Communes of Luxembourg

Luxembourg's 102 communes ( ; French: "communes"; ) conform to LAU Level 2 and are the country's lowest administrative divisions.
Communes rank below cantons in Luxembourg's hierarchy of administrative subdivisions. Communes are often re-arranged, being merged or divided as demanded by demographic change over time. Unlike the cantons, which have remained unchanged since their creation, the identity of the communes has not become ingrained within the geographical sensations of the average Luxembourger. The cantons are responsible for the ceremonial, administrative, and statistical aspects of government, while the communes provide local government services.
The municipal system was adopted when Luxembourg was annexed into the French département of Forêts in 1795. Despite ownership passing to the Netherlands, this system was maintained until it was introduced upon independence in 1843. The province of Luxembourg, which now constitutes part of Belgium, was part of Luxembourg prior to 1839 when it possessed a low degree of sovereignty. Due to Luxembourg's incorporation into the main country by its occupying powers, the modern municipal system in Luxembourg is less than two centuries old.
Terminology.
Luxembourg has three official languages: French, German, and the national language Luxembourgish. Some government websites also offer English versions
Authority.
The communes have no legislative control over matters relating to the national interest, which reside solely with the Chamber of Deputies. Below this level, however, they have wide-ranging powers. The communes provide public education, maintain the local road network and other infrastructure, ensure basic public health, and provide most social security. Communes also have discretionary powers for comprehensive health care (including maintenance of hospitals and clinics) within their borders, land-use planning, funds for cultural activities, provision of care to the elderly, and providing a sufficient supply of water, gas, and electricity.
Communes and cities.
There are currently 102 communes in the 12 cantons. The 12 communes with city status are Diekirch, Differdange, Dudelange, Echternach, Esch-sur-Alzette, Ettelbruck, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg, Remich, Rumelange, Vianden, and Wiltz.
Former communes.
Since the country's creation in 1839, eight communes have changed their name and thirty-nine communes have been merged, resulting in the 102 communes that exist today. These defunct communes are listed in the table below.
Evolution of communes.
The municipal system was created during the French occupation to mirror the systems employed in the rest of the French Republic. These were overhauled in 1823, but the system itself was retained until independence, which was granted under the 1839 Treaty of London. The law regulating their creation and organisation dates to 24 February 1843, which was later enshrined in the Luxembourgian constitution promulgated on 17 October 1868.
Upon independence, there were 120 communes. A series of mergers and partitions between 1849 and 1891 increased this number to 130. Most of these were brought about by asymmetrical population growth, as population growth in the south caused the balance of population in the country to shift. For instance, some of the communes born in that era include Rumelange, Schifflange, and Walferdange. In the pattern of Nordstad, Erpeldange and Schieren were also separated from Ettelbruck.
Since the end of the First World War, during which Luxembourg was occupied by Germany, the number of communes has dropped steadily. In 1920, Luxembourg City was expanded, annexing four surrounding communes. Another wave of mergers took place in the 1970s when sparsely-populated areas in the north and west of the country were merged to form Lac de la Haute-Sûre, Rambrouch, and Wincrange. 2006 saw the creation of Kiischpelt and Tandel from four smaller communes, further reducing them to just 116. 2012 saw the creation of Käerjeng, Vallée de l'Ernz and Parc Hosingen from smaller communes, and the merger of Clervaux, Esch-sur-Sûre and Schengen into adjacent ones. Eschweiler was merged into Wiltz in 2015. Following the mergers of Boevange-sur-Attert and Tuntange into the new commune of Helperknapp, the merger of Septfontaines and Hobschied into the new commune of Habscht, and the merger of Rosport and Mompach into Rosport-Mompach in 2018, there are now only 102 communes.


Valmiera District

The Valmiera district () was an administrative division of Latvia, located in the Vidzeme region, in the country's north-east. Its administrative center was Valmiera. It bordered Estonia to the north and the former districts of Limbaži to the west, Valka to the east and Cēsis to the south. It was the eighth largest district in Latvia and had a population of 60,345 (2000 census).
Districts were eliminated during the administrative-territorial reform in 2009.


List of Italian regions by GDP

This article lists Italian regions and autonomous provinces (NUTS 2) by gross domestic product (GDP).
Note that data for region Trentino-Alto Adige are broken down to the level of its two constituent autonomous provinces, Trento and Bolzano.
Gross domestic product.
This table reports the gross domestic product (nominal GDP), expressed in millions of euro, of the twenty Italian regions and two autonomous provinces from 2000 to 2016.
Per capita GDP.
Figures are in euros at market exchange rates and not at purchasing power parity (PPP).
Provincial GDP.
All provinces and metropolitan cities of Italy by GDP and GDP per capita in 2015.


