Editing Suffolk

{{Short description|County of England}}
{{About|the county in England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2011}}
{{Infobox English county
| official_name = Suffolk
| locator_map = [[File:Suffolk UK locator map 2010.svg|200px|Suffolk within England]]
| coordinates = {{coord|52|12|N|1|00|E|region:GB_type:adm1st|display=inline,title}}
| region = [[East of England|East]]
| established_date = [[Historic counties of England|Ancient]]
| lord_lieutenant_office = Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk
| lord_lieutenant_name = [[Clare FitzRoy, Countess of Euston]]
| high_sheriff_office = High Sheriff of Suffolk
| high_sheriff_name = Bridget McIntyre<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=62943|page=5161|date=13 March 2020}}</ref> (2020–21)
| area_total_km2 = 3798
| area_total_rank = 8th
| ethnicity = 97.2% White
| county_council = [[Suffolk County Council]]
| admin_hq = [[Ipswich]]
| area_council_km2 = 4106
| area_council_rank = 7th
| iso_code = GB-SFK
| ons_code = 42
| gss_code = E10000029
| nuts_code = UKH14
| districts_map = [[File:Suffolk numbered districts 2019.svg|200px]]
| districts_key =
| districts_list = #[[Borough of Ipswich|Ipswich]]
# [[East Suffolk (district)|East Suffolk]]
# [[Mid Suffolk]]
# [[Babergh District|Babergh]]
# [[West Suffolk (district)|West Suffolk]]
| MPs = [[List of Parliamentary constituencies in Suffolk|List of MPs]]
| police = [[Suffolk Constabulary]]
| website = {{URL|suffolk.gov.uk}}
| image_main = {{multiple images
 | border      = infobox
 | perrow      = 1 2
 | total_width = 270px
 | image1      = Orford Ness 2016-08-27-2 (cropped, edited).jpg
 | image2      = RS1497 Waterfront location (32)-lpr.jpg
 | image3      = Norman Tower, Bury St Edmunds 01.jpg
}}
| image_caption = The village of [[Orford, Suffolk|
Orford]] from [[Orford Ness]], [[Ipswich]] waterfront, and the [[The Norman Tower (Bury St Edmunds)|Norman Tower]], [[Bury St Edmunds]]
}}

'''Suffolk''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|ʌ|f|ə|k|audio=LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Suffolk.wav}} {{respell|SUF|ək}}) is a [[ceremonial county]] in the [[East of England]] and [[East Anglia]]. It is bordered by [[Norfolk]] to the north, the [[North Sea]] to the east, [[Essex]] to the south, and [[Cambridgeshire]] to the west. [[Ipswich]] is the largest settlement and the [[county town]].

The county has an area of {{cvt|3798|km2|sqmi}} and a population of 758,556. After Ipswich (144,957) in the south, the largest towns are [[Lowestoft]] (73,800) in the north-east and [[Bury St Edmunds]] (40,664) in the west. Suffolk contains five [[Non-metropolitan district|local government districts]], which are part of a two-tier [[non-metropolitan county]] administered by [[Suffolk County Council]].

The Suffolk coastline, which includes parts of the [[Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape]], is a complex [[habitat]], formed by [[London Clay]] and [[Crag Group|crag]] underlain by [[chalk]] and therefore susceptible to [[erosion]]. It contains several deep [[Estuary|estuaries]], including those of the rivers [[River Blyth, Suffolk|Blyth]], [[River Deben|Deben]], [[River Orwell|Orwell]], [[River Stour, Suffolk|Stour]], and [[River Alde|Alde/Ore]]; the latter is {{cvt|25.5|km|mi}} long and separated from the North Sea by [[Orford Ness]], a large [[Spit (landform)|spit]]. 

Large parts of the coast are backed by [[heath]] and wetland habitats, such as [[Sandlings]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Features and Habitats |url=https://coastandheaths.org/managing/conservation-and-enhancement/features-and-habitats/ |access-date=2023-07-05 |website=coastandheaths.org |language=en-GB |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902121501/https://coastandheaths.org/managing/conservation-and-enhancement/features-and-habitats/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The northeast of the county contains part of [[the Broads]], a network of rivers and lakes which is a national park. Inland, the landscape is flat and gently undulating, and contains part of [[Thetford Forest]] on the Norfolk border and [[Dedham Vale National Landscape]] on the Essex border.

It is also known for its extensive [[farming]] and has largely [[arable land]]. [[Newmarket, Suffolk|Newmarket]] is known for [[horse racing]], and [[Felixstowe]] is one of the largest [[container port]]s in Europe.<ref>{{cite web |title=Top 50 Container Ports in Europe |url=http://www.worldshipping.org/about-the-industry/global-trade/top-50-world-container-ports |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20130827191609/http://www.worldshipping.org/about-the-industry/global-trade/top-50-world-container-ports |archive-date=27 August 2013 |access-date=17 July 2015 |publisher=World Shipping Council}}</ref>

== History ==
{{Main|History of Suffolk}}

=== Administration ===

The [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] settlement of Suffolk, and [[East Anglia]] generally, occurred on a large scale,<ref>Toby F. Martin, ''The Cruciform Brooch and Anglo-Saxon England'', Boydell and Brewer Press (2015), pp. 174–178</ref> possibly following a period of depopulation by the previous inhabitants, the Romanised descendants of the [[Iceni]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Dark |first=Ken R. |title=Large-scale population movements into and from Britain south of Hadrian's Wall in the fourth to sixth centuries AD |url=https://www.reading.ac.uk/web/files/GCMS/RMS-2003-03_K._R._Dark%2C_Large-scale_population_movements_into_and_from_Britan_south_of_Hadrian%27s_Wall_in_the_fourth_to_sixth_centuries_AD.pdf |access-date=18 June 2020 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601080017/https://www.reading.ac.uk/web/files/GCMS/RMS-2003-03_K._R._Dark%2C_Large-scale_population_movements_into_and_from_Britan_south_of_Hadrian%27s_Wall_in_the_fourth_to_sixth_centuries_AD.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref> By the fifth century, they had established control of the region. The Anglo-Saxon inhabitants later became the "north folk" and the "south folk", from which developed the names "Norfolk" and "Suffolk".<ref>{{cite web |title=English Place Names |url=http://www.englishplacenames.co.uk/ |website=englishplaceneames.co.uk |publisher=James Rye |access-date=20 October 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091231034804/http://www.englishplacenames.co.uk/ |archive-date=31 December 2009}}</ref>

Suffolk was divided into four separate [[Quarter Sessions]] divisions, which met at [[Beccles]], [[Bury St Edmunds]], [[Ipswich]] and [[Woodbridge, Suffolk|Woodbridge]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Reports of cases argued and determined in the Queen's Bench Practice Court |date=1848 |page=628 |publisher=Bail Court Great Britain }}</ref> In 1860, the number of divisions was reduced to two, when the Beccles, Ipswich and Woodbridge divisions merged into an East Suffolk division, administered from Ipswich, and the old Bury St Edmunds division became the West Suffolk division.<ref>{{cite news |title=Suffolk March Sessions |url=https://www.findmypast.co.uk/search-newspapers |access-date=2 January 2024 |publisher=Ipswich Journal |date=17 March 1860 |page=6}}</ref> Under the [[Local Government Act 1888]], the two divisions were made the separate administrative counties of [[East Suffolk (county)|East Suffolk]] and [[West Suffolk (county)|West Suffolk]];<ref>{{cite web |title=Local Government Act, 1888 |url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1888/41/pdfs/ukpga_18880041_en.pdf |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151203040721/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1888/41/pdfs/ukpga_18880041_en.pdf |archive-date=3 December 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

