].