| County Tyrone Contae Thír Eoghain
Coontie Tyrone |
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| Motto: Consilio et Prudentia (Latin) "By Wisdom and Prudence" |
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| Country | United Kingdom | ||
| Region | Northern Ireland | ||
| Province | Ulster | ||
| County seat | Omagh | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 1,259.9 sq mi (3,263 km2) | ||
| Area rank | 8th | ||
| Population (2001) | 166,516 | ||
| • Rank | 10th [1] | ||
| Contae Thír Eoghain is the Irish name; Countie Tyrone,[2] Coontie Tyrone[3] and Coontie Owenslann[4] are Ulster Scots spellings (the latter used only by Dungannon & South Tyrone Borough Council). | |||
County Tyrone (from Irish: Tír Eoghain, meaning "land of Eoghan") is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland. Adjoined to the south-west shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 3,155 km², with a population of approximately 166,516, with its county town being Omagh. It is also one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland, lying within the historical province of Ulster.
Tyrone is the seventh largest of Ireland’s thirty-two counties in area and eighth largest in terms of population.[5] It is the second largest of Ulster’s nine counties in size and fourth largest in terms of population.[6]
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The name Tyrone is derived from Irish: Tír Eoghain meaning "land of Eoghan". This Eoghan was son of king Niall of the Nine Hostages, and brother of Conall Gulban, who gave his name to the kingdom of Tír Chonaill.[7] Historically, it was anglicised as Tirowen or Tyrowen, which are closer to the Irish pronunciation.
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1659 | 4,088 | — |
| 1821 | 261,865 | +6305.7% |
| 1831 | 304,468 | +16.3% |
| 1841 | 312,956 | +2.8% |
| 1851 | 255,661 | −18.3% |
| 1861 | 238,500 | −6.7% |
| 1871 | 215,766 | −9.5% |
| 1881 | 197,719 | −8.4% |
| 1891 | 171,401 | −13.3% |
| 1901 | 150,567 | −12.2% |
| 1911 | 142,665 | −5.2% |
| 1926 | 132,792 | −6.9% |
| 1937 | 127,586 | −3.9% |
| 1951 | 132,082 | +3.5% |
| 1961 | 133,919 | +1.4% |
| 1966 | 136,040 | +1.6% |
| 1971 | 139,073 | +2.2% |
| 1981 | 150,729 | +8.4% |
| 1991 | 156,284 | +3.7% |
| 2001 | 164,235 | +5.1% |
| [8][9][10][11][12][13] | ||
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on natural resources located there. Tyrone was the traditional stronghold of the various O'Neill clans and families, the strongest of the Gaelic Irish families in Ulster, surviving into the seventeenth century. The ancient principality of Tír Eoghain, the inheritance of the O'Neills, included the whole of the present counties of Tyrone and Londonderry, and the four baronies of West Inishowen, East Inishowen, Raphoe North and Raphoe South in County Donegal.[7]
With an area of 3,155 square kilometres (1,218 sq mi), Tyrone is the largest county in Northern Ireland. The flat peatlands of East Tyrone borders the shoreline of the largest lake in Ireland, Lough Neagh, rising gradually across to the more mountainous terrain in the west of the county, the area surrounding the Sperrin Mountains, the highest point being Sawel Mountain at a height of 678 m (2,224 ft). The length of the county, from the mouth of the River Blackwater at Lough Neagh to the western point near Carrickaduff hill is 55 miles (89 km). The breadth, from the southern corner, southeast of Fivemiletown, to the northeastern corner near Meenard Mountain is 37.5 miles (60.4 km); giving an area of 1,260 square miles (in 1900).[7] Annaghone lays claim to be the geographical centre of Northern Ireland.
It is one of four counties in Northern Ireland which presently has a majority of the population from a Catholic community background, according to the 2001 census. In 1900 County Tyrone had a population of 197,719,[7] while in 2001 it was 166,516.
(population of 18,000 or more and under 75,000 at 2001 Census)[14]
(population of 10,000 or more and under 18,000 at 2001 Census)[14]
(population of 4,500 or more and under 10,000 at 2001 Census)[14]
(population of 2,250 or more and under 4,500 at 2001 Census)[14]
(population of 1,000 or more and under 2,250 at 2001 Census)[14]
(population of less than 1,000 at 2001 Census)[14]
Baronies
Parishes
Townlands
The major sports in Tyrone are Gaelic games, Association football and Rugby Union.
Notable residents of County Tyrone have included:
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