Editing County Londonderry

{{Short description|County in Northern Ireland}}
{{Pp|small=yes}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
<!-- Note to editors: the agreed compromise (see MOS:DERRY) for the Derry/Londonderry naming dispute is that the city page shall be titled Derry and the county page shall be titled County Londonderry.
-->
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = County&nbsp;Londonderry
| native_name        = {{native name|ga|Contae Dhoire}}<br />''Coontie Lunnonderrie'' ([[Ulster Scots dialect|Ulster-Scots]])
| settlement_type    = [[Counties of Ireland|County]]
| image_shield       = Londonderrycoatarms.png
| shield_size        = 110px
| nickname           = The Oak Leaf County
| motto              = ''Auxilium A Domino''{{spaces|2}}([[Latin language|Latin]])<br />"Help comes from the Lord"
| image_map          = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Londonderry.svg
| area_total_km2     = 2118
| area_rank          = [[List of Irish counties by area|15th]]
| area_footnotes     = <ref name="census1971summary">{{cite book |author=Northern Ireland General Register Office |title=Census of Population 1971; Summary Tables |url=https://www.nisra.gov.uk/sites/nisra.gov.uk/files/publications/1971-census-summary-tables.pdf#page=21 |format=PDF |location=Belfast |publisher=HMSO |access-date=28 August 2019 |page=1 |chapter=Table 1: Area, Buildings for Habitation and Population, 1971 |date=1975 |archive-date=23 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190723205332/https://www.nisra.gov.uk/sites/nisra.gov.uk/files/publications/1971-census-summary-tables.pdf#page=21 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| seat_type          = [[County town#Historic counties of Northern Ireland|County town]]
| seat               = [[Coleraine]]
| population         = 252231
| population_rank    = [[List of Irish counties by population|6th]]<ref name="2021 pop">{{cite web |title=County |url=https://build.nisra.gov.uk/en/custom/data?d=PEOPLE&v=COUNTY_NI&%7ECOUNTY_NI=3 |website=NISRA |access-date=18 August 2023}}</ref>
| population_as_of   = 2021
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = [[United Kingdom]]
| subdivision_type1  = [[Countries of the United Kingdom|Region]]
| subdivision_name1  = [[Northern Ireland]]
| subdivision_type2  = [[Provinces of Ireland|Province]]
| unit_pref          = Imperial
| elevation_max_m    = 678
| elevation_max_point = [[Sawel Mountain]]
| timezone           = [[Greenwich Mean Time|GMT]]
| utc_offset         = ±0
| timezone_DST       = [[British Summer Time|BST]]
| utc_offset_DST     = +1
| website            = 
| postal_code_type   = [[List of postcode areas in the United Kingdom|Postcode area]]
| postal_code        = [[BT postcode area|BT]]
| established_title  = Established
| established_date   = '''Date'''
| established_title2 = [[County Coleraine]]
| established_date2  = 1585
| established_title3 = County&nbsp;Londonderry
| established_date3  = 1613
| subdivision_name2  = [[Ulster]]
| footnotes          = ''Contae Dhoire''<ref>{{cite web |title=Northern Ireland |url=http://www.army.mod.uk/documents/general/Northern_Ireland_section_4_07.pdf |url-status=live |publisher=Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom) |access-date=28 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107010755/https://www.army.mod.uk/documents/general/Northern_Ireland_section_4_07.pdf%0A |archive-date=7 January 2019}}</ref> is the Irish name; ''Coontie Lunnonderrie'' is its name in [[Ulster Scots dialects|Ulster Scots]].<ref>[http://www.doeni.gov.uk/niea/banagherus.pdf Banagher and Boveagh Churches] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110830193411/http://www.doeni.gov.uk/niea/banagherus.pdf |date=30 August 2011}} Department of the Environment.</ref>
}}

''' County Londonderry''' ([[Ulster Scots dialects|Ulster-Scots]]: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as '''County Derry''' ({{langx|ga|Contae Dhoire}}), is one of the six [[Counties of Northern Ireland|counties]] of [[Northern Ireland]], one of the thirty-two [[Counties of Ireland|counties]] of [[Ireland]] and one of the nine counties of [[Ulster]]. Before the [[partition of Ireland]], it was one of the [[Counties of Ireland|counties]] of the [[Kingdom of Ireland]] from 1613 onward and then of the [[United Kingdom]] after the [[Acts of Union 1800]]. Adjoining the north-west shore of [[Lough Neagh]], the county covers an area of {{convert|2118|km2|mi2|abbr=on}} and today has a population of about 252,231.<ref name="2021 pop"/>

Since 1972, the counties in Northern Ireland, including Londonderry, have no longer been used by the state as part of the local administration. Following further reforms in 2015, the area is now governed under three different districts: [[Derry and Strabane]], [[Causeway Coast and Glens]] and [[Mid-Ulster District|Mid-Ulster]]. Despite no longer being used for local government and administrative purposes, it is sometimes used in a cultural context in [[All-Ireland]] sporting and cultural events (i.e. [[Derry GAA]]).

