Upper Norfolk County is an extinct county which was located in colonial Virginia from 1637 until 1646.
41-550: In 1634, the King of England directed the formation of eight shires (or counties ) in the colony of Virginia. One of these was Elizabeth City Shire , which included land area on both sides of Hampton Roads . New Norfolk County was formed in 1636 from Elizabeth City Shire . It included all the area in South Hampton Roads now incorporated in the five independent cities located there in modern times. In 1637, New Norfolk County
82-407: A sheriff ), called the shires of Edinburgh (or Edinburghshire), Haddington (or Haddingtonshire), and Linlithgow (or Linlithgowshire). Each of these three counties had an informal alternative name referencing their position within the former province of Lothian: Edinburghshire was also known as Midlothian , Haddingtonshire as East Lothian , and Linlithgowshire as West Lothian . The city of Edinburgh
123-553: A county in the north-east of England from the early 12th century until 1572, when it was incorporated into Northumberland . In Scotland, barely affected by the Norman conquest of England , the word "shire" prevailed over "county" until the 19th century. Earliest sources have the same usage of the "-shire" suffix as in England (though in Scots this was oftenmost "schyr"). Later the "Shire" appears as
164-700: A former Anglo-Saxon kingdom . Similarly Cornwall was a British kingdom before it became an English county. The term "shire" is not used in the names of the six traditional counties of Northern Ireland . Counties in England bearing the "-shire" suffix comprise: Bedfordshire , Berkshire , Buckinghamshire , Cambridgeshire , Cheshire , Derbyshire , Gloucestershire , Hampshire , Herefordshire , Hertfordshire , Huntingdonshire , Lancashire , Lincolnshire , Leicestershire , Northamptonshire , Nottinghamshire , Oxfordshire , Shropshire , Staffordshire , Warwickshire , Wiltshire , Worcestershire and Yorkshire . These counties, on their historical boundaries , cover
205-526: A little more than half the area of England. The counties that do not use "-shire" are mainly in three areas, in the south-east, south-west and far north of England. Several of these counties no longer exist as administrative units, or have had their administrative boundaries reduced by local government reforms. Several of the successor authorities retain the "-shire" county names, such as North Yorkshire , East Yorkshire , South Yorkshire , West Yorkshire , and South Gloucestershire . The county of Devon
246-493: A more bucolic lifestyle is possible. Before the Province of New York was granted county subdivisions and a greater royal presence in 1683, the early ducal colony consisted of York Shire , as well as Albany and Ulster , after the three titles held by Prince James : Duke of York , Duke of Albany , Earl of Ulster . While these were basically renamed Dutch core settlements, they were quickly converted to English purposes, while
287-421: A narrower sense, to ancient counties with names that ended in "shire". These counties are typically (though not always) named after their county town . The suffix -shire is attached to most of the names of English, Scottish and Welsh counties. It tends not to be found in the names of shires that were pre-existing divisions. Essex , Kent , and Sussex , for example, have never borne a -shire , as each represents
328-541: A separate word. "Shire" names in Scotland comprise Aberdeenshire , Ayrshire , Banffshire , Berwickshire , Clackmannanshire , Cromartyshire , Dumfriesshire , Dunbartonshire , Inverness-shire , Kincardineshire , Kinross-shire , Kirkcudbrightshire , Lanarkshire , Morayshire , Nairnshire , Peeblesshire , Perthshire , Renfrewshire , Ross-shire , Roxburghshire , Selkirkshire , Stirlingshire , and Wigtownshire . In Scotland four shires have alternative names with
369-665: A shire is a local government area; however, in Australia, it is not synonymous with a "county", which is a lands administrative division . The word shire derives from the Old English sċir , from the Proto-Germanic * skizo ( Old High German : scira ), denoting an 'official charge' a 'district under a governor', and a 'care'. In the UK, shire became synonymous with county , an administrative term introduced to England through
410-559: A watercourse that flows through the region, now known as the Lothian Burn, the name of which comes from either the British lutna meaning "dark or muddy stream," *lǭd , with a meaning associated with flooding (c.f. Leeds ), or lǖch , meaning "bright, shining." A popular legend is that the name comes from King Lot , who is king of Lothian in the Arthurian legend . The usual Latin form of
