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The various administrative subdivisions in the UK, being county council areas, unitary authority areas and London boroughs in England (which are all nearly functionally identical), are legally distinct from counties proper, and are not replacements for them. "Counties for the purposes of lieutenancy", which are often mistakenly (notably by Wikipedia) referred to as "ceremonial counties", do not replace the counties proper either.
The various administrative subdivisions in the UK, being county council areas, unitary authority areas and London boroughs in England (which are all nearly functionally identical), are legally distinct from counties proper, and are not replacements for them. "Counties for the purposes of lieutenancy", which are often mistakenly (notably by Wikipedia) referred to as "ceremonial counties", do not replace the counties proper either.
In English administrative history, only 2 counties have been abolished; Winchcombshire in the south west was merged into [[Gloucestershire]] in the 11th century, and Hexhamshire in the north east was merged into [[Northumberland]] in the 16th century.
== Naming ==
== Naming ==
Most county names in England date back to the [[Anglo-Saxon]] period. For the most part, they take the form of the county town suffixed with ''-shire''; [[Derbyshire]], therefore, is the County of Derby, for example. In some cases, the county town may have changed after the county was named, with [[Buckinghamshire]] ([[Old English]] ''Buccingahamscir''), for instance, being named after that county's historical county town Buckingham, even if [[Aylesbury]] has served as the county town since the reign of [[Henry VIII]] in the 16th century.
Most county names in England date back to the [[Anglo-Saxon]] period. For the most part, they take the form of the county town suffixed with ''-shire''; [[Derbyshire]], therefore, is the County of Derby, for example. In some cases, the county town may have changed after the county was named, with [[Buckinghamshire]] ([[Old English]] ''Buccingahamscir''), for instance, being named after that county's historical county town Buckingham, even if [[Aylesbury]] has served as the county town since the reign of [[Henry VIII]] in the 16th century.
Other county names are even older. Perhaps the oldest is that of [[Orkney]], the county of Scotland co-extensive with the Orkney Islands archipelago, whose name was recorded as ''Orcas'' in c. 300 BC by the [[Ancient Greece|Ancient Greek]] explorer Pytheas. The county name [[Kent]] dates back at least as far as 51 BC, being recorded then by [[Julius Caesar]] as ''Cantium''. Some, such as Essex and Northumberland, reference Anglo-Saxon territorial divisions, the former continuing the name of the East Saxon kingdom (527–825 AD), and the latter ultimately originates with the Anglian kingdom [[Northumbria]] (651–954 AD), which at its territorial peak (700 AD) covered most of northern England and southern Scotland.
Other county names are even older. Perhaps the oldest is that of [[Orkney]], the county of Scotland co-extensive with the Orkney Islands archipelago, whose name was recorded as ''Orcas'' in c. 300 BC by the [[Ancient Greece|Ancient Greek]] explorer Pytheas. The county name [[Kent]] dates back at least as far as 51 BC, being recorded then by [[Julius Caesar]] as ''Cantium''. Some, such as [[Essex]] and [[Northumberland]], reference Anglo-Saxon territorial divisions, the former continuing the name of the East Saxon kingdom (527–825 AD), and the latter ultimately originates with the Anglian kingdom [[Northumbria]] (651–954 AD), which at its territorial peak (700 AD) covered most of northern England and southern Scotland.
== References==
== References==