Since 1981, it has become one of four counties in Northern Ireland that has a [[Irish Catholic|Catholic]] majority (55.56% according to the 2001 Census<ref name="NISRA">{{cite web|url=http://www.nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/Census/pdf/Key%20Statistics%20ReportTables.pdf|title=NISRA – Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (c) 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071127021255/http://www.nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/Census/pdf/Key%20Statistics%20ReportTables.pdf|archive-date=27 November 2007}}</ref> and 61.3% according to the 2021 Census<ref name="religion brought up in">{{cite web |title=Religion or religion brought up in |url=https://build.nisra.gov.uk/en/custom/data?d=PEOPLE&v=COUNTY_NI&v=RELIGION_BELONG_TO_OR_BROUGHT_UP_IN_DVO&%7ECOUNTY_NI=6 |website=NISRA |access-date=17 August 2023}}</ref>). The [[county flower]] is the [[purple saxifrage]].<ref>[http://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/plantlife-discovering-plants-county-flowers.html County flowers in Britain] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060214131539/http://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/plantlife-discovering-plants-county-flowers.html |date=14 February 2006}} www.plantlife.org.uk</ref>

== Name ==
The place name ''Derry'' is an [[anglicisation]] of the [[Old Irish]] ''Daire''<ref>{{cite book |last=Delanoy |first=Werner |title=Towards a Dialogic Anglistics |publisher=LIT Verlag |year=2007 |page=38 |isbn=978-3-8258-0549-4 |display-authors=etal}}</ref> ([[Modern Irish]] ''Doire''<ref name=tearma>{{cite web |url=http://www.tearma.ie/Search.aspx?term=doire |title=doire |work=téarma.ie – Dictionary of Irish Terms |publisher=[[Foras na Gaeilge]] and [[Dublin City University]] |access-date=18 November 2016}}</ref>), meaning "oak-grove" or "oak-wood".<ref>{{cite book |last=Blackie |first=Christina |title=Geographical Etymology |publisher=Marton Press |year=2010 |page=61 |isbn=978-1-4455-8286-3}}</ref>

As with the city, its name is subject to the [[Derry/Londonderry name dispute]], with the form "Londonderry" generally preferred by [[Unionism in Ireland|unionists]] and "Derry" by [[Irish nationalism|nationalists]]. Unlike with the city, however, there has never been a County Derry. County Londonderry was formed mostly from the old [[County Coleraine]] (see below).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ceps.eu/Article.php?article_id=206|title=Centre for European Policy Studies, accessed 6 October 2007|access-date=20 October 2008|archive-date=27 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227104546/http://www.ceps.eu/Article.php?article_id=206|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Maiden">{{cite web|url=http://www.discovernorthernireland.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=1588|title=The Walled City Experience|publisher=Northern Ireland Tourist Board|access-date=4 September 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080420182750/http://www.discovernorthernireland.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=1588|archive-date=20 April 2008}}</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/4887352.stm BBC News: Court to Rule on City Name] 7 April 2006</ref><ref>''City name row lands in High Court'' [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6213890.stm BBC News] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090407070039/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6213890.stm |date=7 April 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite BAILII |litigants=Derry City Council: Re Application for Judicial Review |link= |country=nie |court=NIHC |division=QB |year=2007 |num=5 |para= |eucase= |parallelcite= |courtname= |juris= }}</ref> British authorities use the name "Londonderry", while "Derry" is used by the [[Republic of Ireland]].