County Dublin

County Dublin ( or "Contae Átha Cliath") is one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. Prior to 1994 it was also an administrative county covering the whole county outside of Dublin City Council. In 1994, as part of a reorganisation of local government within Dublin the boundaries of Dublin City were redrawn, Dublin County Council was abolished and three new administrative county councils were established: Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin.
While it is no longer used as an administrative division for local government, it retains a strong identity in popular culture. There still exists a sheriff appointed for County Dublin. Although Constituency Commissions are must avoid breaching county boundaries when delineating Dáil constituencies, the three new counties in Dublin are excepted. It is in the province of Leinster, and is named after the city of Dublin, the capital city of Ireland. County Dublin was one of the first parts of Ireland to be shired by John, King of England following the Norman invasion of Ireland.
According to the 2016 census, the total population of County Dublin was 1,345,402, approximately 27% of the Republic of Ireland's population. The county is a NUTS 3 region, and is part of the NUTS 2 region of Eastern and Midland.
Local government and politics.
Local authorities.
There are four local authorities whose remit collectively encompasses the geographic area of the county and city of Dublin. These are Dublin City Council, South Dublin County Council, Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council and Fingal County Council.
Prior to the enactment of the Local Government (Dublin) Act 1993, the county was a unified whole even though it was administered by two local authorities – Dublin County Council and Dublin Corporation. Since the enactment of the Local Government Act 2001 in particular, the geographic area of the county has been divided between three entities at the level of "county" and a further entity at the level of "city". They rank equally as first level local administrative units of the NUTS 3 Dublin Region for Eurostat purposes. There are 34 LAU 1 entities in the Republic of Ireland. Each local authority is responsible for certain local services such as sanitation, planning and development, libraries, the collection of motor taxation, local roads and social housing.
Dublin County Council (which did not include the county borough of Dublin) was abolished in 1994 and the area divided among the administrative counties of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin each with its county seat. To these areas may be added the area of Dublin city which collectively comprise the Dublin Region ("") and come under the remit of the Dublin Regional Authority.
The area lost its administrative county status in 1994, with Section 9 Part 1(a) of the "Local Government (Dublin) Act, 1993" stating that "the county shall cease to exist." In discussing the legislation to dissolve Dublin County Council, Avril Doyle TD said, "The Bill before us today effectively abolishes County Dublin, and as one born and bred in these parts of Ireland I find it rather strange that we in this House are abolishing County Dublin. I am not sure whether Dubliners realise that that is what we are about today, but in effect that is the case."
The county is part of the Dublin constituency for the purposes of European elections. For elections to Dáil Éireann, the area of the county is currently (2016) divided into eleven constituencies: Dublin Bay North, Dublin Bay South, Dublin Central, Dublin Fingal, Dublin Mid-West, Dublin North-West, Dublin Rathdown, Dublin South-Central, Dublin South-West, Dublin West, and Dún Laoghaire. Together they return 45 deputies (TDs) to the Dáil.
Despite the legal status of the Dublin Region, the term "County Dublin" is still in common usage. Many organisations and sporting teams continue to organise on a "County Dublin" or "Dublin Region" basis. The area formerly known as "County Dublin" is now defined in legislation solely as the "Dublin Region" under the "Local Government Act, 1991 (Regional Authorities) (Establishment) Order, 1993", and this is the terminology officially used by the four Dublin administrative councils in press releases concerning the former county area. The term "Greater Dublin Area", which might consist of some or all of the Dublin Region along with counties of Kildare, Meath and Wicklow, has no legal standing.
Dublin Region.
The Dublin Region is a NUTS Level III region of Ireland. The region is one of eight regions of the Republic of Ireland for the purposes of Eurostat statistics. Its NUTS code is IE061. It is co-extensive with the old county. The regional capital is Dublin City which is also the national capital.
The latest Ordnance Survey Ireland "Discovery Series" (Third Edition 2005) 1:50,000 map of the Dublin Region, Sheet 50, shows the boundaries of the city and three surrounding counties of the region. Extremities of the Dublin Region, in the north and south of the region, appear in other sheets of the series, 43 and 56 respectively.
Subdivisions.
Baronies.
There are nine historic baronies in the county. While baronies continue to be officially defined units, they are no longer used for many administrative purposes. The last boundary change of a barony in Dublin was in 1842, when the barony of Balrothery was divided into Balrothery East and Balrothery West. Their official status is illustrated by Placenames Orders made since 2003, where official Irish names of baronies are listed under "Administrative units". The largest barony in Dublin is Uppercross, at 37,307 acres (151 km2), and the smallest barony is Dublin, at 1,693 acres (6.9 km2).
Townlands.
Townlands are the smallest officially defined geographical divisions in Ireland. There are 1,090 townlands in Dublin, of which 88 are historic town boundaries. These town boundaries are registered as their own townlands and are much larger than rural townlands. The smallest rural townlands in Dublin are just 1 acre in size, most of which are offshore islands ("Clare Rock Island, Lamb Island, Maiden Rock, Muglins, Thulla Island"). The largest rural townland in Dublin is 2,797 acres ("Caastlekelly"). The average size of a townland in the county (excluding towns) is 205 acres.
Geography.
Dublin is the third smallest of Ireland's 32 counties by area, and the largest in terms of population. It is the third-smallest of Leinster's 12 counties in size and the largest by population. Dublin shares a border with three counties - Meath to the north and west, Kildare to the west and Wicklow to the south. To the east, Dublin has an Irish Sea coastline which stretches for roughly .
Dublin is a topographically varied region. The city centre is generally very low-lying, and many areas of coastal Dublin are at or near sea-level. In the south of the county, the topography rises steeply from sea-level at the coast to over in just a few kilometres. This natural barrier has resulted in densely populated coastal settlements in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown and westward urban sprawl in South Dublin. In contrast, Fingal is generally rural in nature and much less densely populated than the rest of the county. Consequently, Fingal is significantly larger than the other three local authorities and covers about 49.5% of County Dublin's land area. Fingal is also perhaps the flattest region in Ireland, with the low-lying Naul Hills rising to a maximum height of just .
Dublin is bounded to the south by the Wicklow Mountains. Where the mountains extend into County Dublin, they are known locally as the Dublin Mountains (Sléibhte Bhaile Átha Cliath). Kippure, on the Dublin-Wicklow border, is the county's highest mountain, at above sea level. The mountains are a popular amenity area, with Two Rock, Three Rock, Tibradden and Montpelier Hill being among the most heavily foot-falled hiking destinations in Ireland. Forest cover extends to over within the county, nearly all of which is located in the Dublin Mountains. With just 6.5% of Dublin under forest, it is the 6th least forested county in Ireland.
Much of the county is drained by the River Liffey and two of its main tributaries, the River Tolka in north Dublin and the River Dodder in south Dublin. The Liffey, at in length, is the 8th longest river in Ireland, and rises near Tonduff in County Wicklow, reaching the Irish Sea at the Dublin Docklands. The Liffey cuts through the centre of Dublin city, and the resultant Northside-Southside divide is an often used social, economic and linguistic distinction. In terms of biodiversity, the estuarine and coastal areas of the county are home to a wealth ecologically important areas. County Dublin contains 11 EU-designated Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and 11 Special Protection Areas (SPAs).
The bedrock geology of Dublin consists primarily of Lower Carboniferous limestone, which underlies about two thirds of the entire county, stretching from Skerries to Booterstown. During the Lower Carboniferous (ca. 340 Mya), the area was part of a warm tropical sea inhabited by an abundance of corals, crinoids and brachiopods. The oldest rocks in Dublin are the Cambrian shales located on Howth Head, which were laid down ca. 500 Mya. Disruption following the closure of the Iapetus Ocean approximately 400 Mya resulted in the formation of granite. This is now exposed at the surface from the Dublin Mountains to the coastal areas of Dún Laoghaire. 19th-century Lead extraction and smelting at the Ballycorus Leadmines caused widespread lead poisoning, and the area was once nicknamed "Death Valley".
Climate.
Dublin is in a maritime temperate oceanic region according to Köppen climate classification. Its climate is characterised by cool winters, mild humid summers, and a lack of temperature extremes. Met Éireann have a number of weather stations in the county, with its two primary stations at Dublin Airport and Casement Aerodrome.
Annual temperatures typically fall within a narrow range. In Merrion Square, the coldest month is February, with an average minimum temperature of , and the hottest month is July, with an average maximum temperature of . Due to the urban heat island effect, Dublin city has the warmest summertime nights in Ireland. The average minimum temperature at Merrion Square in July is , similar to London and Berlin. At Dublin Airport, the driest month is February with of rainfall, and the wettest month is November, with of rain on average.
As the prevailing wind direction in Ireland is from the south and west, the Wicklow Mountains create a rain shadow over much of the county. Dublin's sheltered location makes it the driest place in Ireland, receiving only about half the rainfall of the west coast. Ringsend in the south of Dublin city records the lowest rainfall in the country, with an average annual precipitation of . The wettest area of the county is the Glenasmole Valley, which receives of rainfall per year. As a temperate coastal county, snow is relatively uncommon in lowland areas; however, Dublin is particularly vulnerable to heavy snowfall on rare occasions where cold, dry easterly winds dominate during the winter.
During the late summer and early autumn, Dublin can experience Atlantic storms, which bring strong winds and torrential rain to Ireland. Dublin was the county worst-affected by Hurricane Charley in 1986. It caused severe flooding, especially along the River Dodder, and is reputed to be the worst flood event in Dublin's history. Rainfall records were shattered across the county. Kippure recorded of rain over a 24-hour period, the greatest daily rainfall total ever recorded in Ireland. The government allocated IR£6,449,000 (equivalent to US$20.5 million in 2020) to repair the damage wrought by Charley. The two reservoirs at Bohernabreena in the Dublin Mountains were upgraded in 2006 after a study into the impact of Hurricane Charley concluded that a slightly larger storm would have caused the reservoir dams to burst, which would have resulted in catastrophic damage and significant loss of life.
Offshore Islands.
In contrast with the Atlantic Coast, the east coast of Ireland has relatively few islands. County Dublin has the highest concentration of islands on the Irish east coast. Colt Island, St. Patrick's Island and Shenick Island are clustered off the coast of Skerries, and are collectively known as the "Skerries Islands Natural Heritage Area". Further out lies Rockabill, which is Dublin's most isolated island, at about offshore. Lambay Island, at , is the largest island off Ireland's east coast and the easternmost point of County Dublin. Lambay supports one of the largest seabird colonies in Ireland and, curiously, also supports a population of non-native Red-necked wallabies. To the south of Lambay lies a smaller island known as Ireland's Eye - the result of a mistranslation of the island's Irish name by invading Vikings.
Bull Island is a man-made island lying roughly parallel to the shoreline which began to form following the construction of the Bull Wall in 1825. The island is still growing and is currently long and wide. In 1981, North Bull Island ("Oileán an Tairbh Thuaidh") was designated as a UNESCO biosphere.
Demographics.
Population.
As of the 2016 Census, the population of Dublin was 1,345,402, a 5.7% increase since the 2011 Census. The county's population first surpassed 1 million in 1981, and is projected to reach between 1.5 million and 1.7 million by 2031.
Dublin is Ireland's most populous county, a position it has held since the 1901 Census, when it overtook County Cork. As of 2016, Dublin has over twice the population of Antrim and two and a half times the population of Cork. Approximately 20.5% of Ireland's population lives within County Dublin (27% if only the Republic of Ireland is counted). Additionally, Dublin has more people than the combined populations of Ireland's 16 smallest counties.
With an area of just , Dublin is by far the most densely populated county in Ireland. The population density of the county is 1,459 people per square kilometre - nearly 7 times higher than Ireland's second most densely populated county, County Down in Northern Ireland.
During the Celtic Tiger period, a large number of Dublin natives ("Dubliners") moved to the rapidly expanding commuter towns in the adjoining counties. As of 2016, approximately 25.8% (305,996) of Dubliners were living outside of County Dublin. People born within Dublin comprise 28% of the population of Meath, 31% of Kildare and 35% of Wicklow. There are 880,457 Dublin natives living within the county, accounting for 66.8% of the population. People born in other Irish counties living within Dublin account for roughly 12.4% of the population.
Between 2011 and 2016, international migration produced a net increase of 25,261 people. Dublin has the highest proportion of international residents of any county in Ireland, with around 21% of the county's population being born outside of the Republic of Ireland.
As of the 2016 Census, 6.8 percent of the county's population was reported as younger than 5 years old, 25.2 percent were between 5 and 25, 55.8 percent were between 25 and 65, and 12.2 percent of the population was older than 65. Of this latter group, 18,276 people (1.4 percent) were over the age of 80. The population was evenly split between females (50.14 percent) and males (49.86 percent).
In 2019, there were 17,682 births within the county, and the average age of a first time mother was 31.
Migration.
Just over one fifth (20.8 percent) of County Dublin's population was born outside of the Republic of Ireland. In 2016, Fingal had the highest percentage of non-nationals in Dublin (23.2 percent), and South Dublin had the lowest (17.5 percent). The immigrant population of Dublin is mainly from other European countries, however there are also substantial numbers of Indians, Brazilians, Americans and East Asians living in the county. Immigrants from other European Union member states comprise 10.4 percent of Dublin's population, and those from the United Kingdom a further 5.3 percent.
The largest sources of foreign-born residents in Dublin are the United Kingdom and Poland, although the growth of these two groups has slowed in recent years. Prior to the 2000s, the UK was historically the largest single source of non-nationals living in Dublin. Of those born in the UK, 76.3 percent were born in Britain, and the remaining 23.7 percent were born in Northern Ireland. Between 2011 and 2016, the number of UK-born residents living in Dublin declined by 1.8 percent.
There is a large difference between the number of people living in Dublin who were born in the UK (55,391) and those who stated that they were UK citizens in the 2016 census (19,196). This discrepancy can arise for a variety of factors, such as people born in Northern Ireland claiming Irish citizenship rather than UK citizenship, Irish people born in the UK who now live in Dublin, British people who have become natural citizens, and foreign residents of Dublin who were born in the UK but are not UK citizens. Depending on an individual's responses in the census, all of these examples could result in the country of birth being registered by the CSO as the United Kingdom, but nationality being registered as Irish or a third country.
Following its accession to the EU, the Polish quickly became the fastest growing immigrant community in Dublin. Just 188 Poles had applied for Irish work permits in 1999. By 2006 this number had grown to 93,787. After the 2008 Irish economic downturn, as many as 3,000 Poles left Ireland each month. Despite this, Poles still account for roughly one quarter of Dublin's EU foreign residents, and are the largest non-national group in the county, as well as the second largest foreign-born group.
As of 2016, the fastest growing major immigrant group in Dublin was Romanians. Despite being an EU member since 2007, Ireland had restrictions on the number of Romanians who could emigrate to the country until 2012. The removal of the restrictions was followed by a significant increase in the number of Romanians living in Dublin. The five year period from 2011 to 2016 saw a 67.7 percent increase in the number of Romanians living in Dublin, who are now the county's third largest foreign national group. County Dublin is home to around 58 percent of Ireland's Romanian community.
Outside of Europe, Brazil and India are the largest and fastest growing sources of foreign residents in Dublin. The number of Brazilians living in Dublin increased by 48.5 percent between 2011 and 2016, primarily driven by Ireland's participation in the Brazilian government's "Ciência sem Fronteiras" programme, which sees thousands of Brazilian students come to study in Ireland each year, many of whom remain in the country afterwards. Dublin's Indian community grew by 15.1 percent from 2011-2016, and Indians are now the fourth largest migrant group in the county. The influx of Indians is primarily driven by multinational tech companies such as Microsoft, Google and Facebook who have located their European headquarters within the county, in areas such as the Silicon Docks and Sandyford. In August 2020, the first dedicated Hindu temple in Ireland was built in Walkinstown.
Ethnicity.
According to the Central Statistics Office, in 2016 the population of County Dublin self-identified as:
By ethnicity, in 2016 the population was 87.6% white. Those who identified as White Irish constituted 75.5% of the county's population, and Irish Travelers comprised a further 0.5%. Caucasians who did not identify as ethnically Irish accounted for 11.7% of the population.
In terms of total numbers, Dublin has the largest non-white population Ireland, with an estimated 109,732 residents, accounting for 8.3% of the county's population. Nearly half (44.7 percent) of Ireland's black residents live within the county. In terms of percentage of population, Fingal has the highest percentage of both black (3.9 percent) and non-white (10.1 percent) residents of any local authority in Ireland. Conversely, Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown in the south of the county has one of Ireland's lowest percentages of black residents, with only 0.67% of the population identifying as black in 2016. Additionally, 42.8% of Ireland's multiracial population lives within County Dublin.
Religion.
The largest religious denomination by both number of adherents and as a percentage of Dublin's population in 2016 was the Roman Catholic Church, with 68.9 percent. All other Christian denominations including Church of Ireland, Eastern Orthodox, Presbyterian and Methodist accounted for 7.0 percent of Dublin's population. Together, all denominations of Christianity accounted for 75.9 percent of the county's population. According to the 2016 census, Dublin city is the least religious local authority in Ireland, with 18.1 percent of the population declaring themselves non-religious, followed closely by Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown and Galway city (17.1 percent). In the county as a whole, those unaffiliated with any religion represented 14.4 percent of the population, which is the largest percentage of non-religious people of any county in Ireland.
Of the non-Christian religions, Islam is the largest in terms of number of adherents, with Muslims accounting for 2.2% of the population. After Islam, the largest non-Christian religions in 2016 were Hinduism (0.62 percent), Buddhism (0.32 percent) and Judaism (0.11 percent). While small in percentage terms, County Dublin contains over half of Ireland's Hindu (58.4 percent), Jewish (56.3 percent) and Eastern Orthodox (52.1%) residents, and just under half of its Islamic (47.3 percent) and Buddhist (44.0 percent) residents.
Dublin and its hinterland has been a Christian diocese since 1028. For centuries, the Primacy of Ireland was disputed between Dublin, the social and political capital of Ireland, and Armagh, site of Saint Patrick's main church, which was founded in 445 AD. In 1353 the dispute was settled by Pope Innocent VI, who proclaimed that the Archbishop of Dublin was "Primate of Ireland", while the Archbishop of Armagh was titled "Primate of All Ireland". These two distinct titles were replicated in the Church of Ireland following the Reformation. Historically, County Dublin was the epicentre of Protestantism in Ireland outside of Ulster. Records from the 1891 census show that the county was 21.4 percent Protestant towards the end of the 19th century. By the 1911 census this had gradually declined to around 20% due to poor economic conditions, as Dublin Protestants moved to industrial Belfast. Following the War of Independence (1919-1921), Dublin's Protestant community went into a steady decline, falling to 8.5 percent of the population by 1936.
Between the 2011 and 2016 census, the fastest growing religions in Dublin were Evangelicalism (111.7 percent), Eastern Orthodox (41.0 percent), Hinduism (30.1 percent) and Islam (17.7 percent), while the most rapidly declining religions were Methodist/Wesleyan (-9.6 percent), Catholicism (-5.5 percent) and Anglicanism (-4.7 percent).
Metropolitan Area.
Dublin city.
The boundaries of Dublin City Council comprise the urban core of the city, often referred to as "Dublin city centre", an area of 117.8 square kilometres. This encompasses the central suburbs of the city, extending as far south as Terenure and Donnybrook; as far north as Ballymun and Donaghmede; and as far west as Ballyfermot. As of 2016, there were 554,554 people living within Dublin city centre. However, as the continuous built-up area extends beyond the city boundaries, the term "Dublin city and suburbs" is commonly employed when referring to the actual extent of Dublin.
Dublin city and suburbs.
Dublin city and suburbs is a CSO-designated urban area which includes the densely populated contiguous built-up area which surrounds Dublin city centre. It encompasses 317.5 square kilometres and contains approximately 87% of County Dublin's population (1,173,179 people) as of the 2016 census.
Dublin Metropolitan Area.
As the city proper does not extend beyond Dublin Airport, the towns of "North County Dublin" such as Swords, Lusk, Rush and Malahide are not considered part of the city, and are recorded by the CSO as separate settlements. Under Ireland's National Planning Framework, these towns are considered part of the Dublin Metropolitan Area (DMA). The DMA also includes towns outside of the county, such as Naas, Leixlip and Maynooth in County Kildare, and Bray and Greystones in County Wicklow, but does not include Balbriggan or Skerries, which are located in the far north of County Dublin.
Greater Dublin Area.
The Greater Dublin Area (GDA) is a commonly used planning jurisdiction which extends to the wider network of commuter towns that are economically connected to Dublin city. The GDA consists of County Dublin and its three neighboring counties, Meath, Kildare and Wicklow. With a population of 1.9 million and an area of 6,986 square kilometres, it contains 40% of the population of the State, and covers 9.9% of its land area.
Urban Areas.
Under CSO classification, an "Urban Area" is a town with a population greater than 1,500. Dublin is the most urbanised county in Ireland, with 97.75% of its residents residing in urban areas as of 2016. Of Dublin's three non-city local authorities, Fingal has the highest proportion of people living in rural areas (7.9%), while Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown has the lowest (1.19%). The western suburbs of Dublin city such as Tallaght and Blanchardstown have experienced rapid growth in recent decades, and both areas have a population roughly equivalent to Galway city.
Media.
Local radio stations include 98FM, FM104, Dublin City FM, Q102, SPIN 1038, Sunshine 106.8, Raidió Na Life and Radio Nova.
Local newspapers include "The Echo", and the "Liffey Champion".
Most of the area can receive the five main UK television channels as well as the main Irish channels, along with Sky TV and Virgin Media Ireland cable television.
Economy.
The economy of County Dublin was identified as being the powerhouse behind the Celtic Tiger, a period of strong economic growth of the state. This resulted in the economy of the county expanding by almost 100% between the early 1990s and 2007. This growth resulted from incoming high-value industries, such as financial services and software manufacturing, as well as low-skilled retail and domestic services, which caused a shift away from older manufacturing industry. This change saw high unemployment in the 1980s and early 1990s which resulted in damage to the capital's social structure.
According to CSO figures, the region had a GDP of €87.238 bn and a GDP per capita of €68,208 in 2014 (the second highest was Cork at €50,544 per capita).
Separately, Eurostat figures for 2012 suggested the region then had a GDP of €72.384 bn and a GDP per capita of €57,200 – the highest on the island of Ireland (the second highest being Cork with €48,500).
As of early 2017, the unemployment rate for the Dublin region was estimated at 6%.
Transport.
County Dublin is the main transport node of Ireland, and contains one international airport, Dublin Airport. It is also served by two main seaports, Dún Laoghaire port and Dublin Port, which is just located outside of the city center. The two main train stations are Dublin Heuston and Dublin Connolly, both of which serve intercity trains.


