Editing Shire (section)

== Shires in the United Kingdom ==
"Shire" also refers, in a narrower sense, to ancient counties with names that ended in "shire". These counties are typically (though not always) named after their [[county town]]. The suffix ''-shire'' is attached to most of the names of English, Scottish and Welsh counties. It tends not to be found in the names of shires that were pre-existing divisions. [[Essex]], [[Kent]], and [[Sussex]], for example, have never borne a ''-shire'', as each represents a former [[Heptarchy|Anglo-Saxon kingdom]]. Similarly [[Cornwall]] was a [[Britons (historical)|British]] kingdom before it became an English county. The term "shire" is not used in the names of the [[Counties of Northern Ireland|six traditional counties]] of [[Northern Ireland]].

===Shire names in England===
[[Image:EnglandTraditionalShires.png|thumb|right|The [[historic counties of England]] — red indicates "-shire" counties, orange indicates where the "-shire" suffix is occasionally used]]
Counties in England bearing the "-shire" suffix are:
{{columns-list|colwidth=10em|
* [[Bedfordshire]]
* [[Berkshire]]
* [[Buckinghamshire]]
* [[Cambridgeshire]]
* [[Cheshire]]
* [[Derbyshire]]
* [[Gloucestershire]]
* [[Hampshire]]
* [[Herefordshire]]
* [[Hertfordshire]]
* [[Huntingdonshire]]
* [[Lancashire]]
* [[Lincolnshire]]
* [[Leicestershire]]
* [[Northamptonshire]]
* [[Nottinghamshire]]
* [[Oxfordshire]]
* [[Shropshire]]
* [[Staffordshire]]
* [[Warwickshire]]
* [[Wiltshire]]
* [[Worcestershire]]
* [[Yorkshire]]
}}
These counties, on their [[Historic counties of England|historical boundaries]], cover a little more than half the area of England. The counties that do not use "-shire" are mainly in three areas, in the south-east, south-west and far north of England. Several of these counties no longer exist as administrative units, or have had their administrative boundaries reduced by local government reforms. Several of the successor authorities retain the "-shire" county names, such as [[North Yorkshire|North]] [[Yorkshire]], [[East Riding of Yorkshire|East]] [[Yorkshire]], [[South Yorkshire|South]] [[Yorkshire]], [[West Yorkshire|West]] [[Yorkshire]], and [[South Gloucestershire]].

The county of [[Devon]] was historically known as Devonshire, although this is no longer the official name.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~genmaps/genfiles/COU_files/ENG/DEV/bill_dev_1626.html|title=RootsWeb.com Home Page|website=freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603173043/http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~genmaps/genfiles/COU_files/ENG/DEV/bill_dev_1626.html|archive-date=3 June 2016|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Indeed, it was retained by the [[Devonshire and Dorset Regiment]] until amalgamation in 2007. Similarly, [[Dorset]], [[Rutland]] and [[Somerset]] were formerly known as Dorsetshire, Rutlandshire and Somersetshire, but these terms are no longer official, and are rarely used outside the local populations.

[[Hexhamshire]] was a county in the north-east of England from the early 12th century until 1572, when it was incorporated into [[Northumberland]].

===Shire names in Scotland===
{{Main|Shires of Scotland}}

Scotland was barely affected by the [[Norman conquest of England]], and the word "shire" prevailed over "county" until the 19th century. Earliest sources have the same usage of the "-shire" suffix as in England (although in Scots this was most often {{lang|sco|schyr}}). Later, "Shire" appears as a separate word.

"Shire" names in Scotland are:
{{columns-list|colwidth=10em|
* [[Aberdeenshire (traditional)|Aberdeenshire]]
* [[Ayrshire]]
* [[Banffshire]]
* [[Berwickshire]]
* [[Clackmannanshire]]
* [[Cromartyshire]]
* [[Dumfriesshire]]
* [[Dunbartonshire]]
* [[Inverness-shire]]
* [[Kincardineshire]]
* [[Kinross-shire]]
* [[Kirkcudbrightshire]]
* [[Lanarkshire]]
* [[Morayshire]]
* [[Nairnshire]]
* [[Peeblesshire]]
* [[Perthshire]]
* [[Renfrewshire]]
* [[Ross-shire]]
* [[Roxburghshire]]
* [[Selkirkshire]]
* [[Stirlingshire]]
* [[Wigtownshire]]
}}
In Scotland four shires have alternative names with the "-shire" suffix: [[Angus, Scotland|Angus]] (Forfarshire), [[East Lothian]] (Haddingtonshire), [[Midlothian]] (Edinburghshire) and [[West Lothian (historic)|West Lothian]] (Linlithgowshire).