== History ==
[[File:Cannon on Derry City Walls SMC 2007.jpg|220px|thumbnail|A cannon sits atop the historic Derry Walls, which look over [[Derry|Derry City]].]]
[[File:1837Londonderry.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Map of County Londonderry, 1837]]

===Prehistoric===
The county has a significant of megalithic structures from prehistoric times, including [[Ballygroll Prehistoric Landscape]], as well as numerous others. The most significant site however is [[Mount Sandel Mesolithic site|Mountsandel]], located near Coleraine in County Londonderry is "perhaps the oldest recorded settlement within Ireland".<ref>A.E.P. Collins (1983), "Excavations at Mount Sandel, Lower Site", Ulster Journal of Archaeology vol. 46 pp1-22. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/20567892 JSTOR preview] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204131150/http://www.jstor.org/stable/20567892 |date=4 February 2016 }}.</ref><ref>C. Michael Hogan. 2011. [http://www.eoearth.org/article/Celtic_Sea?topic=49523 ''Celtic Sea''. Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. P. Saundry & C.J. Cleveland. National Council for Science and the Environment. Washington DC] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130602040924/http://www.eoearth.org/article/Celtic_Sea?topic=49523 |date=2 June 2013 }}</ref>

===County Coleraine and the Plantation of Ulster===
At an early period, what became the county of Coleraine was inhabited by the [[O'Cahan]]s, who were tributary to the [[O'Neill dynasty|O'Neills]]. Towards the close of the reign of [[Elizabeth I of England|Elizabeth I]] their territory was seized by England, with the purpose of checking the power of the O'Neills, and was made the county of [[Coleraine]], named after the regional capital.

A short description of County Coleraine is given in [[Walter Harris (historian)|Harris]]'s ''Hibernica'', and also in Captain Pynnar's ''Survey of the Escheated Counties of Ulster, Anno 1618'':

{{cquote|
The county of [[Coleraine]],* otherwise called O'Cahan's country, is divided, as Tyrone, by [[ballyboe]]s and doth contain, as appeareth by the survey, 547 ballyboes, or 34,187 acres, every ballyboe containing 60 acres or thereabouts.
}}

On 2 March 1613, [[James I of England|James I]] granted a charter to [[The Honourable The Irish Society]] to undertake the plantation of a new county.<ref name="Munn">''Notes on the Place Names of the Parishes and Townlands of the County of Londonderry'', 1925, Alfred Moore Munn, Clerk of the Crown and Peace of the City and County of Londonderry</ref> This county was named Londonderry, a combination of London (in reference to the [[Livery Company|Livery Companies]] of the Irish Society) and Derry (then name of the city). This charter declared that the "City of Londonderry" and everything contained within the new county:
{{cquote|
shall be united, consolidated, and from hence-forth for ever be one entire County of itself, distinct and separate from all our Counties whatsoever within our Kingdom of Ireland-and from henceforth for ever be named, accounted and called, the County of Londonderry.<ref name="Munn"/>
}}