Province of Pistoia

The province of Pistoia () is a province in the Tuscany region of central Italy. Its capital is the city of Pistoia and the province is landlocked. It has an area of and a total population of 291,788 inhabitants (as of 2015). There are 22 "communes" in the province.
The province was formed in 1927 under the rule of Mussolini, and had the lowest income per capita in Tuscany in 1966 due to high poverty levels. This is because the province was mainly agricultural before World War II ended, and has since had to rapidly progress towards industrial capitalism and abandon its agricultural roots. The population of the province has recently been increasing, moving from 268,437 in 2011 to around 292,000 in 2015.
The Mountains of Pistoia and the resorts Abetone and Val di Luce are tourist destinations for skiers, and the province contains a combination of flat land such as the area of the valley of the Ombrone and the river flowing through it, and mountainous land. The city of Pistoia is roughly away from both Lucca and Florence. The land around the cities of Pistoia and Pescia are popular locations for flower and plant cultivation for global exports, and town and commune Quarrata is known for its wood furniture.


Somogy County

Somogy (, ; ; , ) is an administrative county (comitatus or "megye") in present Hungary, and also in the former Kingdom of Hungary.
Somogy County.
Somogy County lies in south-western Hungary, on the border with Croatia (Koprivnica-Križevci County and Virovitica-Podravina County). It stretches between the river Dráva and the southern shore of Lake Balaton. It shares borders with the Hungarian counties of Zala, Veszprém, Fejér, Tolna, and Baranya. It is the most sparsely populated county in Hungary. The capital of Somogy County is Kaposvár. Its area is 6,036 km².
History.
Somogy was also the name of a historic administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory, which was slightly larger than that of present Somogy County, is now in south-western Hungary. The capital of the county was and still is Kaposvár.
Demographics.
In 2015, it had a population of 312,084 and the population density was 52/km².
Ethnicity.
Besides the Hungarian majority, the main minorities are the Roma (approx. 16,000), Germans (3,000) and Croats (1,500).
Total population (2011 census): 316,137
Ethnic groups (2011 census):
Identified themselves: 287,692 persons:
Religion.
Religious adherence in the county according to 2011 census:
Politics.
The Somogy County Council, elected at the 2014 local government elections, is made up of 16 counselors, with the following party composition:
Municipalities.
Somogy County has 1 urban county, 15 towns, 2 large villages and 227 villages.
 municipalities are "large" villages.
International relations.
Somogy County has a partnership relationship with:


Picardy

Picardy (; Picard and , , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France.
History.
The historical province of Picardy stretched from north of Noyon to Calais via the whole of the Somme department and the north of the Aisne department. The province of Artois (Arras area) separated Picardy from French Flanders.
Middle Ages.
From the 5th century, the area formed part of the Frankish Empire and, in the feudal period, it encompassed the six countships of Boulogne, Montreuil, Ponthieu, Amiénois, Vermandois and Laonnois. In accordance with the provisions of the 843 Treaty of Verdun, the region became part of West Francia, the later Kingdom of France.
The name "Picardy" derives from the Old French "pic," meaning "pike", the characteristic weapon used by people from this region in ancient times. The term "Picardy" was first used in the early 13th century, during which time the name applied to all lands where the Picard language was spoken including territories from Paris to the Netherlands. In the Latin Quarter of Paris, people identified a "Picard Nation" ("Nation Picarde") of students at Sorbonne University, most of whom actually came from Flanders.
During the Hundred Years' War, Picardy was the centre of the Jacquerie peasant revolt in 1358.
Beginning in 1419, the Picardy counties (Boulogne, Ponthieu, Amiens, Vermandois) were gradually acquired by the Burgundian duke Philip the Good, acquisitions confirmed by King Charles VII of France at the 1435 Congress of Arras. In 1477, King Louis XI of France led an army and occupied key towns in Picardy. By the end of 1477, Louis would control all of Picardy and most of Artois.
Modern era.
In the 16th century, the "government" (military region) of Picardy was created. This became a new administrative region of France, separate from what was historically defined as Picardy. The new Picardy included the Somme "département", the northern half of the Aisne "département" and a small fringe in the north of the Oise "département".
In 1557, Picardy was invaded by Habsburg forces under the command of Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy. After a seventeen-day siege, St. Quentin would be ransacked, while Noyon would be burned by the Habsburg army.
In the early 18th century, an infectious disease similar to English sweat originated from the region and spread across France. It was called "Suette des picards" or Picardy sweat.
Sugar beet was introduced by Napoleon I during the Napoleonic Wars in the 19th century in order to counter the United Kingdom which had seized the sugar islands possessed by France in the Caribbean. The sugar industry has continued to play a prominent role in the economy of the region.
One of the most significant historical events to occur in Picardy was the series of battles fought along the Somme during World War I. From September 1914 to August 1918, four major battles, including the Battle of the Somme, were fought by British, Commonwealth, French and German forces in the fields of Northern Picardy.
Picardy today.
In 2009, the Regional Committee for local government reform proposed to reduce the number of French regions and cancel additions of new regions in the near future. Picardy would have disappeared and each department would have joined a nearby region. The Oise would have been incorporated in the Île-de-France, the Somme would have been incorporated in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Aisne would have been incorporated in the Champagne-Ardenne. The vast majority of Picards were opposed to this proposal and it was scrapped in 2010 (see newspaper: "Courrier Picard").
Today, the modern region of Picardy no longer includes the coastline from Berck to Calais, via Boulogne (Boulonais), that is now in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region but does incorporate the "pays" of Beauvaisis, Valois, Noyonnais, Laonnois, Soissonnais, Omois among other departments of France. The older definition of Picardy survives in the name of the Picard language which applies not only to the dialects of Picardy proper but also to the Romance dialects spoken in the Nord-Pas de Calais "région", north of Picardy proper, and parts of the Belgian province of Hainaut.
Geography.
Between the 1990 and 1999 censuses, the population of Oise increased 0.61% per year (almost twice as fast as France as a whole), while the Aisne department lost inhabitants, and the Somme barely grew with a 0.16% growth per year. Today, 41.3% of the population of Picardy live inside the Oise department.
Picardy stretches from the long sand beaches of the Somme estuary in the west to the vast forests and pastures of the Thiérache in the east and down to the châteaux of Chantilly or Pierrefonds near the Paris Area and vineyards of the border with Champagne ("Champagne picarde") to the south.
Administration.
The president of the regional council is Claude Gewerc, a Socialist in office since 2004. That year he defeated longtime UDF incumbent Gilles de Robien.
Since 2008, the mayor of the city of Amiens, the regional capital, has been Socialist Gilles Demailly. He defeated longtime mayor Gilles de Robien of the New Centre party.
Language and culture.
Historically, the region of Picardy has a strong and proud cultural identity. The Picard (local inhabitants and traditionally speakers of the Picard language) cultural heritage includes some of the most extraordinary Gothic churches (Amiens and Beauvais cathedrals or Saint-Quentin basilica), distinctive local cuisine (including "ficelle picarde", "flamiche aux poireaux", "tarte au maroilles"), beer (including from Péronne's de Clercq brewery) and traditional games and sports, such as the "longue paume" (ancestor of tennis), as well as "danses picardes" and its own bagpipes, called the "pipasso".
The villages of Picardy have a distinct character, with their houses made of red bricks, often accented with a "lace" of white bricks. A minority of people still speak the Picard language, one of the languages of France, which is also spoken in Artois (Nord-Pas de Calais "région"). "P'tit quinquin", a Picard song, is a symbol of the local culture (and of that of Artois).
Picardy is arguably the birthplace of Gothic architecture, housing six of the world's greatest examples of Gothic cathedrals, which span the history of Gothic architecture in its entirety. Amiens Cathedral, standing as the largest cathedral in Europe, which according to John Ruskin is the "Pantheon of Gothic architecture", could house Notre-Dame de Paris twice over. It was built in as little as 50 years. Picardy also holds the tallest transept in the history of the Gothic period; this transept is located in Saint-Pierre cathedral in Beauvais, Oise.
The Museum of Picardy in Amiens, built between 1855 and 1867, houses a vast array of great works, spanning the centuries and ranging from archaeology from ancient Greece and Egypt to modern works of Pablo Picasso. The museum is closed until the end of 2019 for building work.
Although Picardy is one of the least-known regions in France, its influence from art and most certainly architecture is vivid throughout the world.


Larissa (regional unit)

Larissa () is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Thessaly. Its capital is the city of Larissa. Total population 284,325 (2011).
Geography.
Larissa is the second largest regional unit in Greece, exceeded only by Aetolia-Acarnania. It covers about one-third of Thessaly. It borders the regional units of Kozani to the northwest, Pieria to the northeast, the Aegean Sea to the east, Magnesia to the southeast, Phthiotis to the south, Karditsa to the southwest and Trikala to the west.
The tallest mountain in Greece, Mount Olympus (2,917 m) is situated in the northeastern part of the regional unit. Mount Ossa is situated in the east, at the Aegean coast. The lower stretch of the river Pineios flows through the Vale of Tempe, between Olympus and Ossa.
The northern part is covered with forests, but most of the regional unit is fertile land, the Thessalian Plain.
Climate.
Larissa has a mainly Mediterranean climate with hot summers and mild winters. Winter is harsher in the mountains areas, notably the north and Mount Olympus. Larissa is often the warmest area in Greece in summer and the coldest in winter. The highest temperature ever recorded was 45.4 °C (2000) and the coldest was -21.6 °C (1968). The city experiences very often temperatures over 40 °C.
Administration.
The regional unit Larissa is subdivided into 7 municipalities. These are (number as in the map in the infobox):
Prefecture.
Larissa was created as a prefecture () in 1882. As a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, the regional unit Larissa was created out of the former prefecture Larissa. The prefecture had the same territory as the present regional unit. At the same time, the municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below.
Historical Provinces.
"Note:" Provinces no longer hold any legal status in Greece, they were abolished in 2006.
History.
The area of Larissa was home to the Pelasgians until they merged into the broader Greek culture. The area was invaded and was ruled by the Kingdom of Macedonia a few centuries later, and was conquered by the Roman Republic after the Third Macedonian War. The Roman imperial period was followed by Byzantine rule, which was in turn succeeded by the Ottoman Empire. Parts of Thessaly revolted during the Greek War of Independence, but Thessaly remained under Ottoman Turkish rule. It was awarded to Greece in the Congress of Berlin in 1878, and finally incorporated into the Hellenic Kingdom in 1881, albeit parts of the modern Larissa prefecture, including Tyrnavos, Elassona and Sarantaporo, remained Ottoman. During the Greco-Turkish War of 1897, the area was successfully invaded by the Ottomans, but in the end Greece conceded only minor territorial losses. The northern portions of the prefecture, the Tempe Valley and Mount Olympus, were taken by Greece during the First Balkan War in 1912-1913.
The economy increased since the annexation in 1881 and later after 1913 for the north. After the Greco-Turkish War in Asia Minor of 1920-1922, refugees were relocated to the Prefecture. Several villages were created for them across the prefecture. During World War II, the area was a major scene of partisan activity. The occupation and the subsequent Greek Civil War however destroyed most of the local infrastructure. From the 1950s on, the road network was significantly expanded: the GR-1 was opened in 1957 and extended in the 1960s to the Tempe Valley. In 1984, the University of Thessaly opened its doors.
Economy.
Its main economy since the 1970s are manufacturing, businesses, communications and services. Agriculture is the second leading industry.
Agriculture.
The Thessalian Plain is famous for its crops including fruits (watermelon and melon), vegetables (tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers, onions, etc.), cotton, dairy, cattle and other crops.
Transport.
There are a number of highways E75 and the main railway from Athens to Thessaloniki crosses Thessaly. The region is directly linked to the rest of Europe through International Airport of Central Greece located in Nea Anchialos in a small distance from Larisa (26 kilometers).
Sports.
Sporting clubs include:


Keila

Keila () is a town and an urban municipality in Harju County in north-western Estonia, 25 km southwest of Tallinn. Keila is also the location of administrative buildings of the surrounding Keila Parish, a rural municipality separate from the town itself.
History.
The oldest traces of human settlement in Keila trace back 2000 to 3000 years BC. Around 1000 years ago the village of Keila was established along the Keila river. In 1219 the Danish conquered Northern-Estonia and chose Keila as the site on which the Vomentakæ parochial Revala county church was to be built. The first church was a small wooden structure dedicated primarily to St. Michael which was replaced with a stone church at the end of the 13th century. Subsequently, the first written mention of Keila ("Keikŋl") comes from Danish evaluation book writings in 1241.
In the 15th-16th century, a settlement comprising some tens of buildings and a hundred people formed around the church. At the same time the Livonian Order built a small fort south-east of the church on "jõesaare" (Known today as "Jõepark"). Ruins of the fort were first excavated in 1976 with continued finds up to 2007.
During the Livonian War of 1558-1583 the settlement, including the church (Later restored in 1596), was destroyed. Further hampered by the plague and starvation in 1601-1602 the population decline reduced the community to a small church village. This was to be the case for 3rd centuries. An upturn began on the second half of the 20th century. One of the first notable cultural events was the erection of a statue of Martin Luther in 1862 near the "kirikumõis" (Church manor). However the statue was completely destroyed in 1949. In 1885 the first song festival was held in Keila. The festival was composed of 19 choirs and supervised by Konstantin Türnpu from Klooga. In 1867 the first school was opened in "Väljaotsa" farm celebrating the start of education in Keila.
The development of Keila took a turn with the establishment of the Tallinn-Paldiski railway in 1870.
Keila officially became a town on 1 May 1938.
After the railway to Keila was built, the place became known — as a pun — as "Kegelbahn".
Keila has a station on the Elron rail line.
Military base.
During Soviet times a military base, known as the ""Tankipolk", was built on the outskirts of the town for the housing of soldiers and tanks. The base was demolished a few years after the Soviet army left the country. Years later a residential district was built on the site of the base. The woodland areas around it have also been cleaned up and turned into paved, and partially lit, paths. During winter the area acts as a skiing track with many hills and paths. The paths range from in length. The largest of the hills is known as "Tankimägi" or "Tank Hill"".
 no more than a few building foundations remain of the base.
Nature.
City is situated largely on a big hill known as Keila hill and on the valley of Keila River. On the westernmost side of Keila there is Niitvälja Bog.
454 million year old limestone, that can be seen outcropping in the city, is known as Keila stage. This name was given by Carl Friedrich Schmidt to distinguish layer of limestone, that is located between Jõhvi and Vasalemma stage.
Education.
There are several schools in Keila.
and 3 kindergartens.
Population.
According to the 2011 Census, the population was 10,014.
According to the 2009 Census, the population was 9,873.
According to the 2000 Census, the population was 9,388. 82.8% were Estonians, 12.1% Russians, 1.8%
Ukrainians, 0.9% Finns, 0.7% Belarusians, 0.2% Lithuanians, 0.1% Poles, 0.1% Tatars, 0.1% Germans and 0.1% Latvians.
According to the 2011,July,1st Census, the population was 10030.
International relations.
Twin towns — Sister cities.
Keila is twinned with:


Ladinia

Ladinia is neologism used to describe an Alpine region in the Dolomites mountain range of Northern Italy, divided between the Italian provinces of Belluno, South Tyrol, and Trento. The area takes its name from its inhabitants, the Ladin people, a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Their Ladin language is generally considered a Rhaeto-Romance language, though there is a scientific debate ("Questione Ladina") if it forms part of a wider Northern Italian dialect continuum.
History.
As a Rhaeto-Romance language, Ladin was part of a large area, which about 1000 AD stretched from Ticino ("Tessin") and Grisons in the Swiss Alps to the Julian Alps (in present-day Slovenia) in the east.
The Ladin people developed a national identity during the 19th century, when most of the area—except for the Venetian parts—was incorporated into the Princely County of Tyrol and, as part of the Austrian Empire, underwent a process of Germanisation. The local peasants were called "Welsche" by Germans (similar to "Wenden" or "Windische" for Slavs), while they called themselves "Latin" ("Ladin"). The Ladin movement was sparked by the Tyrolean Rebellion during the Napoleonic Wars; in 1833, the Ladin language was codified by Micurà de Rü (alias Nikolaus Bacher, 1789–1847), a priest from Badia. A "Naziun Ladina" association was established in 1870 by several seminarists in Brixen, among them Saint Joseph Freinademetz; followed by the "Uniun Ladina", founded in 1905 at Innsbruck, which also maintained relations with Romansh and Friulian organisations.
Ceded of Italy after World War I, the Ladin community, in spite of its high level of identification with the land, did not enjoy any official recognition. On 5 May 1920, representatives from the Ladin valleys met at Gardena Pass to protest against the resolutions of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye and to demand their rights of self-determination according to the Fourteen Points outlined by US President Woodrow Wilson. A blue-white-green flag was adopted, symbolising Ladinia's forests, the snow-covered peaks, and the blue sky above. The Ladin movement was suppressed under the Italian Fascist regime, when many Ladin citizens joined the German emigrants under the terms of the 1939 South Tyrol Option Agreement.
After World War II, an "Uniun Generela" was re-established and the Ladin flag was again occasionally displayed. In 1976, the "Istitut Ladin Micurà de Rü" was founded at San Martin de Tor for the promotion of the Ladin culture. The "Museum Ladin" opened in 2001 at nearby Tor Castle.
Territory.
The territory occupies approximately 1,200 square kilometers (460 sq. mi), encompassing five valleys in the Dolomite Alps centred around the Sella massif:
Other notable peaks in the region include Marmolada at 3,343 m (10,968 ft) and Antelao, the "King of the Dolomites" at 3,263 m (10,705 ft). The main rivers are the Aviso stream, a tributary of the Adige rising from the Marmolada Glacier and running through the Fascia Valley, the Boite in Ampezzo, a tributary of the Piave. Other creeks include the Gran Ega in Val Badia and the Derjon in Val Gardena.
Administratively, Ladinia is divided between two Italian regions, three provinces, and 18 small municipalities:
Furthermore, the Ladin language is officially recognised in 53 "comuni" of Belluno, South Tyrol, and Trentino.


Province of Lodi

The province of Lodi (; Lodigiano: ) is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its provincial capital is the city of Lodi. As of 2017, it has a population of 229,541 inhabitants over an area of c. , giving the province a population density of 293.2 inhabitants per square kilometre. The provincial president is Francesco Passerini.
History.
The city of Lodi was first settled during the fifth century BC, before being occupied by the Romans in 222 BC; by 89 BC it was called Laus Pompeia, the central city of the Lodi Vecchio. The history of the province in the Lombard and Frankish period is poorly documented, but the city of Lodi controlled the important trading route from Milan southwards to Cremona, Piacenza and the lower stretches of the River Lambro. In 1025, the German emperor Conrad II granted certain rights to the Archbishop of Milan which caused land ownership to change and tensions in the region to flare. Allied with the Holy Roman Emperor but independent, Laus Pomperia fought against the Milanesi in the twelfth century, and the city was destroyed in 1111 and again in 1158, which marked the end of the city on the old location. A request made of Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, to rebuild the city near the Adda River was granted. The city, however, joined his opponents, the Lombard League, in 1167. Its citizens fought against Frederick at the Battle of Legnano in 1176. Still, it continued to have problems with Milan (also a member of the Lombard League) until the city was conquered in 1335 by lord of Milan Azzone Visconti.
It remained peaceful until it was invaded in the 1490s. The first significant Italian victory by Napoleon took place in the province on 10 May 1796, where the 5,000 men-strong forces of Napoleon defeated Austrian forces of 10,000 men. It fell under Austrian rule until the Austrians left the city in 1859 and it was ruled by Marshal Patrice de MacMahon, Duke of Magenta's French forces from 10 June 1859. It later became a part of the kingdom of Italy and became a component of the province of Milan.
Geography.
The province of Lodi is one of twelve provinces in the region of Lombardy in northwestern Italy. It is about in area and is delineated by rivers; the right bank of the Adda nearly surrounds it, and a further part of the boundary is formed by the left bank of the Lambro and of the Po. The province is bounded on the east by the Province of Cremona, the Metropolitan City of Milan to the north and by the Province of Pavia to the west. The land is mostly gently sloping or flat and the soil is alluvial loam. It is used to grow fodder crops, which are mown up to eight times a year, rice, wheat, maize, sugarbeet and vegetables.


Walloon ICT cluster

The Walloon ICT cluster (French: Cluster TIC) is the official cluster of the ICT sector in Wallonia (south part of Belgium).
Activity domains.
The cluster is organized in eight groups of professional activities:


Drama (regional unit)

Drama (, "Perifereiakí Enótita Drámas") is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the Region of East Macedonia and Thrace. Its capital is the town of Drama. The regional unit is the northernmost within the geographical region of Macedonia and the westernmost in the administrative region of East Macedonia and Thrace. The northern border with Bulgaria is formed by the Rhodope Mountains.
Geography.
The northern part of the regional unit, bordering Bulgaria, is very mountainous. The main mountain ranges are Orvilos ( - Slavyanka) in the northwest, Falakro in the north (at 2232m the highest point of the regional unit), the western Rhodope Mountains in the northeast (including mounts Frakto, Elatia, Koula etc.) and Menoikio in the southwest. The Nestos is the longest river, flowing in the northeast. The northern portion holds a unique treasure known as Karantere (or Forest of Elatia).
Drama is surrounded by the regional units of Xanthi to the east, Kavala to the south, Serres to the southwest and to the west, and the Bulgarian provinces of Blagoevgrad and Smolyan to the north. Arable lands are located in the southern and the westcentral portion of Drama.
The southern part mainly has a Mediterranean climate. The climate is more continental with cold winters in higher elevations and in the northern part.
Administration.
The Drama regional unit is subdivided into 5 municipalities. These are (number as in the map in the infobox):
Prefecture.
As a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, the former Drama Prefecture () was transformed into a regional unit within the East Macedonia and Thrace region. The prefecture had the same territory as the present regional unit. At the same time, the municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below.
Transport.
The main roads of Drama regional unit are Greek National Road 12 (Thessaloniki - Serres - Drama - Kavala), Greek National Road 14 (Drama - Xanthi) and Greek National Road 57 (Drama - Kato Nevrokopi - Bulgaria). The Thessaloniki–Alexandroupoli railway passes through Drama and Paranesti.


