Talk:County Dublin/FAQ

What is the status of County Dublin?

Ireland has been historically divided into 4 Provinces, which contain a total of 32 counties. While counties began as administrative units, both their purpose and boundaries have changed throughout history and many, such as the six counties of Northern Ireland and County Dublin, no longer serve administrative functions. However, counties developed into a strong source of local identity in Ireland and evolved beyond mere administrative units in popular culture. To quote History Ireland:

despite modernisation, globalisation and large-scale immigration, counties continue to command passionate loyalties and on both sides of the border enjoy widespread ceremonial, cultural and sporting significance. Additionally, they are regarded by many as intrinsically Irish, a source of self-identification second only to that of the nation itself.

The disconnect between a modern county's official purpose and its unofficial status in Irish culture has led to numerous discussions over what a county page on Wikipedia actually refers to. Examples of this issue include:

• Do administrative counties such as Fingal and (former) North Tipperary supersede Dublin and Tipperary, making the latter two "abolished" counties?
• Does the page for "County Cork" refer to the administrative area of Cork County Council, or Cork County + Cork City?
• Does "County Dublin" strictly refer to the former county council area around the city, and if so is the city therefore not part of County Dublin?
• If Dublin is no longer an administrative county, shouldn't this page be called the "Dublin Region", which is an official subdivision of Ireland?

Historical discussions over whether Dublin is a county, or a region, or a former county, or a former council area around Dublin City took place in Nov 2005, Jul 2007, Sep 2010, Mar 2012, Oct 2014, Oct 2015, and July 2023.

A 2005 proposal to move the "County Dublin" page to "Dublin Region" was rejected by 6 votes to 0. In 2014 the Dublin Region page was merged into County Dublin, where it is now a section under the "Geography and subdivisions" heading.

It was generally agreed by several members of Wikiproject Ireland in 2010, and again in 2015, that County Dublin is to be referred to as one of the "32 traditional counties of Ireland" and that the article lede should make it clear that County Dublin is largely a ceremonial / cultural region that serves no official or administrative function.

This issue is now considered resolved.