On 1 April 1974, under the [[Local Government Act 1972]], East Suffolk, West Suffolk, and Ipswich were merged to form the unified county of Suffolk. The county was divided into several [[non-metropolitan district|local government district]]s: [[Babergh District|Babergh]], [[Forest Heath]], [[Borough of Ipswich]], [[Mid Suffolk]], [[Borough of St Edmundsbury]], [[Suffolk Coastal]], and [[Waveney District|Waveney]]. This act also transferred some land near [[Great Yarmouth]] to Norfolk. As introduced in Parliament, the Local Government Act would have transferred [[Newmarket, Suffolk|Newmarket]] and Haverhill to Cambridgeshire and [[Colchester]] from Essex; such changes were not included when the act was passed into law.<ref>{{cite web |title=Local Government Act 1972 |url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1972/70/contents |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016020205/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1972/70/contents |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2019, Forest Heath and St Edmundsbury merged to form [[West Suffolk (district)|West Suffolk]] district,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/639/contents/made |title=The West Suffolk (Local Government Changes) Order 2018 |author=Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government |date=24 May 2018 |access-date=28 May 2018 |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180529045911/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/639/contents/made |archive-date=29 May 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> while Waveney and Suffolk Coastal formed [[East Suffolk (district)|East Suffolk]] district.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/640/contents/made |title=The East Suffolk (Local Government Changes) Order 2018 |author=Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government |date=24 May 2018 |access-date=28 May 2018 |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180528215213/http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/640/contents/made |archive-date=28 May 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Archaeology ==
[[File:SHIP MED.jpg|left|thumb|Excavation of the [[Sutton Hoo]] burial ship in 1939]]
{{Recentism|section|date=January 2025|reason=this section is excessively focussed on listing individual news reports, rather than providing a broad overview of notable archaeology in the county}}

[[West Suffolk (district)|West Suffolk]], like nearby [[East Cambridgeshire]], is renowned for [[archaeology|archaeological]] finds from the [[Stone Age]], the [[Bronze Age]], and the [[Iron Age]]. Bronze Age [[Artifact (archaeology)|artefact]]s have been found in the area between [[Mildenhall, Suffolk|Mildenhall]] and [[West Row]], in [[Eriswell]] and in [[Lakenheath]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Fenland survey : an essay in landscape and persistence / David Hall and John Coles |first=David |last=Hall |year=1994 |publisher=English Heritage |isbn=1850744777 |pages=81–88}}</ref>

In the east of the county is [[Sutton Hoo]], the site of one of England's most significant Anglo-Saxon archaeological finds, a ship burial containing a collection of treasures including a [[sword of state]], [[Sutton Hoo helmet|helmet]], gold and silver bowls, jewellery and a [[lyre]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Sutton Hoo History |url=http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sutton-hoo/history/ |publisher=The National Trust |access-date=22 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151011051300/http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sutton-hoo/history/ |archive-date=11 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Hoxne Hoard]], to date the largest assembly of late [[Roman Empire|Roman]] silver and gold discovered in Britain, was found near the village of [[Hoxne]] in 1992.

While carrying out surveys before installing a pipeline in 2014, archaeologists for [[Anglian Water]] discovered nine skeletons and four cremation pits, at [[Bardwell, Suffolk|Bardwell]], [[Barnham, Suffolk|Barnham]], [[Pakenham, Suffolk|Pakenham]] and [[Rougham, Suffolk|Rougham]], all near Bury St Edmunds. [[Neolithic]], Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman and [[Middle Ages|Medieval]] items were also unearthed, along with the nine skeletons believed to be of the late or [[Post-Roman Britain]]. Experts said the five-month project had recovered enough artefacts to fill half a shipping container, and that the discoveries had shed new light on their understanding of the development of small rural communities.<ref>{{cite news |title=Roman skeletons discovered by Anglian Water in Barnham, Bardwell, Pakenham and Rougham |url=https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/west-suffolk-roman-skeletons-discovered-by-anglian-water-in-barnham-bardwell-pakenham-and-rougham-1-3568501 |publisher=East Anglian Daily Times |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902121409/https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/21722654.west-suffolk-roman-skeletons-discovered-anglian-water-barnham-bardwell-pakenham-rougham/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2019 an excavation of a 4th-century [[Roman burial]] in [[Great Whelnetham]] uncovered unusual burial practices. Of 52 skeletons found, a large number had been [[decapitated]], which archaeologists claimed gave new insight into Roman traditions. The burial ground includes the remains of men, women and children who likely lived in a nearby settlement. The fact that up to 40% of the bodies were decapitated represents "quite a rare find".<ref>{{cite news |title=Decapitated bodies found in Roman cemetery in Great Whelnetham |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-46763020 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902121409/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-suffolk-46763020 |url-status=live }}</ref>

A survey in 2020 named Suffolk the third best place in the UK for aspiring [[Archaeology|archaeologists]], and showed that the area was especially rich in finds from the Roman period, with over 1500 objects found in the preceding year.<ref>{{cite news |title=Suffolk 'third best place in UK' to find archaeological treasures, survey shows |url=https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/suffolk-3rd-best-place-to-find-archaeological-treasures-1-6798397 |publisher=East Anglian Daily Times |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=20 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920144614/https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/suffolk-3rd-best-place-to-find-archaeological-treasures-1-6798397 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In July 2020, [[metal detector]]ist Luke Mahoney found 1,061 silver hammered coins, estimated to be worth £100,000, in Ipswich. The coins dated back to the [[15th century|15th]]–[[17th century]], according to experts.<ref>{{cite news |title=Metal detectorist guards £100k hoard of silver for two sleepless nights over 'nighthawk' fears |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/08/03/metal-detectorist-guards-100k-hoard-silver-two-sleepless-nights/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/08/03/metal-detectorist-guards-100k-hoard-silver-two-sleepless-nights/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-status=live |newspaper=The Telegraph}}</ref>

In 2020, archaeologists discovered a 7th century [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] cemetery with 17 cremations and 191 burials in [[Oulton, Suffolk|Oulton]], near Lowestoft. The graves contained the remains of men, women and children, as well as artefacts including small iron knives, silver pennies, wrist clasps, strings of [[amber]] and glass beads. According to Andrew Peachey, who carried out the excavations, the skeletons had mostly vanished because of the highly acidic soil. They were preserved as brittle shapes and "sand silhouettes".<ref>{{Cite news |date=2020-09-16 |title=Oulton burial site: Sutton Hoo-era Anglo-Saxon cemetery discovered |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-suffolk-54177762 |access-date=2021-01-23 |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902121409/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-suffolk-54177762 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Fox |first=Alex |title=This Anglo-Saxon Cemetery Is Filled With Corpses' Ghostly Silhouettes |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ghostly-anglo-saxon-burials-uncovered-england-180975862/ |access-date=2021-01-23 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902121410/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ghostly-anglo-saxon-burials-uncovered-england-180975862/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Suffolk Pink ==
[[File:Suffolk Pink cottage in Ixworth, with pargetting.jpg|thumb|16th century cottage in Ixworth, with pargetting and traditional Suffolk Pink limewash]]

Villages and towns in Suffolk are renowned for historic, pink-washed halls and cottages, which has become known far and wide as "Suffolk Pink". Decorative paint colours found in the county can range from a pale shell shade, to a deep blush brick colour.<ref>{{cite news |title=History of Suffolk county's architecture |url=https://www.britain-magazine.com/features/history/suffolk-architecture |newspaper=Britain Magazine |date=25 March 2020 |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=4 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304184452/https://www.britain-magazine.com/features/history/suffolk-architecture/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

According to research, Suffolk Pink dates back to the 14th century, when these shades were developed by local dyers by adding natural substances to a traditional [[limewash]] mix. Additives used in this process include [[pig]] or [[ox]] blood with [[buttermilk]], [[elderberries]] and [[sloe]] juice.