Lancashire

Lancashire ( ; abbreviated Lancs.) is a ceremonial county and geographical area in North West England. The ceremonial county's administrative centre is Preston, while Lancaster is still the county town. The borders of the ceremonial county were created by the Local Government Act 1972 (enacted 1974) and enclose a population of 1,449,300 and an area of .
However, this is only a small portion of the extent of the historic county palatine, which includes the large cities of Manchester and Liverpool as well as the Furness and Cartmel peninsulas in the Lake District, and has an area of . Many of these places still identify strongly with the county, particularly in areas of Greater Manchester (such as Oldham and Bury) where Lancashire is still used as part of the postal address. The population of Lancashire in the 1971 census (before local government changes) was 5,118,405, making it the most heavily populated county in the United Kingdom at the time (other than Greater London, which had only been created in 1965).
The history of Lancashire begins with its founding in the 12th century. In the "Domesday Book" of 1086, some of its lands were treated as part of Yorkshire. The land that lay between the Ribble and Mersey, "Inter Ripam et Mersam", was included in the returns for Cheshire. When its boundaries were established, it bordered Cumberland, Westmorland, Yorkshire, and Cheshire.
Lancashire emerged as a major commercial and industrial region during the Industrial Revolution. Liverpool and Manchester grew into its largest cities, with economies built around the docks and the cotton mills respectively. These cities dominated global trade and the birth of modern industrial capitalism. The county contained several mill towns and the collieries of the Lancashire Coalfield. By the 1830s, approximately 85% of all cotton manufactured worldwide was processed in Lancashire. Accrington, Blackburn, Bolton, Burnley, Bury, Chorley, Colne, Darwen, Manchester, Nelson, Oldham, Preston, Rochdale and Wigan were major cotton mill towns during this time. Blackpool was a centre for tourism for the inhabitants of Lancashire's mill towns, particularly during wakes week.
The historic county was subject to a significant boundary reform in 1974 which created the current ceremonial county and removed Liverpool and Manchester, and most of their surrounding conurbations to form the metropolitan and ceremonial counties of Merseyside and Greater Manchester. The detached northern part of Lancashire in the Lake District, including the Furness Peninsula and Cartmel, was merged with Cumberland and Westmorland to form Cumbria. Lancashire lost 709 square miles of land to other counties, about two fifths of its original area, although it did gain some land from the West Riding of Yorkshire.
Today the ceremonial county borders Cumbria to the north, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and North and West Yorkshire to the east; with a coastline on the Irish Sea to the west. The county palatine boundaries remain the same as those of the pre-1974 county with Lancaster serving as the county town, and the Duke of Lancaster (i.e. the Queen) exercising sovereignty rights, including the appointment of lords lieutenant in Greater Manchester and Merseyside.
History.
Early history.
The county was established in 1182, later than many other counties. During Roman times the area was part of the Brigantes tribal area in the military zone of Roman Britain. The towns of Manchester, Lancaster, Ribchester, Burrow, Elslack and Castleshaw grew around Roman forts. In the centuries after the Roman withdrawal in 410AD the northern parts of the county probably formed part of the Brythonic kingdom of Rheged, a successor entity to the Brigantes tribe. During the mid-8th century, the area was incorporated into the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Northumbria, which became a part of England in the 10th century.
In the "Domesday Book", land between the Ribble and Mersey were known as "Inter Ripam et Mersam" and included in the returns for Cheshire. Although some historians consider this to mean south Lancashire was then part of Cheshire, it is by no means certain. It is also claimed that the territory to the north formed part of the West Riding of Yorkshire. It bordered on Cumberland, Westmorland, Yorkshire, and Cheshire.
The county was divided into the hundreds of Amounderness, Blackburn, Leyland, Lonsdale, Salford and West Derby. Lonsdale was further partitioned into Lonsdale North, the detached part north of the sands of Morecambe Bay including Furness and Cartmel, and Lonsdale South.
Modern history.
Lancashire is smaller than its historical extent following a major reform of local government. In 1889, the administrative county of Lancashire was created, covering the historic county except for the county boroughs of Barrow-in-Furness, Blackburn, Bolton, Bootle, Burnley, Bury, Liverpool, Manchester, Oldham, Preston, Rochdale, Salford, St. Helens and Wigan. The area served by the Lord-Lieutenant (termed now a ceremonial county) covered the entirety of the administrative county and the county boroughs, and was expanded whenever boroughs annexed areas in neighbouring counties such as Wythenshawe in Manchester south of the River Mersey and historically in Cheshire, and southern Warrington. It did not cover the western part of Todmorden, where the ancient border between Lancashire and Yorkshire passes through the middle of the town.
During the 20th century, the county became increasingly urbanised, particularly the southern part. To the existing county boroughs of Barrow-in-Furness, Blackburn, Bolton, Bootle, Burnley, Bury, Liverpool, Manchester, Oldham, Preston, Rochdale, Salford, St. Helens and Wigan were added Warrington (1900), Blackpool (1904) and Southport (1905). The county boroughs also had many boundary extensions. The borders around the Manchester area were particularly complicated, with narrow protrusions of the administrative county between the county boroughs – Lees urban district formed a detached part of the administrative county, between Oldham county borough and the West Riding of Yorkshire.
By the census of 1971, the population of Lancashire and its county boroughs had reached 5,129,416, making it the most populous geographic county in the UK. The administrative county was also the most populous of its type outside London, with a population of 2,280,359 in 1961. On 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, the southern part of the administrative county was transferred to the two newly established metropolitan counties of Merseyside and Greater Manchester.
The new county of Cumbria incorporated the Furness exclave. from the same date.
The boroughs of Liverpool, Knowsley, St. Helens and Sefton were included in Merseyside. In Greater Manchester the successor boroughs were Bury, Bolton, Manchester, Oldham (part), Rochdale, Salford, Tameside (part), Trafford (part) and Wigan.
Warrington and Widnes, south of the new Merseyside/Greater Manchester border, were transferred to the administrative county of Cheshire. The urban districts of Barnoldswick and Earby, Bowland Rural District and the parishes of Bracewell and Brogden and Salterforth from Skipton Rural District in the West Riding of Yorkshire became part of the administrative county of Lancashire. One parish, Simonswood, was transferred from the borough of Knowsley in Merseyside to the district of West Lancashire in 1994. In 1998 Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen became independent unitary authorities, removing them from the administrative county but not from the ceremonial county. In the same year Warrington became a unitary authority and was no longer part of the administrative county of Cheshire, but remains part of the ceremonial county.
Geography.
Divisions and environs.
Lancashire, the shire county controlled by the county council is divided into local government districts, Burnley, Chorley, Fylde, Hyndburn, Lancaster, Pendle, Preston, Ribble Valley, Rossendale, South Ribble, West Lancashire, and Wyre.
Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen are unitary authorities that do not come under county council control. The Lancashire Constabulary covers the shire county and the unitary authorities. The ceremonial county, including the unitary authorities, borders Cumbria, North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside in the North West England region.
Geology, landscape and ecology.
The highest point of the modern county council area is Gragareth, near Whernside, which reaches a height of 627 m (2,057 ft). Green Hill near Gragareth has also been cited as the "county" top. of the modern council area. However, the highest point in the historic County Palatine is Coniston Old Man in the Lake District at 803 m (2,634 ft), which is regarded as the County Top by those who feel the Local Government Act 1972 (enacted 1974) did not abolish the historic county borders of Lancashire.
Lancashire rivers drain westwards from the Pennines into the Irish Sea. Rivers in Lancashire include the Ribble, Wyre and Lune. Their tributaries are the Calder, Darwen, Douglas, Hodder, and Yarrow. The Irwell has its source in Lancashire.
To the west of the county are the West Lancashire Coastal Plain and the Fylde coastal plain north of the Ribble Estuary. Further north is Morecambe Bay. Apart from the coastal resorts, these areas are largely rural with the land devoted to vegetable crops. In the northwest corner of the county, straddling the border with Cumbria, is the Arnside and Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), characterised by its limestone pavements and home to the Leighton Moss nature reserve.
To the east of the county are upland areas leading to the Pennines. North of the Ribble is Beacon Fell Country Park and the Forest of Bowland, another AONB. Much of the lowland in this area is devoted to dairy farming and cheesemaking, whereas the higher ground is more suitable for sheep, and the highest ground is uncultivated moorland. The valleys of the River Ribble and its tributary the Calder form a large gap to the west of the Pennines, overlooked by Pendle Hill. Most of the larger Lancashire towns are in these valleys South of the Ribble are the West Pennine Moors and the Forest of Rossendale where former cotton mill towns are in deep valleys. The Lancashire Coalfield, largely in modern-day Greater Manchester, extended into Merseyside and to Ormskirk, Chorley, Burnley and Colne in Lancashire.
Green belt.
Lancashire contains green belt interspersed throughout the county, covering much of the southern districts and towns throughout the Ribble Valley, West Lancashire and The Fylde coastal plains to prevent convergence with the nearby Merseyside and Greater Manchester conurbations. Further pockets control the expansion of Lancaster, and surround the Blackpool urban area, as part of the western edge of the North West Green Belt. It was first drawn up from the 1950s. All the county's districts contain some portion of belt, the portion by Burnley also abutting the Forest of Pendle Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Politics.
County Council.
Lancashire County Council is based in County Hall in Preston. Built as a home for the county administration, the Quarter Sessions and Lancashire Constabulary, it opened on 14 September 1882.
Local elections for 84 councillors from 84 divisions are held every four years. The Conservative Party currently form a majority on Lancashire County Council.
Duchy of Lancaster.
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of two royal duchies in England. It has landholdings throughout the region and elsewhere, operating as a property company, but also exercising the right of the Crown in the County Palatine of Lancaster. While the administrative boundaries changed in the 1970s, the county palatine boundaries remain the same as the historic boundaries. As a result, the High Sheriffs for Lancashire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside are appointed "within the Duchy and County Palatine of Lancaster".
The High Sheriff is an ancient county officer, but is now a largely ceremonial post. High Shrievalties are the oldest secular titles under the Crown, in England and Wales. The High Sheriff is the representative of the monarch and is the "Keeper of The Queen's Peace" in the county, executing judgements of the High Court.
The Duchy administers "bona vacantia" within the County Palatine, receiving the property of persons who die intestate and where the legal ownership cannot be ascertained. There is no separate Duke of Lancaster; the title merged into the Crown with the ascension of Henry V. Rather, the Duchy is administered by the Queen in Right of the Duchy of Lancaster. A separate court system for the county palatine was abolished by Courts Act 1971. A particular form of The Loyal Toast, 'The Queen, Duke of Lancaster' is in regular use in the county palatine. Lancaster serves as the county town of the county palatine.
Economy.
Lancashire in the 19th century was a major centre of economic activity, and hence one of wealth. Activities included coal mining, textile production, particularly cotton, and fishing. Preston Docks, an industrial port are now disused for commercial purposes. Lancashire was historically the location of the port of Liverpool while Barrow-in-Furness is famous for shipbuilding.
As of 2013, the largest private sector industry is the defence industry with BAE Systems Military Air Solutions division based in Warton on the Fylde coast. The division operates a manufacturing site in Samlesbury. Other defence firms include BAE Systems Global Combat Systems in Chorley, Ultra Electronics in Fulwood and Rolls-Royce plc in Barnoldswick.
The nuclear power industry has a plant at Springfields, Salwick operated by Westinghouse and Heysham nuclear power station is operated by British Energy. Other major manufacturing firms include Leyland Trucks, a subsidiary of Paccar building the DAF truck range.
Other companies with a major presence in Lancashire include:
The Foulnaze cockle fishery is in Lytham. It has only opened the coastal cockle beds three times in twenty years; August 2013 was the last of these openings.
Enterprise zone.
The creation of Lancashire Enterprise Zone was announced in 2011. It was launched in April 2012, based at the airfields owned by BAE Systems in Warton and Samlesbury. Warton Aerodrome covers and Samlesbury Aerodrome is 74 hectares. Development is coordinated by Lancashire Enterprise Partnership, Lancashire County Council and BAE Systems. The first businesses to move into the zone did so in March 2015, at Warton.
In March 2015 the government announced a new enterprise zone would be created at Blackpool Airport, using some airport and adjoining land. Operations at the airport will not be affected.
Economic output.
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire at basic prices published by the Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British pounds sterling.
Education.