This new county would comprise the then County Coleraine—which consisted of the baronies of [[Tirkeeran]], [[Coleraine (barony)|Coleraine]], and [[Keenaght (barony)|Keenaght]]—and at the behest of The Irish Society the following additional territory was added: all but the south-west corner of the barony of [[Loughinsholin]], then a part of County Tyrone, as it had sufficient wood for construction; the North East Liberties of Coleraine, which was part of County Antrim and the City of Londonderry and its Liberties, which were in County Donegal, so that they could control both banks of the [[River Foyle]] and [[River Bann]].<ref name="Munn"/><ref name="ANHOI">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=94hgYO8I6T0C&pg=PA111|title=Maps, Genealogies, Lists: A Companion to Irish History|first1=Theodore William|last1=Moody|first2=Francis X.|last2=Martin|first3=Francis John|last3=Byrne|date=1 January 1984|publisher=Clarendon Press|isbn=9780198217459|via=Google Books|access-date=16 October 2015|archive-date=26 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160426022925/https://books.google.com/books?id=94hgYO8I6T0C&pg=PA111|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Curl">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/plantation/companies/londoncompanies_full.rtf|title=The City of London and the Plantation of Ulster|last=Curl|first=James Stevens|year=2001|publisher=BBCi History Online|access-date=10 August 2008|archive-date=13 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110913111753/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/plantation/companies/londoncompanies_full.rtf|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Irish Society was made up of the twelve main livery companies of London, which themselves were composed of various guilds. Whilst The Irish Society as a whole was given possession of the city of Londonderry and Coleraine, the individual companies were each granted an estimated {{Convert|3210|acre|sqmi km2|abbr=on}} throughout the county. These companies and the sites of their headquarters were:<ref name="Robinson209">{{cite book |title=the Plantation of Ulster|first=Philip|last=Robinson|isbn=978-1-903688-00-7|year=2000|publisher=Ulster Historical Foundation}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/hibernicaorsome00irelgoog |page=[https://archive.org/details/hibernicaorsome00irelgoog/page/n232 229] |quote=Habberdashers-Hall. |access-date=30 June 2016 |title=Hibernica: or, Some antient places relating to Ireland |year=1770 |publisher=John Milliken |author=Walter Harris}}</ref>
*[[Worshipful Company of Clothworkers|Clothworkers]], based at Killowen and Clothworker's Hall (present-day [[Articlave]]) in the barony of Coleraine;
*[[Worshipful Company of Drapers|Drapers]], based at Draper's Hall, later called Drapers Town (present-day [[Moneymore]]) in the barony of Loughinsholin;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.placenamesni.org/resultdetails.php?entry=5704|title=Place Names NI – Home|access-date=30 June 2016|archive-date=20 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820212256/http://www.placenamesni.org/resultdetails.php?entry=5704|url-status=live}}</ref>
*[[Worshipful Company of Fishmongers|Fishmongers]], based at Artikelly and Fishermonger's Hall (present-day [[Ballykelly, County Londonderry|Ballykelly]]) in the barony of Keenaght;
*[[Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths|Goldsmiths]], based at Goldsmith's Hall (present-day [[Newbuildings]]) in the barony of Tirkeeran;
*[[Worshipful Company of Grocers|Grocers]], based at Grocer's Hall, alias Muff (present-day [[Eglinton, County Londonderry|Eglinton]]) in the barony of Tirkeeran;
*[[Worshipful Company of Haberdashers|Haberdashers]], based at Habberdasher's Hall (present-day [[Ballycastle, County Londonderry|Ballycastle]]) in the barony of Keenaght;
*[[Worshipful Company of Ironmongers|Ironmongers]], based at Ironmonger's Hall (present-day townland of Agivey) in the barony of Coleraine;
*[[Worshipful Company of Mercers|Mercers]], based at Mercer's Hall (present-day townland of Movanagher) in the barony of Coleraine;
*[[Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors|Merchant Taylors]], based at Merchant Taylor's Hall (present-day [[Macosquin]]) in the barony of Coleraine;
*[[Worshipful Company of Salters|Salters]], based at Salter's Hall (present-day [[Magherafelt]]) and Salters Town in the barony of Loughinsholin;
*[[Worshipful Company of Skinners|Skinners]], based at Skinner's Hall (present-day [[Dungiven]]) in the barony of Keenaght;
*[[Worshipful Company of Vintners|Vintners]], based at Vintner's Hall, later called Vintner's Town (present-day [[Bellaghy]]) in the barony of Loughinsholin.

===19th century===
As a result of the [[Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898]], the city was detached from the county for administrative purposes, becoming a separate [[county borough]] from 1899.  The [[county town]] of County Londonderry, and seat of the [[Londonderry County Council]] until its abolition in 1973, was therefore moved to the town of [[Coleraine]].
{{Historical populations
| state=collapsed
|1653|6102
|1659|7102
|1821|193869
|1831|222012
|1841|222174
|1851|192022
|1861|184209
|1871|173906
|1881|164991
|1891|152009
|1901|144404
|1911|140625
|1926|139693
|1937|142736
|1951|155540
|1961|165298
|1966|174658
|1971|183094
|1981|197278
|1991|213035
|2001|235864
|2011|247132
|2021|252231
||footnote=<ref>For 1653 and 1659 figures from Civil Survey Census of those years, Paper of Mr Hardinge to Royal Irish Academy 14 March 1865.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cso.ie/census|title=Server Error 404 – CSO – Central Statistics Office|access-date=3 September 2009|archive-date=9 March 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050309005718/http://www.cso.ie/census/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.histpop.org  |title=Histpop – The Online Historical Population Reports Website |date= |website=www.histpop.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160507023856/http://www.histpop.org/ |archive-date=7 May 2016}}</ref><ref>[http://www.nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/census NISRA – Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (c) 2013] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217095720/http://www.nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/census |date=17 February 2012 }}. Nisranew.nisra.gov.uk (27 September 2010). Retrieved on 23 July 2013.</ref><ref>{{cite book
| last=Lee
| first=JJ
| editor-last=Goldstrom
| editor-first=J. M.
| editor2-last=Clarkson
| editor2-first=L. A.
| title=Irish Population, Economy, and Society: Essays in Honour of the Late K. H. Connell
| year=1981
| publisher=Clarendon Press
| location=Oxford, England
| chapter=On the accuracy of the Pre-famine Irish censuses
}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal
| last1 = Mokyr
| first1 = Joel
| author-link = Joel Mokyr
| last2 = O Grada
| first2 = Cormac
| title = New Developments in Irish Population History, 1700–1850
| journal = The Economic History Review
| volume =  37
| issue =  4
| pages = 473–488
|date=November 1984
| url = http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/120035880/abstract
| archive-url = https://archive.today/20121204160709/http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/120035880/abstract
| url-status = dead
| archive-date = 2012-12-04
| doi = 10.1111/j.1468-0289.1984.tb00344.x
| hdl = 10197/1406
| hdl-access = free
}}</ref>
}}