Locals and historians often state that a true Suffolk Pink should be a "deep dusky terracotta shade",<ref>{{cite news |last1=Partner |first1=Claire |title=Why is pink the traditional colour to paint houses in Suffolk? |work=BBC News |date=13 January 2018 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-42634851 |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109003743/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-42634851 |url-status=live }}</ref> rather than the more popular pastel hue of modern times. This has caused controversy in the past when home and business-owners alike have been reprimanded for using colours deemed incorrect, with some being forced to repaint to an acceptable shade. In 2013, famous chef [[Marco Pierre White]] had his 15th-century hotel, The Angel, in Lavenham, decorated a shade of pink that was not traditional Suffolk Pink. He was required by local authorities to repaint.<ref>{{cite news |title=Marco Pierre White repaints Angel Hotel Suffolk pink |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-23642051 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=12 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211212021809/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-23642051 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Gaw |first1=Matt |title=Lavenham: Village not tickled pink by Marco Pierre White's paint choice |url=https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/lavenham-village-not-tickled-pink-by-marco-pierre-white-s-paint-choice-1-2314592 |publisher=East Anglian Daily Times |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=3 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180703134237/http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/lavenham-village-not-tickled-pink-by-marco-pierre-white-s-paint-choice-1-2314592 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In another example of Suffolk taking its colours seriously, a homeowner in [[Lavenham]] was obligated to paint their [[Listed building|Grade I listed]] cottage Suffolk Pink, to make it match a neighbouring property. The local council said it wanted all of the cottages on that particular part of the road to be the same colour, because they were a single building historically (300 years earlier).<ref>{{cite web |title=The history behind Suffolk Pink houses |url=https://www.fennwright.co.uk/about-us/news/the-history-behind-suffolk-pink-houses |website=Fenn Wright |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=8 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108094837/https://www.fennwright.co.uk/about-us/news/the-history-behind-suffolk-pink-houses/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The historic Suffolk Pink colour has also inspired the name of a British apple.<ref>{{cite web |title=The origin of the Suffolk Pink apple variety |url=https://realenglishfruit.co.uk/suffolk-pink |website=Real English Fruit |access-date=10 September 2020 |archive-date=25 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925103430/https://realenglishfruit.co.uk/suffolk-pink/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Geography ==
[[File:Cmglee Manningtree River Stour.jpg|thumb|right|River Stour at [[Dedham Vale National Landscape]]]]
[[File:Suffolcia Atlas.jpg|thumb|right|Hand-drawn map of Suffolk by [[Christopher Saxton]] from 1573]]

Suffolk is also home to nature reserves, such as the [[RSPB]] site at [[Minsmere]], and [[Trimley Marshes]], a wetland under the protection of [[Suffolk Wildlife Trust]]. The clay plateau inland, deeply intercut by rivers, is often referred to as 'High Suffolk'.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.suffolkmag.co.uk/out-about/suffolk-s-forgotten-beauty-high-suffolk-1-4695190 |title=Suffolk's forgotten beauty |date=19 September 2016 |publisher=Suffolk Magazine |access-date=20 October 2020 |archive-date=22 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201022201906/https://www.suffolkmag.co.uk/out-about/suffolk-s-forgotten-beauty-high-suffolk-1-4695190 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The west of the county lies on more resistant [[Cretaceous]] [[chalk]]. This chalk is responsible for a sweeping tract of largely [[downland]] landscapes that stretches from [[Dorset]] in the south west to [[Dover]] in the south east and north through [[East Anglia]] to the [[Yorkshire Wolds]]. The chalk is less easily [[Erosion|eroded]] so forms the only significant hills in the county. The highest point in the county is [[Great Wood Hill]], with an elevation of {{convert|128|m|ft}}.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bathurst |first=David |year=2012 |title=Walking the county high points of England |publisher=Summersdale |isbn=9781849532396 |pages=21–26}}</ref>

The county flower is the [[oxlip]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.plantlife.org.uk/wild_plants/plant_species/oxlip |title=Plant & fungi species: Wild plants |publisher=Plantlife.org.uk |access-date=6 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150625193814/http://www.plantlife.org.uk/wild_plants/plant_species/oxlip |archive-date=25 June 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Demography ==
{{see also|List of places in Suffolk}}
{{update section|date=January 2025|reason=[https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/reports/localarea?compare=E10000029,E12000006,E92000001 2021 census data is now available at  nomis]}}
[[File:Ickworth House.jpg|thumb|right|[[Ickworth House]] close to [[Bury St Edmunds]]]]
According to estimates by the [[Office for National Statistics]], the population of Suffolk in 2014 was 738,512, split almost evenly between males and females. Roughly 22% of the population was aged 65 or older, and 90.84% were [[White British]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Area Profile Suffolk Observatory |url=http://www.suffolkobservatory.info/IAS/profiles/profile?profileId=34&geoTypeId=14&geoIds=42#iasProfileSection7 |archive-date=17 March 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20160317040919/http://www.suffolkobservatory.info/IAS/profiles/profile?profileId=34&geoTypeId=14&geoIds=42%23iasProfileSection7 |url-status=dead |website=suffolkobservatory.info |publisher=GeoWise |access-date=21 October 2015}}</ref>

Historically, the county's population has mostly been employed as [[Agriculture|agricultural workers]]. An 1835 survey showed Suffolk to have 4,526 occupiers of land employing labourers, 1,121 occupiers not employing labourers, 33,040 labourers employed in agriculture, 676 employed in manufacture, 18,167 employed in retail trade or handicraft, 2,228 'capitalists, bankers etc.', 5,336 labourers (non-agricultural), 4,940 other males aged over 20, 2,032 male servants and 11,483 female servants.<ref>'The British Almanac' – 1835</ref>