451-514: Is a place-name suffix, the vowel is unstressed and usually shortened ( monophthongized ); the pronunciations include / ʃ ər / and / ʃ ɪər / , with the final R pronunciation depending on rhoticity. The vowel is normally reduced to a single schwa , as in Leicestershire / ˈ l ɛ s t ər ʃ ər / or / ˈ l ɛ s t ər ʃ ɪər / and Berkshire / ˈ b ɑːr k ʃ ər / or / ˈ b ɑːr k ʃ ɪər / . The system
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#1732881383486492-726: Is a region of the Scottish Lowlands , lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills . The principal settlement is the Scottish capital, Edinburgh , while other significant towns include Livingston , Linlithgow , Bathgate , Queensferry , Dalkeith , Bonnyrigg , Penicuik , Musselburgh , Prestonpans , Tranent , North Berwick , Dunbar , Whitburn and Haddington . Historically,
533-577: Is generally synonymous with county (such as Cheshire and Worcestershire ). British counties are among the oldest extant national divisions in the world. It was first used in Wessex from the beginning of Anglo-Saxon settlement , and spread to most of the rest of England in the 10th century. Today, 23 counties bear the "-shire" suffix in England, 23 in Scotland , and 10 in Wales . In some rural parts of Australia ,
574-560: Is present-day Scotland and seems to have little to do with the Norse-controlled areas to the south. Roger of Wendover wrote that Edgar, King of the English granted Laudian to Kenneth II , King of Scots in 973 on condition that he come to court whenever the English king or his successors wore his crown. It is widely accepted by medieval historians that this marks the point at which Lothian became part of Scotland. Despite this transaction,
615-504: The Chronicle describes how the Scottish king, Malcolm Canmore , "went with his army out of Scotland into Lothian in England". In the post-Roman period, Lothian was dominated by British-speakers whose language is generally called Cumbric and was closely related to Welsh . In Welsh tradition Lothian is part of the "Old North" ( Hen Ogledd ). Reminders exist in British place-names like Tranent , Linlithgow and Penicuik . During
656-558: The Kingdom of Northumbria . Important Anglo Saxon structural remains have been found in Aberlady along with various artefacts such as an early 9th century Anglo Saxon coin. Little is recorded of Lothian's history specifically at this time. After the Norse -speaking Viking Great Army conquered southern Northumbria (including areas that would later become Yorkshire), northern Northumbria – centred on
697-548: The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 , being replaced with regions and districts . Lothian Regional Council formally took over responsibility from the old county councils in May 1975. The Lothian region was split into four districts: East Lothian, Edinburgh, Midlothian , and West Lothian . Each district was broadly based on the areas of the pre-1975 counties and city, but with some notable alterations. The Lothian Regional Council
738-490: The Norman Conquest in the later part of the eleventh century. In contemporary British usage, the word counties also refers to shires, mainly in places such as Shire Hall . In regions with rhotic pronunciation, such as Scotland , the word shire is pronounced / ʃ aɪər / ; in areas of non-rhotic pronunciation, the final R is silent, unless the next word begins in a vowel sound. In England and Wales, when shire
779-401: The "-shire" suffix: Angus (Forfarshire), East Lothian (Haddingtonshire), Midlothian (Edinburghshire) and West Lothian (Linlithgowshire). Sutherland is occasionally still referred to as Sutherlandshire. Similarly, Argyllshire , Buteshire , Caithness-shire and Fifeshire are sometimes found. Also, Morayshire was previously called Elginshire. There is debate about whether Argyllshire
820-580: The "shire" suffix. The only traditional Welsh county that never takes "shire" in English is Anglesey ; in Welsh it is referred to as 'Sir Fôn'. The suffix "-shire" could be a generalised term referring to a district. It did not acquire the strong association with county until later. Other than these, the term was used for several other districts. Bedlingtonshire , Craikshire , Norhamshire and Islandshire were exclaves of County Durham, which were incorporated into Northumberland or Yorkshire in 1844. The suffix
861-621: The 10th century. Subsequent Scottish history saw the region subdivided into three counties — Midlothian , East Lothian , and West Lothian —leading to the popular designation of " the Lothians ". The origin of the name is debated. It perhaps comes from the British *Lugudūniānā ( Lleuddiniawn in Modern Welsh spelling), meaning "country of the fort of Lugus ", the latter being a Celtic god of commerce. Alternatively, it may take its name from
