Contae Thír Eoghain is the
Irish name; Countie Tyrone,[3]Coontie Tyrone[4] and Coontie Owenslann[5] are
Ulster Scots spellings (the latter used only by Dungannon & South Tyrone Borough Council).
Adjoined to the south-west shore of
Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 3,266 km2 (1,261 sq mi),[1] making it the largest of Northern Ireland's six counties by size, and the second largest county in Ulster after
Donegal. With a population of 188,383 as of the
2021 census, Tyrone is the 5th most populous county in both Northern Ireland and Ulster, and the 11th most populous county on the island of Ireland. The county derives its name and general geographic location from
Tír Eoghain, a Gaelic kingdom under the
O'Neill dynasty which existed until the 17th century.
Name
The name Tyrone is derived from
Irish Tír Eoghain 'land of
Eoghan', the name given to the conquests made by the
Cenél nEógain from the provinces of
Airgíalla and
Ulaid.[7] Historically, it was anglicised as Tirowen or Tyrowen, which are closer to the Irish pronunciation.
Historically Tyrone (then Tír Eoghain or Tirowen) was much larger in size, stretching as far north as
Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern-day
County Londonderry east of the
River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610 and 1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on natural resources located there. Tyrone was the traditional stronghold of the various O'Neill clans and families, the strongest of the Gaelic Irish families in
Ulster, surviving into the seventeenth century. The ancient principality of Tír Eoghain, the inheritance of the O'Neills, included the whole of the present counties of Tyrone and Londonderry, and the four
baronies of
West Inishowen,
East Inishowen,
Raphoe North and
Raphoe South in
County Donegal.[14]
With an area of 3,266 square kilometres (1,261 sq mi), Tyrone is the largest county in Northern Ireland. The flat peatlands of East Tyrone border the shoreline of the largest lake in the British Isles,
Lough Neagh, rising gradually across to the more mountainous terrain in the west of the county, the area surrounding the
Sperrin Mountains, the highest point being
Sawel Mountain at a height of 678 m (2,224 ft). The length of the county, from the mouth of the
River Blackwater at Lough Neagh to the western point near Carrickaduff hill is 55 miles (89 km). The breadth, from the southern corner, southeast of
Fivemiletown, to the northeastern corner near Meenard Mountain is 37.5 miles (60.4 km); giving an area of 1,261 square miles (in 1900).[14] Annaghone lays claim to be the
geographical centre of Northern Ireland.
Tyrone is connected by land to the counties of
Fermanagh to the southwest;
Monaghan to the south;
Armagh to the southeast;
Londonderry to the north; and
Donegal to the west. Across Lough Neagh to the east, it borders
County Antrim. It is the eighth largest of Ireland's thirty-two counties by area and tenth largest by population.[16] It is the second largest of Ulster's nine traditional counties by area and fourth largest by population.[17]
Administration
The county was administered by
Tyrone County Council from 1899 until the abolition of county councils in Northern Ireland in 1973.[18]
It is one of four
counties in Northern Ireland which currently has a majority of the population from a
Catholic community background, according to the
2021 census.[19] In 1900 County Tyrone had a population of 197,719,[14] while in 2021 it was 188,383. At the time of the 2021 census, 66.49% were from a Catholic background, 28.88% were from a Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related), 0.66% were from other religions, and 3.97% had no religious background.[19]
Gaelic football is more widely played than
hurling in Tyrone. The
Tyrone GAA football side has had considerable success since 2000, winning four
All Ireland titles (in 2003, 2005, 2008 and 2021). They have also won sixteen
Ulster titles (1956, 1957, 1973, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2016, 2017 and 2021)[27] and two
National League titles (in 2002[28] and 2003[29]).
^
abNorthern Ireland General Register Office (1975). "Table 1: Area, Buildings for Habitation and Population, 1971".
Census of Population 1971; Summary Tables(PDF). Belfast: HMSO. p. 1.
Archived(PDF) from the original on 23 July 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
^Lee, JJ (1981). "On the accuracy of the Pre-famine Irish censuses". In Goldstrom, J. M.; Clarkson, L. A. (eds.). Irish Population, Economy, and Society: Essays in Honour of the Late K. H. Connell. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press.
^
abcJoyce, Patrick Weston; Sullivan, Alexander Martin; Nunan, P. D. (1900).
Atlas and Cyclopedia of Ireland. Murphy and McCarthy.
Archived from the original on 19 September 2008. Retrieved 24 February 2009. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the
public domain.
^McCavitt, John. The Flight of the Earls. Gill & MacMillan, 2002. p.143-44
^Corry, Eoghan (2005). The GAA Book of Lists. Hodder Headline Ireland. pp. 186–191.
ISBN0-340-89695-7.