A traditional nickname for people from Suffolk is "Suffolk Fair-Maids", referring to the supposed beauty of its female inhabitants in the [[Middle Ages]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nall |first=John Greaves |title=Nall's Glossary of East Anglian Dialect |date=2006 |publisher=Larks Press |isbn=9781904006343 }}</ref> Another is "Silly Suffolk", often assumed to be derived from the [[Old English]] word ''sælig'' in the meaning "blessed", referring to the long history of Christianity in the county.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Torlesse |first=Charles Martin |title=Some Account of Stoke by Nayland, Suffolk |date=1877 |publisher=Harrison }}</ref> However, use of the term "Silly Suffolk" can actually be dated to no earlier than 1819, and its alleged medieval origins have been shown to be mythical.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Briggs |first1=Keith |title=Silly Suffolk |journal=Proceedings of the Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History |date=2022 |volume=45 |issue=2 |page=295}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
! Rank!!Town!!Population<br>(2011)!!Borough/District council
|-
| 1 || [[Ipswich]] || 133,384|| [[Ipswich Borough Council]]
|-
| 2 || [[Lowestoft]] || 71,000|| [[East Suffolk District|East Suffolk Council]]
|-
| 3 || [[Bury St Edmunds]] || 42,000|| [[West Suffolk District|West Suffolk Council]]
|-
| 4 || [[Haverhill, Suffolk|Haverhill]] || 27,041|| [[West Suffolk District|West Suffolk Council]]
|-
| 5 || [[Felixstowe]] || 23,689|| [[East Suffolk District|East Suffolk Council]]
|-
| 6 || [[Newmarket, Suffolk|Newmarket]] || 20,384|| [[West Suffolk District|West Suffolk Council]]
|}

== Economy ==
[[File:Willis Building Ipswich.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Willis Building (Ipswich)|Willis Building]] in Ipswich, a landmark office building in the town]]
The majority of agriculture in Suffolk is either [[agronomy]] or [[mixed farming]]. Farm sizes vary from anything around 80 acres (32 hectares) to over 8,000. Soil types vary from heavy clays to light sands. Crops grown include [[winter wheat]], [[barley]], [[sugar beet]], [[rapeseed|oilseed rape]], winter and [[spring beans]] and [[linseed]], although smaller areas of rye and oats can be found growing in areas with lighter soils along with a variety of vegetables.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/23883014.east-englands-top-crops-revealed-new-figures/ | title=Total income from farming in East of England has soared to above £1bn, figures show | date=27 October 2023 }}</ref>

The continuing importance of agriculture in the county is reflected in the [[Suffolk Show]], which is held annually in [[May]] at [[Ipswich]]. Although latterly somewhat changed in nature, this remains primarily an [[agricultural show]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://suffolkshow.co.uk/ |title=The Suffolk Show |website=suffolkshow.co.uk |publisher=Suffolk Show 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151112153310/http://suffolkshow.co.uk/ |archive-date=12 November 2015 |access-date=20 October 2015}}</ref>

Companies based in Suffolk include [[Greene King Brewery]] and [[Branston (food)|Branston Pickle]] in Bury St Edmunds. [[Birds Eye]] has its largest UK factory in [[Lowestoft]], where all its meat products and frozen vegetables are processed. [[Huntley & Palmers]] biscuit company has a base in [[Sudbury, Suffolk|Sudbury]]. The UK [[horse racing]] industry is based in [[Newmarket, Suffolk|Newmarket]]. There are two [[United States Air Force]] bases in the west of the county close to the [[A11 road (England)|A11]]. [[Sizewell B nuclear power station]] is at [[Sizewell]] on the coast near [[Leiston]]. [[Bernard Matthews Farms]] have some processing units in the county, specifically [[Holton, Suffolk|Holton]]. [[Southwold]] is the home of [[Adnams Brewery]]. The [[Port of Felixstowe]] is the largest [[container port]] in the United Kingdom. Other ports include [[Port of Lowestoft]] and [[Port of Ipswich]], run by [[Associated British Ports]]. [[BT Group plc]] has its main research and development facility at [[Martlesham Heath]].

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Regional gross value added of Suffolk at basic prices with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_economy/RegionalGVA.pdf |title=[ARCHIVED CONTENT] UK Government Web Archive |publisher=Government of the United Kingdom |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070226163731/http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_economy/RegionalGVA.pdf |archive-date=26 February 2007}}</ref>
|-
! scope="col" | Year 
! scope="col" | Regional gross value added<ref name="fn_4" group="fn">Components may not sum to totals due to rounding</ref>
! scope="col" | Agriculture<ref name="fn_1" group="fn">includes hunting and forestry</ref>
! scope="col" | Industry<ref name="fn_2" group="fn">includes energy and construction</ref>
! scope="col" | Services<ref name="fn_3" group="fn">includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured</ref>
|-
! scope="row" | 1995 
| align="right" | 7,113
|align="right" | 391 
|align="right" | 2,449 
|align="right" | 4,273
|-
! scope="row" | 2000 
|align="right" | 8,096
|align="right" | 259 
|align="right" | 2,589 
|align="right" | 5,248
|-
! scope="row" | 2003 
|align="right" | 9,456
|align="right" | 270 
|align="right" | 2,602 
|align="right" | 6,583
|}

== Education ==
{{See also|List of schools in Suffolk}}

=== Primary, secondary and further education ===
Suffolk has a [[comprehensive education]] system with fourteen independent schools. Unusually for the UK, some of Suffolk had a [[Three-tier education|3-tier school system]] in place with primary schools (ages 4–9), [[Middle Schools in England|middle schools]] (ages 9–13) and upper schools (ages 13–16). However, a 2006 Suffolk County Council study concluded that Suffolk should move to the two-tier school system used in the majority of the UK.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sudburytoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=850&ArticleID=1912030 |title=Suffolk Free Press |publisher=Sudburytoday.co.uk |access-date=6 June 2015 }}{{Dead link|date=September 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> For the purpose of conversion to two-tier, the three-tier system was divided into four geographical area groupings and corresponding phases. The first phase was the conversion of schools in Lowestoft and Haverhill in 2011, followed by schools in north and west Suffolk in 2012. The remainder of the changeovers to two-tier took place from 2013, for those schools that stayed within local government control, and did not become [[Academy (English school)|Academies]] and/or [[Free school (England)|free schools]]. The majority of schools thus now (2019) operate the more common primary to high school (11–16).

Many of the county's upper schools have a [[sixth form]] and most [[further education]] colleges in the county offer [[A-level]] courses. In terms of school population, Suffolk's individual schools are large with the Ipswich district with the largest school population and Forest Heath the smallest, with just two schools. In 2013, a letter said that "...nearly a fifth of the schools inspected were judged inadequate. This is unacceptable and now means that Suffolk has a higher proportion of pupils educated in inadequate schools than both the regional and national averages."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/sites/default/files/documents/local_authority_reports/Focused_school_insp_letters/Letter%20to%20Suffolk%20DCS%20following%20focused%20school%20inspections.pdf |title=Letter to local authority DCS following focused school inspections |access-date=29 February 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305093836/http://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/sites/default/files/documents/local_authority_reports/Focused_school_insp_letters/Letter%20to%20Suffolk%20DCS%20following%20focused%20school%20inspections.pdf |archive-date=5 March 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[The Royal Hospital School]] near Ipswich is the largest independent boarding school in Suffolk. Other boarding schools within Suffolk include Barnardiston Hall Preparatory School, [[Culford School]], [[Finborough School]], [[Framlingham College]], [[Ipswich High School, Suffolk|Ipswich High School]], [[Ipswich School]], [[Orwell Park School]], [[Saint Felix School]] and [[Woodbridge School]].

The Castle Partnership Academy Trust in Haverhill is the county's only All-through Academy Chain. Comprising [[Castle Manor Academy]] and Place Farm Primary Academy, the Academy Trust supports all-through education and provides opportunities for young people aged 3 to 18.

