United Kingdom

Introduction

I have done a further breakdown of the areas in the United Kingdom where my ancestors came from and settled. I wanted a point of reference for original counties and found an informative website, links below, which explained how things have changed over time. Incidentally I have not yet found any connection in Ireland.

Where a county is listed in blue, then my ancestors were there at some point.

England

I have used the list on https://www.geni.com/projects/Counties-of-England-United-Kingdom/9199, which covers the Historic or Real Counties of England and which does not necessarily match the Ceremonial Counties. 

• Bedfordshire
• Berkshire
• Bristol
• Buckinghamshire
• Cambridgeshire
• Cheshire
• Cornwall
• County Durham
• Cumberland 
• Derbyshire
• Devon
• Dorset
• Essex
• Gloucestershire
• Hampshire
• Herefordshire 
• Hertfordshire
• Huntingdonshire
• Kent
• Lancashire
• Leicestershire
• Lincolnshire
• Middlesex
• Norfolk
• Northamptonshire
• Northumberland
• Nottinghamshire
• Oxfordshire
• Rutland 
• Shropshire (Salop)
• Somerset
• Staffordshire
• Suffolk
• Surrey
• Sussex
• Warwickshire
• Westmorland 
• Wiltshire
• Worcestershire 
• Yorkshire

Islands

• Jersey
• Guernsey
• Isle of Wight

Scotland

This page refers to Historic Counties of Scotland,  https://www.geni.com/projects/Counties-of-Scotland-United-Kingdom/14402. I have kept the notes in brackets, as I am less familiar with the geography of Scotland and I have found a mixture of both old and new in my tree.

• Aberdeenshire 
• Angus 
• Argyllshire
• Ayrshire
• Banffshire  (now split between Moray council and Aberdeenshire council).
• Berwickshire  (now part of Borders)
• Buteshire 
• Caithness (Highland)
• Clackmannanshire 
• Dumfriesshire  (now Dumfries and Galloway)
• Dunbartonshire 
• East Lothian  (Haddingtonshire)
• Edinburghshire (now Midlothian)
• Fife/Fifeshire 
• Inverness-shire 
• Kincardineshire 
• Kinross-shire  (now Perth and Kinross)
• Kirkcudbrightshire  (now Dumfries and Galloway)
• Lanarkshire 
• Linlithgowshire (now West Lothian)
• Midlothian (Edinburghshire above)
• Moray, Morayshire or Elginshire-
• Nairn or Nairnshire (now Highland)
• Orkney 
• Peebles-shire (now part of Borders)
• Perthshire (now Perth and Kinross also part of Stirling)
• Renfrewshire 
• Ross and Cromarty 
• Roxburghshire (now part of Borders)
• Selkirkshire (now part of Borders)
• Shetland 
• Stirlingshire (now Stirling which includes part of Perthshire)
• Sutherland  (now Dumfries and Galloway)
• West Lothian (now Linlithgowshire)
• Wigtownshire  (now Dumfries and Galloway)

Wales

And finally the Historic Counties of Wales, https://www.geni.com/projects/Counties-of-Wales-United-Kingdom/14323, listed in English only.

• Anglesey 
• Brecknockshire/Brecon 
• Cardiganshire (My note: Ceredigion)
• Caernarfonshire 
• Carmarthenshire 
• Denbighshire 
• Flintshire 
• Glamorganshire 
• Merionethshire 
• Monmouthshire 
• Montgomeryshire
• Pembrokeshire 
• Radnorshire