Lancashire has a mostly comprehensive system with four state grammar schools. Not including sixth form colleges, there are 77 state schools (not including Burnley's new schools) and 24 independent schools. The Clitheroe area has secondary modern schools. Sixth form provision is limited at most schools in most districts, with only Fylde and Lancaster districts having mostly sixth forms at schools. The rest depend on FE colleges and sixth form colleges, where they exist. South Ribble has the largest school population and Fylde the smallest (only three schools). Burnley's schools have had a new broom and have essentially been knocked down and started again in 2006. There are many Church of England and Catholic faith schools in Lancashire.
Lancashire is home to four universities: Lancaster University, the University of Central Lancashire, Edge Hill University and the Lancaster campus of the University of Cumbria. Seven colleges offer higher education courses.
Transport.
Road.
The Lancashire economy relies strongly on the M6 motorway which runs from north to south, past Lancaster and Preston. The M55 connects Preston to Blackpool and is 11.5 miles (18.3 km) long. The M65 motorway from Colne, connects Burnley, Accrington, Blackburn to Preston. The M61 from Preston via Chorley and the M66 starting inside the county boundary near Edenfield, provide links between Lancashire and Manchester] and the trans-Pennine M62. The M58 crosses the southernmost part of the county from the M6 near Wigan to Liverpool via Skelmersdale.
Other major roads include the east–west A59 between Liverpool in Merseyside and Skipton in North Yorkshire via Ormskirk, Preston and Clitheroe, and the connecting A565 to Southport; the A56 from Ramsbottom to Padiham via Haslingden and from Colne to Skipton; the A585 from Kirkham to Fleetwood; the A666 from the A59 north of Blackburn to Bolton via Darwen; and the A683 from Heysham to Kirkby Lonsdale via Lancaster.
Rail.
The West Coast Main Line provides direct rail links with London, Glasgow and other major cities, with stations at and . East-west connections are carried via the East Lancashire Line between Blackpool and via , Preston, , and Burnley. The Ribble Valley Line runs from to via and Blackburn. There are connecting lines from Preston to and Bolton, and from Lancaster to , Heysham and .
Air.
Blackpool Airport are no longer operating domestic or international flights, but it is still the home of flying schools, private operators and North West Air Ambulance. Manchester Airport is the main airport in the region. Liverpool John Lennon Airport is nearby, while the closest airport to the Pendle Borough is Leeds Bradford.
There is an operational airfield at Warton near Preston where there is a major assembly and test facility for BAE Systems.
Ferry.
Heysham offers ferry services to Ireland and the Isle of Man. As part of its industrial past, Lancashire gave rise to an extensive network of canals, which extend into neighbouring counties. These include the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, Lancaster Canal, Sankey Canal, Bridgewater Canal, Rochdale Canal, Ashton Canal and Manchester Ship Canal.
Bus.
Several bus companies run bus services in the Lancashire area serving the main towns and villages in the county with some services running to neighbouring areas, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and West Yorkshire. Some of these include:
and many more.
Demography.
The major settlements in the ceremonial county are concentrated on the Fylde coast (the Blackpool Urban Area), and a belt of towns running west–east along the M65: Preston, Blackburn, Accrington, Burnley, Nelson and Colne. South of Preston are the towns of Leyland and Chorley; the three formed part of the Central Lancashire New Town designated in 1970. The north of the county is predominantly rural and sparsely populated, except for the towns of Lancaster and Morecambe which form a large conurbation of almost 100,000 people. Lancashire is home to a significant Asian population, numbering over 70,000 and 6% of the county's population, and concentrated largely in the former cotton mill towns in the south east.
Settlements.
The table below has divided the settlements into their local authority district. Each district has a centre of administration; for some of these correlate with a district's largest town, while others are named after the geographical area.
Historic areas.
Some settlements which were historically part of the county now fall under the counties of West Yorkshire, Cheshire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester and Cumbria:
Boundary changes to occur before 1974 include:
Symbols.
The Red Rose of Lancaster is the county flower found on the county's heraldic badge and flag. The rose was a symbol of the House of Lancaster, immortalised in the verse "In the battle for England's head/York was white, Lancaster red" (referring to the 15th-century Wars of the Roses). The traditional Lancashire flag, a red rose on a white field, was not officially registered. When an attempt was made to register it with the Flag Institute it was found that it was officially registered by Montrose in Scotland, several hundred years earlier with the Lyon Office. Lancashire's official flag is registered as a red rose on a gold field.
Sport.
Cricket.
Lancashire County Cricket Club has been one of the most successful county cricket teams, particularly in the one-day game. It is home to England cricket team members James Anderson and Jos Buttler. The County Ground, Old Trafford, Trafford has been the home cricket ground of LCCC since 1864.
Local cricket leagues include the Lancashire League, the Central Lancashire League and the North Lancashire and Cumbria League.
Since 2000, the designated ECB Premier League for Lancashire has been the Liverpool and District Cricket Competition.
Football.
Football in Lancashire is governed by the Lancashire County Football Association which like most county football associations has boundaries which are aligned roughly with the historic counties. The Manchester Football Association and Liverpool County Football Association operate in Greater Manchester and Merseyside.
Lancashire clubs were prominent in the formation of the Football League in 1888, with the league being officially named at a meeting in Manchester. Of the twelve founder members of the league, six were from Lancashire: Accrington, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Burnley, Everton, and Preston North End.
The Football League now operates out of Preston. The National Football Museum was founded at Deepdale, Preston in 2001, but moved to Manchester in 2012.
Seven professional full-time teams were based in Lancashire, at the start of the 2018–2019 season:
The county's most prominent football rivalries are the East Lancashire derby between Blackburn Rovers and Burnley, and the West Lancashire derby between Blackpool and Preston North End.
A further nine professional full-time teams lie within the historical borders of Lancashire but outside of the current ceremonial county. These include the Premier League clubs Everton, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United.
Rugby League.
Along with Yorkshire and Cumberland, Lancashire is recognised as the heartland of Rugby League. The county has produced many successful top flight clubs such as St. Helens, Wigan, Warrington, Oldham, Salford and Widnes. The county was once the focal point for many of the sport's professional competitions including the Lancashire League competition which ran from 1895 to 1970, and the Lancashire County Cup which ran until 1993. Rugby League has also seen a representative fixture between Lancashire and Yorkshire contested 89 times since its inception in 1895. In recent times there were several rugby league teams that are based within the ceremonial county which include Blackpool Panthers, East Lancashire Lions, Blackpool Sea Eagles, Bamber Bridge RLFC, Leyland Warriors, Chorley Panthers, Blackpool Stanley, Blackpool Scorpions and Adlington Rangers.
Archery.
There are many archery clubs located within Lancashire. In 2004 Lancashire took the winning title at the Inter-counties championships from Yorkshire who had held it for 7 years.
Wrestling.
Lancashire has a long history of wrestling, developing its own style called Lancashire wrestling, with many clubs that over the years have produced many renowned wrestlers. Some of these have crossed over into the mainstream world of professional wrestling, including Shak Khan, Billy Riley, Davey Boy Smith, William Regal, Wade Barrett and the Dynamite Kid.
Music.
Folk music.
Lancashire has a long and highly productive tradition of music making. In the early modern era the county shared in the national tradition of balladry, including perhaps the finest border ballad, "The Ballad of Chevy Chase", thought to have been composed by the Lancashire-born minstrel Richard Sheale. The county was also a common location for folk songs, including "The Lancashire Miller", "Warrington Ale" and "The soldier's farewell to Manchester", while Liverpool, as a major seaport, was the subject of many sea shanties, including "The Leaving of Liverpool" and "Maggie May", beside several local Wassailing songs. In the Industrial Revolution changing social and economic patterns helped create new traditions and styles of folk song, often linked to migration and patterns of work. These included processional dances, often associated with rushbearing or the Wakes Week festivities, and types of step dance, most famously clog dancing.
A local pioneer of folk song collection in the first half of the 19th century was Shakespearean scholar James Orchard Halliwell, but it was not until the second folk revival in the 20th century that the full range of song from the county, including industrial folk song, began to gain attention. The county produced one of the major figures of the revival in Ewan MacColl, but also a local champion in Harry Boardman, who from 1965 onwards probably did more than anyone to popularise and record the folk song of the county. Perhaps the most influential folk artists to emerge from the region in the late 20th century were Liverpool folk group The Spinners, and from Manchester folk troubadour Roy Harper and musician, comedian and broadcaster Mike Harding. The region is home to numerous folk clubs, many of them catering to Irish and Scottish folk music. Regular folk festivals include the Fylde Folk Festival at Fleetwood.
Classical music.
Lancashire had a lively culture of choral and classical music, with very large numbers of local church choirs from the 17th century, leading to the foundation of local choral societies from the mid-18th century, often particularly focused on performances of the music of Handel and his contemporaries. It also played a major part in the development of brass bands which emerged in the county, particularly in the textile and coalfield areas, in the 19th century. The first open competition for brass bands was held at Manchester in 1853, and continued annually until the 1980s. The vibrant brass band culture of the area made an important contribution to the foundation and staffing of the Hallé Orchestra from 1857, the oldest extant professional orchestra in the United Kingdom. The same local musical tradition produced eminent figures such as Sir William Walton (1902–88), son of an Oldham choirmaster and music teacher, Sir Thomas Beecham (1879–1961), born in St. Helens, who began his career by conducting local orchestras and Alan Rawsthorne (1905–71) born in Haslingden. The conductor David Atherton, co-founder of the London Sinfonietta, was born in Blackpool in 1944. Lancashire also produced more populist figures, such as early musical theatre composer Leslie Stuart (1863–1928), born in Southport, who began his musical career as organist of Salford Cathedral.
More recent Lancashire-born composers include Hugh Wood (1932– Parbold), Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (1934–2016, Salford), Sir Harrison Birtwistle (1934–, Accrington), Gordon Crosse (1937–, Bury),John McCabe (1939–2015, Huyton), Roger Smalley (1943–2015, Swinton), Nigel Osborne (1948–, Manchester), Steve Martland (1954–2013, Liverpool), Simon Holt (1958–, Bolton) and Philip Cashian (1963–, Manchester).
The Royal Manchester College of Music was founded in 1893 to provide a northern counterpart to the London musical colleges. It merged with the Northern College of Music (formed in 1920) to form the Royal Northern College of Music in 1972.
Popular music.
Liverpool, both during its time in Lancashire and after being moved to the new county of Merseyside, has produced a number of successful musicians. This includes pop stars such as Frankie Vaughan and Lita Roza, as well as rock stars such as Billy Fury, who is considered to be one of the most successful British rock and roll stars of all time. Many Lancashire towns had vibrant skiffle scenes in the late 1950s, out of which a culture of beat groups emerged by the early 1960s, particularly around Liverpool and Manchester. It has been estimated that there were at least 350 bands—including the Beatles—active in and around Liverpool during this era, playing ballrooms, concert halls, and clubs. A number of Liverpool performers followed the Beatles into the charts, including Gerry & the Pacemakers, the Searchers, and Cilla Black.
The first musicians to break through in the UK who were not from Liverpool or managed by Beatles manager Brian Epstein were Manchester's Freddie and the Dreamers, with Herman's Hermits and the Hollies also hailing from Manchester. The Beatles led a movement by various beat groups from the region which culminated in the British Invasion of the US, which in turn made a major contribution to the development of modern rock music. After the decline of beat groups in the late 1960s, the centre of rock culture shifted to London, and there were relatively few Lancashire bands who achieved national prominence until the growth of a disco scene and the punk rock revolution in the mid-and-late 1970s.
The towns of Accrington, Burnley, Chorley, Clitheroe, Colne, Lytham St Annes, Morecambe, Nelson, Ormskirk and Skelmersdale are referenced in the in the 1991 song, It's Grim Up North by the band. KLF. As well as the cities of Lancaster and Preston.
Cuisine.
Lancashire is the origin of the Lancashire hotpot, a casserole dish traditionally made with lamb. Other traditional foods from the area include:
Places of interest.
The following are places of interest in the ceremonial county:
 Haigh Hall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:HH_icon.svg
Filmography.
"Whistle Down the Wind" (1961) was directed by Bryan Forbes, set at the foot of Worsaw Hill and in Burnley, and starred local Lancashire schoolchildren.
The tunnel scene was shot on the old Bacup-Rochdale railway line, location 53°41'29.65"N, 2°11'25.18"W, off the A6066 (New Line) where the line passes beneath Stack Lane. The tunnel is still there, in use as an industrial unit but the railway has long since been removed.
"Funny Bones" (1995) was set mostly in Blackpool, after opening scenes in Las Vegas.