[[Sixth form college]]s in the county include [[Lowestoft Sixth Form College]] and [[One (sixth form college)|One]] in Ipswich. Suffolk is home to considerably more education colleges, which include: [[Lowestoft College]], [[Easton & Otley College]], [[Suffolk New College]] and [[Northgate High School, Ipswich|Northgate Sixth Form]] (Ipswich), Abbeygate Sixth Form, [[Thurston Community College]] ([[Beyton]] Campus) and [[West Suffolk College]] (Bury St Edmunds).

===Tertiary education===
The county has one university, the [[University of Suffolk]], which became an independent institution with degree awarding powers and university status in 2016.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-36307221 |title=University Campus Suffolk gains independence |date=17 May 2016 |work=BBC News |access-date=21 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201042713/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-36307221 |archive-date=1 December 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> The university operates at five sites, with its central hub in Ipswich. Others include Lowestoft, Bury St. Edmunds, and [[Great Yarmouth]] in Norfolk.<ref name="uea">[http://www.uea.ac.uk/partnerships/Suffolk University Campus Suffolk] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707110505/http://www.uea.ac.uk/partnerships/Suffolk |date=7 July 2015 }}, University of East Anglia. Retrieved 28 September 2012.</ref> The university is organised in four academic schools<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Academic Schools {{!}} University of Suffolk |url=https://www.uos.ac.uk/about/academic-schools/ |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=www.uos.ac.uk |language=en}}</ref> and in {{HESA year}} had {{HESA student population|INSTID=10014001}} students. 88% of the student body are aged over 21 and 46% of university students are male.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theuniguide.co.uk/university-of-suffolk-s82 |title=University of Suffolk |website=www.theuniguide.co.uk |access-date=8 October 2024}}</ref>

==Culture==
===Arts===
[[File:Snape Maltings Concert Hall - geograph.org.uk - 666311.jpg|thumb|[[Snape Maltings]] Concert Hall; formerly a Victorian [[maltings]], now converted into a world-famous concert venue]]
Founded in 1948 by [[Benjamin Britten]], the annual [[Aldeburgh Festival]] is one of the UK's major classical music festivals. Originating in [[Aldeburgh]], it has been held at the nearby [[Snape Maltings]] since 1967.<ref>{{cite web |title=Aldeburgh Festival History |url=http://www.aldeburgh.co.uk/about_us/history |website=aldeburgh.co.uk |publisher=Aldeburgh Music |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150920052137/http://www.aldeburgh.co.uk/about_us/history |archive-date=20 September 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> Since 2006, [[Henham Park]], has been home to the annual [[Latitude Festival]]. This mainly open-air festival, which has grown considerably in size and scope, includes popular music, comedy, poetry and literary events. 

The [[FolkEast]] festival is held at [[Glemham Hall]] in August<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/may/31/music-festivals-2014-best-folk-world |title=Festivals guide 2014 listings: folk and world music |date=31 May 2014 |work=The Guardian |access-date=16 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921035441/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/may/31/music-festivals-2014-best-folk-world |archive-date=21 September 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> and attracts international acoustic, folk and roots musicians whilst also championing local businesses, heritage and crafts. In 2015 it was also home to the first instrumental festival of musical instruments and makers.<ref>{{cite web |title=Instrumental at Folk East |url=http://www.folkeast.co.uk/instrumental/ |website=folkeast.co.uk |publisher=FolkEast Ltd. |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016203846/http://www.folkeast.co.uk/instrumental/ |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> More recently, [[LeeStock Music Festival]] has been held in [[Sudbury, Suffolk|Sudbury]].<ref>{{cite web |title=LeeStock Music Festival |url=http://leestock.org/#home |website=leestock.org |publisher=Leestock Musical Festival Ltd. |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151210235056/http://leestock.org/#home |archive-date=10 December 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> A celebration of the county, "Suffolk Day", was instigated in 2017.<ref>{{cite news |title=Why we should celebrate our county with Suffolk Day |url=http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/why_we_should_celebrate_our_county_with_suffolk_day_1_4956072 |access-date=1 April 2017 |work=East Anglian Daily Times |date=31 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170331114054/http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/why_we_should_celebrate_our_county_with_suffolk_day_1_4956072 |archive-date=31 March 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Dialect===
The [[Suffolk dialect]] is very distinctive. [[Epenthesis]] and [[yod-dropping]] is common, along with non-conjugation of verbs.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Claxton |first1=A. O. D. |title=The Suffolk Dialect of the Twentieth Century |date=1954 |publisher=The Boydell Press Ltd. |location=Ipswich, Suffolk |isbn=0-85115-026-8 |edition=First}}</ref>

===Sport===
====Football====
The county's sole professional [[Association football|football]] club is [[Ipswich Town F.C.|Ipswich Town]]. Formed in 1878, the club were [[Football League First Division]] champions in [[1962 in association football|1961–62]], [[FA Cup]] winners in [[1978 in association football|1977–78]] and [[UEFA Cup]] winners in [[1981 in association football|1980–81]];<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.itfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/HistoryDetail/0,,10272~347323,00.html |title=Club honours |access-date=14 April 2008 |publisher=Ipswich Town F.C. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051213211801/http://www.itfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/HistoryDetail/0%2C%2C10272~347323%2C00.html |archive-date=13 December 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref> as of the [[2024–25 in English football|2024–25 season]], Ipswich Town play in the [[Premier League]], the top tier of English football. The club has as part of its [[Crest (sports)|crest]] the [[Suffolk Punch]], a now endangered breed of [[draught horse]] native to the county. The next highest ranked team in Suffolk is [[Needham Market F.C.|Needham Market]], who participate in the National League North, the sixth tier of English football.

====Horse racing====
Newmarket is the headquarters of [[Horseracing in Great Britain|British horseracing]] – home to the largest cluster of training yards in the country and many key horse racing organisations including the [[National Stud]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.suffolktouristguide.com/ |title=Suffolk Tourism |publisher=suffolktouristguide.com |access-date=2 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090129081827/http://suffolktouristguide.com/ |archive-date=29 January 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Newmarket Racecourse]]. [[Tattersalls]] bloodstock auctioneers and the [[National Horseracing Museum]] are also in the town.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tattersalls |url=http://www.tattersalls.com/ |website=tattersalls.com |publisher=Tattersalls Ltd. |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151026075945/http://www.tattersalls.com/ |archive-date=26 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=National Horseracing Museum |url=http://www.nhrm.co.uk/website=nhrm.com |publisher=National Horseracing Museum |access-date=21 October 2015 }}{{Dead link|date=September 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> [[Point to point (steeplechase)|Point to point racing]] takes place at [[Higham, Babergh|Higham]] and [[Ampton]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pointingea.com/courses/courses.htm |title=Courses |publisher=pointingea.com |access-date=14 April 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508004818/http://www.pointingea.com/courses/courses.htm |archive-date=8 May 2008}}</ref>