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#1732881383486902-635: The Anglo-Saxon period, the Northumbrian dialect of Old English came to be spoken in the region. Initially confined to Lothian and the Borders, the language would grow, change, and spread across the lowlands of Scotland, becoming the Scots language . The dialects of the modern Lothians are usually considered to be part of Central Scots . Place names in the Lothians of Anglian origin include Ingliston . Although one of
943-640: The Dutch remained within the colony, as opposed to later practice of the Acadian Expulsion . Further Anglo-Dutch synthesis occurred when Prince James enacted the Dominion of New England and later when William III of England took over through the Glorious Revolution . The word also survives in the name of the state of New Hampshire , whose co-founder, John Mason , named his Province of New Hampshire after
984-512: The English county of Hampshire . Vermont has 14 counties – each has one county seat or Shire, except the Shire Towns of Southwestern Vermont where there is a South Shire – Bennington and a North Shire – Manchester. In 1634, eight "shires" were created in the Virginia Colony by order of Charles I , King of England. They were renamed as counties only a few years later. They were: Today,
1025-587: The concept of a "Shire" still exists in Virginia code. It is defined as a semi-autonomous subdivision of a consolidated City-County. Currently no Shires exist in the commonwealth and the administrative provision is largely unknown. "Shire" is the most common word in Australia for rural local government areas (LGAs) . New South Wales , the Northern Territory , Queensland , Victoria , and Western Australia , use
1066-669: The control of Lothian was not finally settled and the region was taken by the Scots at the Battle of Carham in 1018 and the River Tweed became the de facto Anglo-Scottish border. William the Conqueror invaded Lothian and crossed over the River Forth but was not able to conquer it. At this time Lothian appears in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as Loðen or Loþen . As late as 1091,
1107-486: The few areas of mainland Scotland where the Gaelic language was never dominant, the presence of some Gaelic place-names, e.g. Dalry , Currie , Balerno and Cockenzie , has been attributed to the "temporary occupation...[and] the presence of a landowning Gaelic-speaking aristocracy and their followers for something like 150–200 years." By 1305, the area of Lothian had been divided into three shires (the area controlled by
1148-465: The former Anglian kingdom of Bernicia – was cut off from the other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. How much Norse influence spread north of the River Tees is uncertain. Bernicia continued as a distinct territory, sometimes described as having a king, at other times an ealdorman (earl). Bernicia became distinct from other English territories at this time due to its links with the other Christian kingdoms in what
1189-451: The name is Laudonia . Lothian was settled by Angles at an early stage and formed part of the Kingdom of Bernicia , which extended south into present-day Northumberland and Durham. Many place names in the Lothians and Scottish Borders demonstrate that the English language became firmly established in the region from the sixth century onwards. In due course, Bernicia united with Deira to form
1230-1084: The term "shire" for this unit; the territories of the Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands are also shires. In contrast, South Australia uses district and region for its rural LGA units, while Tasmania uses municipality . Shires are generally functionally indistinguishable from towns , boroughs , municipalities , or cities . Three LGAs in outer metropolitan Sydney and four in outer metropolitan Melbourne have populations exceeding that of towns or municipalities, but retain significant bushlands and/or semi-rural areas, and most have continued to use "shire" in their titles whilst others have dropped it from theirs. These "city-shires" are: Melbourne: Sydney: Lothian 55°54′33″N 3°05′04″W / 55.90917°N 3.08444°W / 55.90917; -3.08444 Lothian ( / ˈ l oʊ ð i ə n / ; Scots : Lowden, Loudan, -en, -o(u)n ; Scottish Gaelic : Lodainn [ˈl̪ˠot̪aɲ] )
1271-575: The term Lothian referred to a province encompassing most of what is now southeastern Scotland. In the 7th century it came under the control of the Anglian kingdom of Bernicia , the northern part of the later kingdom of Northumbria , but the Angles' grip on Lothian was quickly weakened following the Battle of Nechtansmere in which they were defeated by the Picts. Lothian was annexed to the Kingdom of Scotland around