==Geography and places of interest==
[[File:Downhill Strand, Derry - Londonderry - geograph.org.uk - 1124323.jpg|thumbnail|Downhill Strand.]]
[[File:Benone Strand.jpg|thumb|Benone Strand]]
The highest point in the county is the summit of [[Sawel Mountain]] ({{convert|678|m|ft|0}}) on the border with [[County Tyrone]]. Sawel is part of the [[Sperrin Mountains]], which dominate the southern part of the county. To the east and west, the land falls into the valleys of the [[River Bann|Bann]] and [[River Foyle|Foyle]] rivers respectively; in the south-east, the county touches the shore of Lough Neagh, which is the largest lake in Ireland; the north of the county is distinguished by the steep cliffs, dune systems, and remarkable beaches of the Atlantic coast.

The county is home to a number of important buildings and landscapes, including the well-preserved 17th-century [[city wall]]s of [[Derry]]; the [[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]]–owned [[Plantation of Ulster|Plantation]] [[Springhill House|estate at Springhill]]; [[Mussenden Temple]] on the Atlantic coast; the [[Dike (construction)|dikes]], artificial coastlines and the [[Bird sanctuary|bird sanctuaries]] on the eastern shore of [[Lough Foyle]]; and the visitor centre at [[Bellaghy]] Bawn, close to the childhood home of Nobel laureate [[Seamus Heaney]]. In the centre of the county are the old-growth deciduous forests at Banagher and Ness Wood, where the Burntollet River flows over the highest waterfalls in Northern Ireland.

===Subdivisions===
; Baronies
{{Main|Baronies of Ireland}}
* [[Coleraine (barony)|Coleraine]]
* [[Keenaght (barony)|Keenaght]]
* [[North East Liberties of Coleraine]]
* [[North West Liberties of Londonderry]]
* [[Loughinsholin]]
* [[Tirkeeran]]

; Parishes
{{Main|List of civil parishes of County Londonderry}}

; Townlands 
{{Main|List of townlands in County Londonderry}}

===Settlements===
; Cities
(population of 75,000 or more with a cathedral)
* [[Derry]]

; Large towns
(population of 18,000 or more and under 75,000 at 2001 Census)<ref name="NI">{{cite web | title=Statistical classification of settlements | work=NI Neighbourhood Information Service | url=http://www.ninis.nisra.gov.uk/mapxtreme_towns/statistical%20classification.htm | access-date=23 February 2009 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100217122433/http://www.ninis.nisra.gov.uk/mapxtreme_towns/statistical%20classification.htm | archive-date=17 February 2010 | url-status=dead }}</ref>
* [[Coleraine]]

; Medium towns
(population of 10,000 or more and under 18,000 at 2001 Census)<ref name="NI"/>
* [[Limavady]]

; Small towns
(population of 4,500 or more and under 10,000 at 2001 Census)<ref name="NI"/>
* [[Maghera]]
* [[Magherafelt]]
* [[Portstewart]]
 
; Intermediate settlements
(population of 2,250 or more and under 4,500 at 2001 Census)<ref name="NI" />
* [[Culmore]] (part of [[Derry Urban Area]])
* [[Dungiven]]
* [[Eglinton, County Londonderry|Eglinton]]
* [[Newbuildings]] (part of Derry Urban Area)

; Villages
(population of 1,000 or more and under 2,250 at 2001 Census)<ref name="NI"/>
{{Div col|colwidth=15em}}
* [[Ballykelly, County Londonderry|Ballykelly]]
* [[Bellaghy]]
* [[Castledawson]]
* [[Castlerock]]
* [[Claudy]]
* [[Draperstown]]
* [[Garvagh]]
* [[Greysteel]]
* [[Kilrea]]
* [[Moneymore]]
* [[Strathfoyle]] (part of Derry Urban Area)
{{div col end}}