====Speedway====
[[Motorcycle speedway]] racing has been staged in Suffolk since at least the 1950s, following the construction of the [[Foxhall Stadium]], just outside Ipswich, home of the [[Ipswich Witches]]. The Witches are currently members of the [[Premier League (speedway)|Premier League]], the UK's first division.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ipswich Speedway Official Website |url=http://www.ipswichwitches.co/ |website=ipswichwitches.co |publisher=Ipswich Speedway |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101134325/http://www.ipswichwitches.co/ |archive-date=1 January 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[National League (speedway)|National League]] team [[Mildenhall Fen Tigers]] are also from Suffolk.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mildenhall Fen Tigers |url=http://www.mildenhallfentigers.co/ |website=mildenhallfentigers.co |publisher=Mildenhall Speedway |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101134325/http://www.mildenhallfentigers.co/ |archive-date=1 January 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

====Cricket====
[[Suffolk County Cricket Club]] compete in the Eastern Division of the [[Minor Counties Cricket Championship|Minor Counties Championship]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://uk.cricinfo.com/link_to_database/NATIONAL/ENG/MINOR/MCCA/ |title=Minor Counties Cricket Association |publisher=ESPNcricinfo |access-date=27 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080823185550/http://uk.cricinfo.com/link_to_database/NATIONAL/ENG/MINOR/MCCA/ |archive-date=23 August 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> The club has won the championship three times outright and has shared the title one other time as well as winning the [[MCCA Knockout Trophy]] once.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ecb.co.uk/news/non-first-class/minor-counties/minor-counties-roll-of-honour,1480,BP.html |title=Minor Counties Roll of Honour |publisher=ecb.co.uk |access-date=27 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911143233/http://www.ecb.co.uk/news/non-first-class/minor-counties/minor-counties-roll-of-honour%2C1480%2CBP.html |archive-date=11 September 2011}}</ref> Home games are played in Bury St Edmunds, [[Copdock]], [[Exning]], [[Framlingham]], Ipswich and Mildenhall.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://uk.cricinfo.com/db/NATIONAL/ENG/MINOR/MCCA/GROUNDS.html |title=Minor County Grounds |publisher=ESPNcricinfo |access-date=27 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724041225/http://uk.cricinfo.com/db/NATIONAL/ENG/MINOR/MCCA/GROUNDS.html |archive-date=24 July 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Flag ===
[[File:County Flag of Suffolk.svg|thumb|Flag of Suffolk]]

{{Main|Flag of Suffolk}}
The Suffolk flag is a [[banner of arms]] of the [[coat of arms]] which were [[Attributed arms|attributed]] to [[Edmund the Martyr]], a medieval [[king of East Anglia]]. It consists of two gold arrows passing through a gold crown or with heraldic description as ''Azure two Arrows in saltire, points downwards, enfiled with an ancient Crown Or''.

== Suffolk in popular culture ==
[[File:Bank of the River Orwell - geograph.org.uk - 1592162.jpg|thumb|right|Bank of the [[River Orwell]]]]
[[File:Framlingham Castle Sunset.jpg|thumb|right|[[Framlingham Castle]], the setting which inspired [[Ed Sheeran]]'s "[[Castle on the Hill]]" song]]
Novels set in Suffolk include parts of ''[[David Copperfield]]'' by [[Charles Dickens]], ''[[The Fourth Protocol]]'', by [[Frederick Forsyth]], ''[[Unnatural Causes (detective novel)|Unnatural Causes]]'' by [[P.D. James]], [[Dodie Smith]]'s ''[[The Hundred and One Dalmatians]]'', ''[[The Rings of Saturn]]'' by [[W. G. Sebald]],<ref>{{cite web |title=The Rings of Saturn |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/98/07/26/reviews/980726.26silmant.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=8 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151209212826/http://www.nytimes.com/books/98/07/26/reviews/980726.26silmant.html |archive-date=9 December 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> and among [[Arthur Ransome]]'s children's books, ''[[We Didn't Mean to Go to Sea]], [[Coot Club]]'' and ''[[Secret Water]]'' take place in part in the county. Roald Dahl's short story [[The Mildenhall Treasure (story)|"The Mildenhall Treasure"]] is set in Mildenhall.<ref>{{cite web |title=Roald Dahl and the Mildenhall Treasure |url=http://blog.britishmuseum.org/2012/03/29/roald-dahl-and-the-mildenhall-treasure/ |publisher=British Museum |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402014713/http://blog.britishmuseum.org/2012/03/29/roald-dahl-and-the-mildenhall-treasure/ |archive-date=2 April 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

A TV series about a British antiques dealer, ''[[Lovejoy]]'', was filmed in various locations in Suffolk.<ref>{{cite web |title=Memories of Lovejoy, the man who put East Anglia on the map |url=https://www.sudburymercury.co.uk/news/21581351.memories-lovejoy-man-put-east-anglia-map/ |website=Sudbury Mercury |date=February 2015 |access-date=24 March 2024}}</ref> The reality TV series ''[[Space Cadets (television hoax)|Space Cadets]]'' was filmed in [[Rendlesham Forest]], although the producers fooled participants into believing that they were in Russia.<ref>{{cite web |title=Space Cadets |url=http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/Space_Cadets_%282%29 |website=ukgameshows.com |publisher=UK Game Shows |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151101043241/http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/Space_Cadets_(2) |archive-date=1 November 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> Several towns and villages in the county have been used for location filming of other television programmes and cinema films. These include the [[BBC Four]] TV series ''[[Detectorists]]'',<ref>Season 1, DVD extra 'Behind-the-Scenes'</ref> an episode of ''[[Kavanagh QC]],'' and the films ''[[Iris (2001 film)|Iris]] and'' ''[[Drowning by Numbers]]''. During the period 2017–2018, a total of £3.8million was spent by film crews in Suffolk.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.buryfreepress.co.uk/news/david-copperfield-film-shoot-in-bury-st-edmunds-generated-82-500-for-towns-economy-9063396/ |title=David Copperfield film shoot in Bury St Edmunds generated £82,500 for town's economy |date=1 March 2019 |website=Bury Free Press |access-date=18 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190302004856/https://www.buryfreepress.co.uk/news/david-copperfield-film-shoot-in-bury-st-edmunds-generated-82-500-for-towns-economy-9063396/ |archive-date=2 March 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Rendlesham Forest Incident]] is one of the most famous [[UFO]] events in England and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's [[Roswell UFO incident|Roswell]]".<ref>{{cite news |title=UFOFiles Rendlesham Forest |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/ufo/10132449/UFO-files-Rendlesham-Forest-incident-remains-Britains-most-tantalising-sighting.html |work=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=21 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151026075441/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/ufo/10132449/UFO-files-Rendlesham-Forest-incident-remains-Britains-most-tantalising-sighting.html |archive-date=26 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The song "[[Castle on the Hill]]" by [[Ed Sheeran]] was referred to by him as "a [[love letter]] to Suffolk", with lyrical references to his hometown of [[Framlingham]] and Framlingham Castle.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04njps2 |title=Castle on the Hill: Ed Sheeran's love letter to Suffolk, Ed Sheeran co-host..., Scott Mills – BBC Radio 1 |website=BBC |date=6 January 2017 |access-date=23 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170108171230/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04njps2 |archive-date=8 January 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.contactmusic.com/ed-sheeran |title=Ed Sheeran |website=Contactmusic.com |access-date=24 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170124033058/http://www.contactmusic.com/ed-sheeran |archive-date=24 January 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Knype Hill is the fictional name for [[Southwold]] in [[George Orwell]]'s 1935 novel ''[[A Clergyman's Daughter]]'', while the character of Dorothy Hare is modelled on Brenda Salkeld, the gym mistress at St Felix School in the early 1930s.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-suffolk-44197314 |title=George Orwell's Southwold home gets fresh plaque |work=BBC News |date=21 May 2018 |access-date=26 January 2021 |archive-date=19 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419103916/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-suffolk-44197314 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Richard Curtis and Danny Boyle's 2019 romantic comedy [[Yesterday (2019 film)|''Yesterday'']] was filmed throughout Suffolk, using Halesworth, Dunwich, Shingle Street and Latitude Festival as locations.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/16187446.Danny_Boyle_s_new_Beatles_musical_is_being_filmed_in_north_Essex/ |title=Danny Boyle's new Beatles musical was being filmed in north Essex |first=Chris |last=Wilkin |date=26 April 2018 |newspaper=[[Daily Gazette (Colchester)|Daily Gazette]] |access-date=15 October 2020 |archive-date=3 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403080009/https://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/16187446.Danny_Boyle_s_new_Beatles_musical_is_being_filmed_in_north_Essex/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The television series of [[Anthony Horowitz]]'s ''[[Magpie Murders]]'' was filmed extensively in Suffolk during 2021.