[[Sutherland]] is occasionally still referred to as Sutherlandshire. Similarly, [[Argyllshire]], [[Buteshire]], [[Caithness-shire]] and [[Fifeshire]] are sometimes found. Also, Morayshire was previously called Elginshire. There is debate about whether Argyllshire was ever really used.

===Shire names in Wales===
Shires in [[Wales]] bearing the "-shire" suffix ({{lang|cy|Sir}} preceding the name in Welsh) are:
{{columns-list|colwidth=10em|
* [[Brecknockshire]] (or Breconshire)
* [[Caernarfonshire]] (historically Carnarvonshire)
* [[Ceredigion|Cardiganshire]] ({{langx|cy|Ceredigion}})
* [[Carmarthenshire]]
* [[Denbighshire (historic)|Denbighshire]]
* [[Flintshire (historic)|Flintshire]]
* [[Monmouthshire (historic)|Monmouthshire]]
* [[Montgomeryshire]]
* [[Pembrokeshire]]
* [[Radnorshire]]. 
}}
The counties of [[Merioneth]] and [[Glamorgan]] are occasionally referred to with the "shire" suffix. The only traditional Welsh county that never takes "shire" in English is [[Isle of Anglesey|Anglesey]]; in Welsh it is called {{lang|cy|Sir Fôn}}.

===Non-county "shires"===
====England====
Historically, the suffix "-shire" could be a generalised term referring to a district. It did not acquire the strong association with [[county]] until later{{when|date=January 2025}}. Other than these, the term was used for several other districts. [[Bedlingtonshire]], [[Craikshire]], [[Norhamshire]] and [[Islandshire]] were [[exclave]]s of County Durham, and were [[Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844|incorporated into Northumberland or Yorkshire in 1844]]. The suffix was also used for many [[hundred (division)|hundred]]s, [[wapentake]]s and [[Liberty (division)|liberties]] such as:
{{columns-list|colwidth=10em|
* [[Allertonshire]]
* [[Blackburnshire]]
* [[Halfshire]]
* [[Howdenshire]]
* [[Leylandshire]]
* [[Powdershire]]
* [[Pydarshire]]
* [[Richmondshire]]
* [[Liberty of Ripon|Riponshire]]
* [[Salfordshire]]
* [[Triggshire]]
* [[Tynemouthshire]]
* [[West Derby (hundred)|West Derbyshire]]
* [[Wivelshire]]
}}
Also carrying the "shire" suffix were [[county corporate|counties corporate]] such as [[Hullshire]], and other districts such as [[Applebyshire]], [[Bamburghshire]], [[Carlisle, Cumbria|Carlisleshire]], [[Coldinghamshire]], [[Cravenshire]], [[Hallamshire]], [[Mashamshire]] and [[Yetholmshire]].
 
[[Richmondshire]] was, from 1974 to 2023, the name of a [[Districts of England|local government district]] of [[North Yorkshire]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Next steps for new unitary councils in Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Somerset |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/next-steps-for-new-unitary-councils-in-cumbria-north-yorkshire-and-somerset |website=GOV.UK |access-date=20 November 2024 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.northyorks.gov.uk/new-council-0|title=The new council|publisher=[[North Yorkshire County Council]]|accessdate=20 November 2024}}</ref>
====Scotland====
Non-county shires were very common in Scotland. [[Kinross-shire]] and [[Clackmannanshire]] are arguably{{by whom|date=January 2025}} survivals from such districts. Non-county "shires" in Scotland include [[Coldinghamshire]] and [[Yetholmshire]].

==="The Shires"===
Colloquially, the term "the Shires" has become used to refer to those counties, particularly of the southern [[Midlands]], which are still largely rural and which are stereotypically thought of as places where a more [[bucolic]] lifestyle is possible.<ref>[https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/shires Cambridge Dictionary definition]</ref>