Yorkshire

Yorkshire (/ˈjɔːrkʃər, -ʃɪər/; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county of Northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom.[3] Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform. Throughout these changes, Yorkshire has continued to be recognised as a geographic territory and cultural region.[4] The name is familiar and well understood across the United Kingdom and is in common use in the media and the military,[5] and also features in the titles of current areas of civil administration such as North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire.

Within the borders of the historic county of Yorkshire are large stretches of unspoiled countryside, particularly within the Yorkshire Dales, North York Moors and Peak District national parks.[6] Yorkshire has been nicknamed “God’s Own County”.

The emblem of Yorkshire is the White Rose of the English royal House of York, and the most commonly used flag representative of Yorkshire is the white rose on a blue field[9] which, after nearly fifty years of use, was recognised by the Flag Institute on 29 July 2008.[10] Yorkshire Day, held annually on 1 August, is a celebration of the general culture of Yorkshire, ranging from its history to its own dialect.

Yorkshire is covered by different Government Office Regions. Most of the county falls within Yorkshire and the Humber while the extreme northern part of the county, such as Middlesbrough, Redcar, Holwick and Startforth, falls within North East England. Small areas in the west of the county are covered by the North West England region.

Yorkshire or the County of York was so named as it is the shire (administrative area or county) of the city of York or York’s Shire. “York” comes from the Viking name for the city, Jórvík. The word “Shire” is either from the Old Norse word skyr or from Old English scir meaning share, care or official charge.[12] The “shire” suffix is locally pronounced /-ʃə/ “shuh”, or occasionally /-ʃiə/, a homophone of “sheer”.

Early inhabitants of what is now Yorkshire were Hen Ogledd Brythonic Celts (old north British Celts), who formed separate tribes, the Brigantes (known to be in the north and west ridings of now Yorkshire) and the Parisi, East Riding. The Brigantes controlled territory which later became all of Northern England and more territory than most Celtic tribes on the isle of Great Britain. Six of the nine Brigantian poleis described by Claudius Ptolemaeus in the Geographia fall within the historic county.[14][15]

The Parisi, who controlled the area that would become the East Riding of Yorkshire, might have been related to the Parisii of Lutetia Parisiorum, Gaul (known today as Paris, France).[16] Their capital was at Petuaria, close to the Humber Estuary.