The 2021 film ''[[The Dig (2021 film)|The Dig]]'', based on the excavation of Sutton Hoo in the 1930s and starring [[Ralph Fiennes]] and [[Carey Mulligan]] was mostly shot on location.

The 2022 series ''[[The Witchfinder (TV series)|The Witchfinder]]'' is a [[BBC Two]] sitcom based on the journey of [[Matthew Hopkins]], the Witchfinder general, and a suspected witch through [[East Anglia]] and many Suffolk towns including [[Stowmarket]] and [[Framlingham]] during the [[witch trials]] of the [[English Civil War]].

== Media ==
The county is covered by the [[BBC East]] and [[ITV Anglia]] television regions.

The [[BBC]] local radio station for the county is [[BBC Radio Suffolk]], broadcast from its studios in Ipswich. Local commercial radio stations serving the county include [[Heart East]], [[Nation Radio Suffolk]], [[Greatest Hits Radio East]] and [[Star Radio (Cambridge and Ely)|Star Radio]] (only covering Haverhill). Community radio stations include [[RWSfm 103.3]] in Bury St Edmunds; [[Ipswich Community Radio]]; Zack FM in Mildenhall; Park Radio in Diss and Eye; and Felixstowe Radio.

Local newspapers include the ''[[Suffolk Chronicle]]'', ''[[East Anglian Daily Times]]'' and ''[[Eastern Daily Press]]''.

== Notable people ==
[[File:Mr and Mrs Andrews 1748-49.jpg|thumb|right|Gainsborough's ''[[Mr and Mrs Andrews]]'' (1748–49), housed at the [[National Gallery, London|National Gallery]] in London, depicts the Suffolk landscape of his time]]
In the arts, Suffolk is noted for having been home to two of England's best regarded painters, [[Thomas Gainsborough]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gainsborough.org/tg/biography.htm |title=Biography |publisher=Gainsborough's House |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509164648/http://www.gainsborough.org/tg/biography.htm |archive-date=9 May 2008 |access-date=30 October 2008}}</ref> and [[John Constable]] – the Stour Valley area is branded as "Constable Country"<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-flatfordbridgecottage/w-flatfordbridgecottage-walk.htm |title=Constable Country walk |publisher=[[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|The National Trust]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080926181850/http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-flatfordbridgecottage/w-flatfordbridgecottage-walk.htm |archive-date=26 September 2008 |access-date=30 October 2008}}</ref> – and one of its most noted composers, [[Benjamin Britten]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/audiointerviews/profilepages/brittenb2.shtml |title=Interviews: Benjamin Britten 1913 – 1976 |publisher=BBC Four |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070128154058/http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/audiointerviews/profilepages/brittenb2.shtml |archive-date=28 January 2007 |access-date=30 October 2008}}</ref> Other artistic figures connected with Suffolk include: [[Sir Alfred Munnings]], [[John Nash (artist)|John Nash]], sculptor [[Dame Elizabeth Frink]], [[Cedric Morris]] who ran the [[East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing|East Anglian School]], [[Philip Wilson Steer]], and the cartoonist [[Carl Giles]] (a bronze statue of his character "Grandma" is located in Ipswich town centre); the poets [[George Crabbe]]<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-Crabbe |title=George Crabbe {{!}} English poet |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180623115102/https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-Crabbe |archive-date=23 June 2018 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> and [[Robert Bloomfield]] were both born in Suffolk;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=89429&pageno=37 |title=A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature |last=Cousin |first=John W. |publisher=Project Gutenberg |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150904020820/http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=89429&pageno=37 |archive-date=4 September 2015 |access-date=30 October 2008}}</ref> farmer and writer [[Adrian Bell]], writer and [[literary editor]] [[Ronald Blythe]], [[V. S. Pritchett]], the authors Ralph [[Hammond Innes]] and [[Ruth Rendell]] all lived in the county.

The writer [[M. M. Kaye]] spent her last years in Suffolk and died in [[Lavenham]]. Actors [[Ralph Fiennes]],<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ralph-Fiennes |title=Ralph Fiennes {{!}} Biography & Credits |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315200603/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ralph-Fiennes |archive-date=15 March 2018 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> [[Bob Hoskins]] and [[Sam Claflin]], actress and singer [[Kerry Ellis]], musician and record producer [[Brian Eno]],<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Brian-Eno |title=Brian Eno on British musician and producer |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315200937/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Brian-Eno |archive-date=15 March 2018 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> multi-award winning singer-songwriter [[Ed Sheeran]], bassist in the band [[Keane (band)|Keane]] [[Jesse Quin]] and sopranos [[Laura Wright (singer)|Laura Wright]] and [[Christina Johnston]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hirst |first=Andrew |date=2014-05-01 |title=Framlingham/Prague: Former Suffolk schoolgirl Christina Johnston described as an "angel" as she sings for European leaders |url=https://www.eadt.co.uk/things-to-do/framlingham-prague-former-suffolk-schoolgirl-christina-johnston-described-as-an-2140578 |access-date=2022-02-21 |publisher=East Anglian Daily Times |archive-date=10 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710164450/http://www.eadt.co.uk/what-s-on/framlingham-prague-former-suffolk-schoolgirl-christina-johnston-described-as-an-angel-as-she-sings-for-european-leaders-1-3580796 |url-status=live }}</ref> are all connected with the county. [[Glam rock]] band and three time [[Brit Award]] winners [[The Darkness (band)|the Darkness]] hail from Lowestoft.

[[Hip hop music|Hip hop]] DJ [[Tim Westwood]] is originally from Suffolk and the influential DJ and radio presenter [[John Peel]] made the county his home.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lusher |first=Adam |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1532070/John-Peel-leaves-his-wife-andpound1.5m,-oh,-and-25,000-records.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120914001126/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1532070/John-Peel-leaves-his-wife-andpound1.5m,-oh,-and-25,000-records.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 September 2012 |title=John Peel leaves his wife £1.5m, oh, and 25,000 records |date=21 October 2006 |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |access-date=14 November 2008}}</ref> Contemporary painter [[Maggi Hambling]], was born and resides in Suffolk. [[Norah Lofts]], author of best-selling historical novels, lived for decades in Bury St. Edmunds. [[Peter Hall (director)|Sir Peter Hall]] the founder of the [[Royal Shakespeare Company]] was born in Bury St. Edmunds, and [[Sir Trevor Nunn]] the theatre director was born in Ipswich. The actor [[Sir John Mills]] spent periods of his youth in the county. The designer [[David Hicks (British designer)|David Hicks]] lived for a number of years in Suffolk. Model [[Claudia Schiffer]] and her husband, the film director [[Matthew Vaughn]], have owned a house in Suffolk since 2002.