; Small villages or hamlets
(population of less than 1,000 at 2001 Census)<ref name="NI"/>
{{Div col|colwidth=15em}}
* [[Articlave]]
* [[Ballerin]]
* [[Ballymaguigan]]
* [[Ballyronan]]
* [[Clady, County Londonderry|Clady]]
* [[Culnady]]
* [[Desertmartin]]
* [[Downhill, County Londonderry|Downhill]]
* [[Drumsurn]]
* [[Feeny]]
* [[Glenullin]]
* [[Gulladuff]]
* [[Lettershendoney]]
* [[Macosquin]]
* [[Ringsend, Coleraine|Ringsend]]
* [[Swatragh]]
* [[Tobermore]]
* [[Upperlands]]
{{div col end}}

==Demography==
{{bar box
|title = Religious Background in Londonderry (2021)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://build.nisra.gov.uk/en/custom/data?d=PEOPLE&v=COUNTY_NI&v=RELIGION_BELONG_TO_OR_BROUGHT_UP_IN_DVO&%7ECOUNTY_NI=3|title=Religion or religion brought up in|last=|website=NISRA|language=en|access-date=27 October 2023}}</ref>
|titlebar=#ddd |left1=Religion |right1=Per cent |float=right
|bars =
{{bar percent|[[Catholic]]|DarkOrchid|61.3}}
{{bar percent|[[Protestant]] and Other Christian|Blue|32.5}}
{{bar percent|None|grey|5.3}}
{{bar percent|Other faiths|grey|0.9}}
}}
It is one of four [[Counties of Ireland|counties]] in Northern Ireland which currently has a majority of the population from a [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] community background, according to the [[United Kingdom Census 2021|2021 census]]. At the time of the 2021 census there were 252,231 residents of County Londonderry.<ref name="2021 pop"/> Of these: 61.3% were from a Catholic background, 32.5% were from a Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related), 0.9% were from other religions, and 5.3% had no religious background.<ref name="religion brought up in"/>
{| class="wikitable"
|+Religion or religion brought up in (2021 Census)
!Religion or religion brought up in
!Number
!%
|-
|Catholic
|154,621
|61.3%
|-
|Protestant and Other Christian
|81,995
|32.5%
|-
|Other religions 
|2,368
|0.9%
|-
|None (no religion)
|13,247
|5.3%
|-
!Total
!252,231
!100.00%
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+National identity (2021 Census)<ref>{{cite web |title=National Identity (Irish) |url=https://build.nisra.gov.uk/en/custom/data?d=PEOPLE&v=COUNTY_NI&v=NAT_ID_IRISH_AGG3&%7ECOUNTY_NI=3 |website=NISRA |access-date=18 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=National Identity (British) |url=https://build.nisra.gov.uk/en/custom/data?d=PEOPLE&v=COUNTY_NI&v=NAT_ID_BRITISH&%7ECOUNTY_NI=3 |website=NISRA |access-date=18 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=National Identity (Northern Irish) |url=https://build.nisra.gov.uk/en/custom/data?d=PEOPLE&v=COUNTY_NI&v=NAT_ID_NORTHERN_IRISH_AGG3&%7ECOUNTY_NI=3 |website=NISRA |access-date=18 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=National identity (person based) - basic detail (classification 1) |url=https://build.nisra.gov.uk/en/custom/viewdata?d=PEOPLE&v=COUNTY_NI&v=NAT_ID_BASIC&~COUNTY_NI=3 |website=NISRA |access-date=18 August 2023}}</ref>
!National identity
!Number
!(%)
|-
|Irish only
|106,343
|42.2%
|-
|British only
|62,562
|24.8%
|-
|Northern Irish only
|49,764
|19.7%
|-
|British and Northern Irish only
|13,148
|5.2%
|-
|Irish and Northern Irish only
|5,072
|2.0%
|-
|British, Irish and Northern Irish only
|2,475
|1.0%
|-
|British and Irish only
|1,388
|0.6%
|-
|Other identity
|11,477
|4.6%
|-
!Total
!252,231
!100.0%
|-
!All Irish identities
!116,032
!46.0%
|-
!All British identities
!81,097
!32.2%
|-
!All Northern Irish identities
!21,248
!10.9%
|}

== Administration ==
The county was administered by [[Londonderry County Council]] from 1899 until [[Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972|the abolition]] of county councils in Northern Ireland in 1973.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/apni/1972/9/contents|title=Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972|publisher=Legislation.gov.uk|access-date=29 November 2019|archive-date=30 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030152505/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/apni/1972/9/contents|url-status=live}}</ref> They were replaced by [[Local government in Northern Ireland|district councils]]. These councils were: [[Derry City Council|Londonderry City Council]] (renamed Derry City Council in 1984), [[Limavady Borough Council]], and [[Magherafelt District Council]], most of [[Coleraine Borough Council]], and part of [[Cookstown District Council]]. After a reduction in the number of councils in Northern Ireland in 2011, County Londonderry is divided into three cross-county councils: [[Causeway Coast and Glens]], [[Derry and Strabane]], and [[Mid-Ulster District]].