Vinos de Madrid

Vinos de Madrid is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP), located in the southern part of the region of Madrid (Spain). It covers 54 municipalities and is divided into the three sub-zones (Arganda, Navalcarnero, and San Martín), each of which produce different types of wine.
History.
The ancient Romans likely introduced vines in the area as they did throughout the rest of the Iberian peninsula. However, the first documented evidence of wine production in the area dates from the 13th century. Legal documents indicate a dispute between some monks and a local feudal lord over the ownership of a vineyard.
Vinos de Madrid acquired its DO status in 1990.
Geography and Soils.
The three sub-zones are all at an elevation of between 500 and 800 m above sea level. Arganda is the largest sub-zone, containing about 50% of the vines and comprising 26 municipalities. The soil here contains mainly clay and lime over a granite subsoil. To the southwest, close to the Sierra de Gredos range, is the San Martín sub-zone, which contains 35% of the DOP's vines. Further to the southwest is the Navalcarnero sub-zone with 15% of the vines. Rich dark soils are more abundant in San Martín, while in Navalcarnero the soils lack carbonates, are low in nutrients, and lie over a clay subsoil.
Climate.
The three sub-zones of Vinos de Madrid DOP all have long, hot summers and cold winters, typical of a continental climate. Temperatures widely varies over the course of the year, from as high as 40°C in summer and as low as -2°C in winter. Rainfall varies depending on the sub-zone, but in general it is sparse and falls mainly in spring and autumn. San Martin gets the most rainfall (650 mm/year) due to the influence of the mountains, while Navalcarnero gets just over 500 mm/year, and Arganda just 450 mm/year. The risk of hailstones exists every year till around April.
Authorised Grape Varieties.
The authorised grape varieties are:
External links.
[[Category:Wine regions of Spain]]
[[Category:Community of Madrid]]


Wiltz (canton)

Wiltz is a canton in northwestern Luxembourg. Its capital is the city of Wiltz. It covers an area of 264.55 km², and it has a population of 16,735.
Administrative divisions.
Wiltz Canton consists of the following seven communes:


Odense Municipality

Odense Municipality () is a Danish municipality ("kommune") in Southern Denmark on the island of Funen in central Denmark. The municipality covers an area of , and has a population of 204,895 (1 January 2020). It is the most populous municipality in Region of Southern Denmark.
The main town and the site of its municipal council is the city of Odense. Including the social sector, 17,000 people are employed by the municipality. The municipal budget is 6,881 million DKK as of 2006. The municipality runs 37 schools; Odense is also the home of 13 private schools.
Neighboring municipalities are Kerteminde to the east, Faaborg-Midtfyn to the south, Assens to the west, and Nordfyn to the north.
Geography.
The Odense municipality is located near the Odense Fjord. The Odense Canal ("Odense Kanal") flows out from the fjord and forms three ports in the city's industrial area. The Odense River ("Odense Å") also flows out from the fjord and meanders through the municipality, including Odense town center where Sankt Jørgens Park and Munke Mose are located on its banks. The river springs from Lake Arreskov ("Arreskov Sø") in Faaborg-Midtfyn municipality.
The highest point in the municipality is Dyred Banke which is located at above sea level.
History.
The municipality, a former "Provincial municipality" was re-created 1 April 1970 as Odense municipality as the result of a ("Municipal Reform") that merged a number of existing "Provincial"- "Parish"- and "Village"- municipalities: Allerup-Davinde, Allese-Næsbyhoved, Broby, Brændekilde, Bellinge, Dalum, Fraugde, Korup-Ubberud, Lumby, Odense, Paarup, Sanderum, Stenløse-Fangel, the "coalition-municipality" of Fjordager (which had been created in 1966 by merging Agedrup and Seden-Åsum municipalities), and Højby parish.
Odense municipality was not merged with other municipalities by 1 January 2007 as the result of the nationwide "Kommunalreformen" ("The Municipal Reform" of 2007). Before this reform, the list of neighboring municipalities were Langeskov to the east, Munkebo to the northeast, Otterup to the north, Søndersø, Vissenbjerg, and Tommerup to the west, and Broby and Årslev to the south. Odense belonged to Funen County 1970-2006 and before this to Odense County.
Politics.
Odense's municipal council consists of 29 members, elected every four years. The municipal council has five political committees.
Municipal council.
Below are the municipal councils elected since the Municipal Reform of 2007.
Mayors.
Odense's mayor is , representing the Social Democrats, since 1 January 2018.
The former mayor of Odense Municipality, Anker Boye, is a member of the Social Democratic Party. His first term was from 1993 to 2005 when he was defeated by Jan Boye, a Conservative. He was re-elected in the 2009 election, forming a coalition with the Red–Green Alliance, the Socialist People's Party and the Social Democrats.
The following is a list of mayors since 1792:
Neighbourhoods and settlements.
After the city of Odense itself, the next most populous locations in the Municipality are:
The municipality of Odense is divided into 11 different sectors. Neighbourhoods, suburbs and surrounding villages of the city of Odense include:
The city of Odense.
Odense is the third largest city in Denmark, and one of country's oldest settlements. The first record of its existence dates from 988 and the town celebrated its 1,000th anniversary in 1988. The name refers to Odin in Norse mythology— "Odins Vi" ("Odin's Sanctuary"). The shrine of Canute the Saint was a great resort of pilgrims throughout the Middle Ages. His relics are still preserved in Saint Canute's Cathedral. In the 16th century the town was the meeting-place of several parliaments, and down to 1805 it was the seat of the provincial assembly of Funen.
Denmark's famous author and poet Hans Christian Andersen was born in Odense on 2 April 1805. Museums honouring him have been created both in a house in the old part of Odense with a large collection of his works and belongings, and his childhood home, which is also located in the city.
Odense also has a museum honouring the classical composer Carl Nielsen, who was born in Nr. Lynelse near Odense.
Transportation.
The municipality is connected with all points on the island with an extensive system of roads, including the major E20 Funish Motorway ("Fynske Motorvej") which runs across the island through the town of Odense and connect the island on the east to the island of Zealand over the Great Belt Bridge and on the west to the Danish mainland, Jutland over the Little Belt Bridge. A motorway built 2006-2009 connects Odense to the island's second-largest city, Svendborg, which also has a railroad connection (Svendborgbanen). The town of Odense is also a major stop on the national railroad system lines.


Upper Pirkanmaa

Upper Pirkanmaa is a subdivision of Pirkanmaa and one of the Sub-regions of Finland since 2009.
Politics.
Results of the 2018 Finnish presidential election:


Zala County

Zala (, ; ; ) is an administrative county (comitatus or "megye") in south-western Hungary. It is named after the Zala River. It shares borders with Croatia (Koprivnica–Križevci and Međimurje Counties) and Slovenia (Lendava and Moravske Toplice) and the Hungarian counties Vas, Veszprém and Somogy. The capital of Zala county is Zalaegerszeg. Its area is . Lake Balaton lies partly in the county.
History.
In the 10th century, the Hungarian Nyék tribe occupied the region around Lake Balaton. Their occupation was mainly in the areas known today as Zala and Somogy counties.
Parts of the western territory of the former county of Zala are now part of Slovenia (South-Prekmurje) and Croatia (Međimurje). In 1919 it was part of the unrecognized state of the Republic of Prekmurje, which existed for just six days.
Demographics.
In 2015, it had a population of 277,290 and the population density was 73/km².
Ethnicity.
Besides the Hungarian majority, the main minorities are the Roma (approx. 7,000), Croats (3,500) and Germans (2,000).
Total population (2011 census): 282,179
Ethnic groups (2011 census):
Identified themselves: 255 069 persons:
Approx. 38,000 persons in Zala County did not declare their ethnic group at the 2011 census.
Religion.
Religious adherence in the county according to 2011 census:
Politics.
The Zala County Council, elected at the 2014 local government elections, is made up of 15 counselors, with the following party composition:
Municipalities.
Zala County has 2 urban counties, 8 towns, 2 large villages and 246 villages.
 municipalities are "large" villages.


Pernik Province

Pernik Province is a province in western Bulgaria, neighbouring Serbia. Its main city is Pernik, and other municipalities are Breznik, Kovachevtsi, Radomir, Tran, and Zemen.
Population.
Pernik province had a population of 133,750 according to the 2011 census, of which were male and were female.
The following table represents the change of the population in the province after World War II:
Ethnic groups.
Total population (2011 census): 133 530
Ethnic groups (2011 census):
Identified themselves: 125 422 persons:
Ethnic groups in the province according to 2001 census:
Religion.
Religious adherence in the province according to 2001 census:
Economy.
Industry is of vital importance for the economy of the province. Pernik is the major manufacturing centre, one of the largest in the country with the "Stomana" steel complex; heavy machinery (mining and industrial equipment); building materials and textiles being the most important. There is an enormous plant for heavy machinery in Radomir which produces excavators and industrial equipment, but is currently not working at full capacity.