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1312-547: The word "county" was not adopted for the shires. Although "county" appears in some texts, "shire" was the normal name until counties for statutory purposes were created in the 19th century. In Ireland "shire" was not used for the counties. In most cases, the "shire town" is the seat of the shire's government, or was historically. Sometimes the nomenclature exists even where "county" is used in place of "shire" as in, for instance, Kentville in Nova Scotia . "Shire" also refers, in
1353-510: Was also used for many hundreds , wapentakes and liberties such as Allertonshire , Blackburnshire , Halfshire , Howdenshire , Leylandshire , Powdershire , Pydarshire , Richmondshire , Riponshire , Salfordshire , Triggshire , Tynemouthshire , West Derbyshire and Wivelshire , counties corporate such as Hullshire , and other districts such as Applebyshire , Bamburghshire , Carlisleshire , Coldinghamshire , Cravenshire , Hallamshire , Mashamshire and Yetholmshire . Richmondshire
1394-542: Was divided into Upper Norfolk County and Lower Norfolk County . Upper Norfolk County became Nansemond County in 1646. The county became the independent city of Nansemond in 1972, and in 1974, merged with the city of Suffolk . The new consolidated city assumed the name of Suffolk. Shire Shire ( / ʃ aɪər / , also / ʃ ɪər / ) is a traditional term for an administrative division of land in Great Britain and some other English-speaking countries. It
1435-556: Was ever really used. Shires in Wales bearing the "-shire" suffix ( Sir preceding the name in Welsh) comprise: Brecknockshire (or Breconshire), Caernarfonshire (historically Carnarvonshire), Cardiganshire (in Welsh- Ceredigion), Carmarthenshire , Denbighshire , Flintshire , Monmouthshire , Montgomeryshire , Pembrokeshire , and Radnorshire . In Wales, the counties of Merioneth and Glamorgan are occasionally referred to with
1476-697: Was first used in the kingdom of Wessex from the beginning of Anglo-Saxon settlement , and spread to most of the rest of England in the 10th century, along with the West Saxon kingdom's political domination. In Domesday (1086) the city of York was divided into shires. The first shires of Scotland were created in English-settled areas such as Lothian and the Borders , in the 9th century. King David I more consistently created shires and appointed sheriffs across lowland shores of Scotland. The shire in early days
1517-515: Was governed by an ealdorman and in the later Anglo-Saxon period by a royal official known as a "shire reeve " or sheriff . The shires were divided into hundreds or wapentakes , although other less common sub-divisions existed. An alternative name for a shire was a "sheriffdom" until sheriff court reforms separated the two concepts. The phrase "shire county" applies, unofficially, to non-metropolitan counties in England, specifically those that are not local unitary authority areas. In Scotland
1558-453: Was historically known as Devonshire, although this is no longer the official name. Indeed, it was retained by the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment until amalgamation in 2007. Similarly, Dorset , Rutland and Somerset were formerly known as Dorsetshire, Rutlandshire and Somersetshire, but these terms are no longer official, and are rarely used outside the local populations. Hexhamshire was
1599-437: Was made a county of itself in 1482, making it administratively independent from the surrounding county of Edinburghshire. The three Lothian counties were all legally renamed during the twentieth century, with Haddingtonshire becoming East Lothian in 1921, Linlithgowshire becoming West Lothian in 1925, and Edinburghshire becoming Midlothian in 1947. In 1975 the old county councils and burgh corporations were abolished under
1640-628: Was responsible for education, social work, water, sewerage, and transport (including local buses within Edinburgh). The regional council was based at Lothian Chambers on King George IV Bridge in Edinburgh, which had been built in 1904 as the headquarters of the old Midlothian County Council. Lothian Regional Council was abolished in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 . The region's four districts took over all local government functions as unitary council areas . The first election to
1681-549: Was until 2023 the name of a local government district of North Yorkshire . Non-county shires were very common in Scotland. Kinross-shire and Clackmannanshire are arguably survivals from such districts. Non-county "shires" in Scotland include Coldinghamshire and Yetholmshire . Colloquially, the term "the Shires" has become used to refer to those counties, particularly of the southern Midlands , which are still largely rural and which are stereotypically thought of as being where