== Transport ==
[[File:Downhill Railway Runnel - geograph.org.uk - 1197950.jpg|thumb|Downhill Tunnels near [[Castlerock railway station]].]]

[[Translink (Northern Ireland)|Translink]] provides a [[Northern Ireland Railways]] service in the county, linking [[Derry ~ Londonderry railway station|Derry~Londonderry railway station]] to [[Coleraine railway station]] (with a branch to {{stnlnk|Portrush}} on the [[Coleraine–Portrush railway line]]) and onwards into County Antrim to [[Belfast Lanyon Place railway station|Belfast Lanyon Place]] and [[Belfast Grand Central station|Belfast Grand Central]] on the [[Belfast-Derry railway line]].

There is also the [[Foyle Valley Railway]], a museum in [[Derry]] with some rolling stock from both the [[County Donegal Railway]] and the [[Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway]], and is located on the site of the former [[Londonderry Foyle Road railway station]]. The Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway continued as a private bus company based in the city but operating predominantly in [[County Donegal]] until it closed in 2014. Bus services are now provided by [[Ulsterbus]].

== Education ==
Government-funded education up to secondary school level is administered by the [[Education Authority]] (EA), sponsored by the [[Department of Education (Northern Ireland)|Department of Education]]. The EA is divided into sub-regions:

* Western region: Derry, Limavady;
* North Eastern region: Coleraine, Magherafelt;
* Southern region: Cookstown.

For Catholic grant-maintained schools administration is by the Derry Diocesan Education Office.

Two major centres of the [[University of Ulster]] are in the county, including its headquarters at [[University of Ulster at Coleraine|Coleraine]] and the [[Magee College|Magee Campus]] in Derry.

== Sport ==
[[File:Tammetõru.JPG|thumb|left|200px|The oak leaf which represents the county's [[List of Irish county nicknames|nickname]].]]
In [[Gaelic Athletic Association|Gaelic games]], the [[GAA county]] of [[Derry GAA|Derry]] is more or less coterminous with the former administrative county of Londonderry, although teams from the neighbouring counties of Tyrone, Donegal and Antrim have occasionally played in Derry competitions, and vice versa. The Derry teams wear the colours red and white. There are many club teams competing in up to five leagues and three championships. The county team has won one [[All-Ireland Senior Football Championship]] (in [[All-Ireland Senior Football Championship 1993|1993]]) and five [[National Football League (Ireland)|National League titles]]. [[Hurling]] is also widely played but is not as popular as football.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} However, the county team is generally regarded as one of the top hurling sides in [[Ulster Senior Hurling Championship|Ulster]]{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} and in [[Nicky Rackard Cup 2006|2006]] won the [[Nicky Rackard Cup]] – the third tier hurling competition in Ireland.

In association football, the [[NIFL Premiership]], which operates as the top division, has two teams in the county: [[Coleraine F.C.]] and [[Institute F.C.]], with [[Limavady United F.C.]], [[Moyola Park F.C.]], [[Portstewart F.C.]] and [[Tobermore United F.C.]] competing in the [[NIFL Championship]], which operates as levels two and three. [[Derry City F.C.]] play in the [[League of Ireland Premier Division|Premier Division]] of the [[League of Ireland]] after leaving the [[Irish Football Association|Northern Ireland]] structures in 1985, having resigned from the [[NIFL Premiership|Irish Football League]] at the height of [[the Troubles]] because of not being allowed play their home games at the [[Brandywell]] due to security concerns from other clubs.