Suffolk's contributions to sport include former [[Formula One]] magnate [[Bernie Ecclestone]] and former [[England national football team|England national team]] footballers [[Terry Butcher]], [[Kieron Dyer]] and [[Matthew Upson]]. Due to Newmarket being the centre of British [[horse racing]] many jockeys have settled in the county, including [[Lester Piggott]] and [[Frankie Dettori]]. [[MMA]] fighter [[Arnold Allen]] was born in Suffolk. [[Fabio Wardley]] English heavyweight champion is also from Suffolk.

Significant ecclesiastical figures from Suffolk include [[Simon Sudbury]], a former [[archbishop of Canterbury]];<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Simon-of-Sudbury |title=Simon Of Sudbury: English archbishop |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315201342/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Simon-of-Sudbury |archive-date=15 March 2018 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> former [[Lord Chancellor]] [[Thomas Wolsey]] hailed from Ipswich;<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-Cardinal-Wolsey |title=Thomas, Cardinal Wolsey {{!}} English cardinal and statesman |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180214145739/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-Cardinal-Wolsey |archive-date=14 February 2018 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> and author, poet and Benedictine monk [[John Lydgate]].<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Lydgate |title=John Lydgate: English writer |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180408135651/https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Lydgate |archive-date=8 April 2018 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> [[Richard Hakluyt]] the great recorder of exploration and voyages was a clergyman in [[Wetheringsett-cum-Brockford|Wetheringsett]]. [[Edward FitzGerald (poet)|Edward FitzGerald]], the first translator of the [[Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam]], was born in [[Bredfield]]. The [[Abolitionism|abolitionists]] [[Thomas Clarkson]] and [[Richard Dykes Alexander]] both lived near Ipswich. The [[agriculturist]] [[Arthur Young (agriculturist)|Arthur Young]] had a long-standing association with the county.

Other significant persons from Suffolk include the great [[Landscape architecture|landscape designer]] [[Humphry Repton]], [[suffragette]] [[Dame Millicent Garrett Fawcett]];<ref>{{Cite news |last=Russell |first=Steve |url=http://www.eadt.co.uk/ea-life/how-suffolk-businessman-s-daughter-helped-change-the-course-of-history-1-5354849 |title=Women's Week: Millicent Fawcett – a Suffolk campaigner who helped change history for UK women |work=East Anglian Daily Times |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316031526/http://www.eadt.co.uk/ea-life/how-suffolk-businessman-s-daughter-helped-change-the-course-of-history-1-5354849 |archive-date=16 March 2018}}</ref> the captain of ''[[HMS Beagle]]'', [[Robert FitzRoy]];<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.hmsbeagleproject.org/timeline/robert-fitzroy-born-suffolk/ |title=ROBERT FITZROY BORN IN SUFFOLK · The HMS BEAGLE PROJECT |last=Trust |first=HMS Beagle |website=hmsbeagleproject.org |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180302203004/http://www.hmsbeagleproject.org/timeline/robert-fitzroy-born-suffolk/ |archive-date=2 March 2018 |access-date=15 March 2018}}</ref> Witch-finder General [[Matthew Hopkins]];<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Matthew-Hopkins |title=Matthew Hopkins: English witch-hunter |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315201308/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Matthew-Hopkins |archive-date=15 March 2018 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref> educationist [[Hugh Catchpole]];<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/827620 |title=Hugh Catchpole: An institution unto himself |date=20 September 2008 |work=Dawn |location=Pakistan |access-date=11 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311142545/https://www.dawn.com/news/827620 |archive-date=11 March 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cch.edu.pk/about-us/2013-10-12-02-45-19/founder-principal.html |title=Hugh Catchpole: Founder Principal |publisher=cch.edu.pk |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311140756/http://www.cch.edu.pk/about-us/2013-10-12-02-45-19/founder-principal.html |archive-date=11 March 2018 |access-date=11 March 2018}}</ref> and Britain's first female physician and mayor, [[Elizabeth Garrett Anderson]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Havard |first=Lucy |url=http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/suffolk-s-elizabeth-garrett-anderson-changed-the-course-of-women-in-medicine-1-5362737 |title=Women's Week: Suffolk's Elizabeth Garrett Anderson changed the course of women in medicine |publisher=East Anglian Daily Times |access-date=15 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316030020/http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/suffolk-s-elizabeth-garrett-anderson-changed-the-course-of-women-in-medicine-1-5362737 |archive-date=16 March 2018}}</ref> The [[tuberculosis]] treatment pioneer [[Jane Harriet Walker|Jane Walker]] ran the East Anglian Sanatorium above the banks of the [[River Stour, Suffolk|River Stour]], and charity leader [[Sue Ryder]] settled in Suffolk and based her charity in [[Cavendish, Suffolk|Cavendish]].

The popular Victorian novelist [[Henry Seton Merriman]] lived and died in the village of [[Melton, Suffolk|Melton]]. Between 1932 and 1939 [[George Orwell]] lived at his parents' home in the coastal town of Southwold, where a mural of the author now dominates the entrance to Southwold Pier.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-44197314 |title=George Orwell's Southwold home gets fresh plaque |publisher=BBC Suffolk |access-date=15 October 2020 |archive-date=26 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126000830/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-44197314 |url-status=live }}</ref> He is said to have chosen his pen name from Suffolk's [[River Orwell]]. [[Arthur Ransome]] lived alongside the river during the 1930s, sailing his boats from [[Pin Mill]] and along the [[Shotley Peninsula]]. The county was also home to [[wild swimming|wild swimmer]] and environmentalist [[Roger Deakin]].

== Edmund of East Anglia ==
King of [[East Anglia]] and Christian [[martyr]] [[Edmund the Martyr|St Edmund]], after whom the town of [[Bury St Edmunds]] is named, was killed by invading [[Danes]] in the year 869. St Edmund was the [[patron saint]] of England until he was replaced by [[St George]] in the 13th century. 2006 saw the failure of a campaign to have St Edmund named the patron saint of England. In 2007 he was named the patron saint of Suffolk, with St Edmund's Day falling on 20 November. [[Flag of Suffolk|His flag]] is flown in Suffolk on that day.

==See also==
* [[List of places of interest in Suffolk]]
* [[History of Suffolk]]
* [[Healthcare in Suffolk]]
* [[Suffolk (UK Parliament constituency)]]
* [[Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner]]
* [[Suffolk Coast and Heaths]]
* [[Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk|List of Lords Lieutenant of Suffolk]]
* [[High Sheriff of Suffolk|List of High Sheriffs of Suffolk]]
* [[Suffolk Youth Orchestra]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=fn}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Suffolk}}
{{England counties}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Suffolk| ]]
[[Category:Non-metropolitan counties]]
[[Category:Kingdom of East Anglia]]
[[Category:Counties of England established in antiquity]]