Counties of Ireland

The island of Ireland has 32 counties, with Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland being nicknamed respectively the six counties and the twenty-six counties. The counties are subdivisions of the ancient Provinces of Ireland, made up, in general, from smaller territories. While the provinces have existed in some form for many centuries, the counties developed under the Anglo-Norman and British administrations, with the first counties formed in the century after Strongbow's arrival and the last, Wicklow, finally formalised in 1606.

Former counties

Former counties include: County Coleraine which formed the basis of County Londonderry, and Nether and Upper Tyrone which were merged, and Desmond which was split between Counties Cork and Kerry. Other names seen on old maps include Caterlaugh or Caterlagh, archaic designations of County Carlow, in the days before much of the north of that county was taken into Wicklow.

Related Topics:
County Coleraine - Nether - Upper Tyrone - Desmond - Caterlaugh - Caterlagh

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