The [[Northern Ireland Milk Cup]] was established in 1983 and is regarded as one of the most prestigious youth football tournaments in Europe and the world.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.newsletter.co.uk/sport-in-the-community/MILK-CUP-FOOTBALL-Toyota-sponsor.4327762.jp |title=Newsletter.co.uk |access-date=30 October 2009 |archive-date=30 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090730194459/http://www.newsletter.co.uk/sport-in-the-community/MILK-CUP-FOOTBALL-Toyota-sponsor.4327762.jp |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nimilkcup.org/?tabindex=5&tabid=2389|title=SuperCupNI (formerly NI Milk Cup est. 1983) – Homepage|access-date=30 October 2009|archive-date=9 August 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080809224507/http://www.nimilkcup.org/?tabindex=5&tabid=2389|url-status=usurped}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.manutd.com|title=Official Manchester United Website|access-date=24 September 2021|archive-date=20 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720210220/http://www.manutd.com/en/Players-And-Staff/First-Team/Anderson.aspx?section=Quote&pageNo=2|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uicflames.com/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/072809aac.html|title=John Trask on U.S. U-18 Staff at Northern Ireland Milk Cup|access-date=30 October 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717150028/http://www.uicflames.com/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/072809aac.html|archive-date=17 July 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> The competition is based at [[Coleraine]] and involves several other towns and villages in the county – [[Limavady]], [[Portstewart]] and [[Castlerock]] – and in neighbouring [[County Antrim]] – [[Ballymoney]], [[Portrush]], [[Ballymena]] and [[Broughshane]]. The event, held in the last week of July, has attracted teams from 56 countries around the world including Europe, the US, Africa, the Far East, South America, the Middle East, Australia, Russia, New Zealand and Canada. Some of the biggest teams in the world have entered including Premiership giants [[Everton F.C.|Everton]], [[Liverpool F.C.|Liverpool]], [[Manchester United F.C.|Manchester United]], [[Chelsea F.C.|Chelsea]], [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur]] as well as top European teams such as [[Feyenoord]], [[F.C. Porto]], [[FC Barcelona]], [[S.L. Benfica|Benfica]], [[Bayern Munich]] and [[Dynamo Kiev]].

In [[rugby union]], the county is represented at senior level by [[Rainey RFC]], based in [[Magherafelt]], who compete in the Ulster Senior League and [[All-Ireland League (rugby union)|All-Ireland League]]. Limavady R.F.C, [[City of Derry Rugby Club]], Londonderry Y.M.C.A and Coleraine Rugby Club all compete in Ulster Qualifying League One.

[[Cricket]] is particularly popular in the north-west of Ireland, with 11 of the 20 senior clubs in the North West Cricket Union located in County Londonderry: Limavady, [[Eglinton Cricket Club|Eglinton]], Glendermott, Brigade, Killymallaght, Ardmore, Coleraine, Bonds Glen, Drummond, Creevedonnell and The Nedd.

In [[rowing (sport)|rowing]], Richard Archibald from [[Coleraine]] along with his Irish teammates qualified for the Beijing 2008 Olympics by finishing second in the lightweight fours final in Poznań, thus qualifying for the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Another Coleraine rower [[Alan Campbell (sculler)|Alan Campbell]] is a World Cup gold medallist in the single sculls in 2006.

== Media ==
The county currently has four main radio stations:

* [[BBC Radio Foyle]];
* [[Q102.9]];
* [[Q97.2]];
* [[Six FM]] (in the south of the county)

== See also ==
* [[List of monastic houses in Ireland#County Londonderry|Abbeys and priories in Northern Ireland (County Londonderry)]]
* [[List of archaeological sites in County Londonderry]]
* [[List of places in County Londonderry]]
* [[List of townlands in County Londonderry]]
* [[List of civil parishes of County Londonderry]]
* [[Lord Lieutenant of County Londonderry]]
* [[High Sheriff of County Londonderry]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|County Londonderry}}
{{Wikivoyage}}
*[https://wikishire.co.uk/map/#County_Londonderry County Londonderry on the interactive map of the counties of Great Britain and Ireland] – Wikishire

{{Geographic Location
|North = Atlantic Ocean
|South = [[County Tyrone]] [[File:Tyrone_arms.svg|30px]]
|East = [[County Antrim]] [[File:Antrim_arms.svg|28px]]
|West = [[County Donegal]] [[File:Donegalcocologo.png|32px]]
|Southeast = [[Lough Neagh]]
|Centre = County Londonderry
}}

{{County Londonderry}}
{{Counties and cities of Northern Ireland}}
{{Ireland counties}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:County Londonderry| ]]<!--Keep at start of list (eponymous category) -->
[[Category:Counties of Northern Ireland]]
[[Category:Ulster|Londonderry]]
[[Category:1613 establishments in Ireland]]