Belfast
Sign in to saveBelfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel. It is the largest city in Northern Ireland and the second-largest city in Ireland (after Dublin), with an estimated population of in , and its metropolitan area has a population of 671,559.
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Belfast is the capital and main port of Northern Ireland, located on the River Lagan, and serves as the largest city in the region and second-largest on the island of Ireland. The city is significant as a major economic and administrative center, with a substantial metropolitan population of over 671,000 people.
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Place details
- Locality
- Belfast
- Region
- Northern Ireland / Tuaisceart Éireann
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Population
- 348,005
Article
59 sectionsContents
- History
- Name
- Early settlements
- Developing port, radical politics
- Industrial expansion, sectarian division
- The Blitz and post-war development
- The Troubles
- 21st century
- Cityscape
- Location and topography
- North Belfast and Shankill
- West Belfast
- South Belfast
- East Belfast
- City Centre
- Architectural heritage
- Redevelopment
- Rough sleeping and homelessness
- The "Quarters"
- Culture
- Arts venues and festivals
- UNESCO City of Music
- Media
- Parades
- Demography
- Economy
- Employment profile
- Shipbuilding and engineering
- Fintech and cybersecurity
- Film
- Tourism and hospitality
- EU/GB Trade
- Education
- Primary and secondary education
- Further and Higher education
- Governance
- Local government
- Northern Ireland Assembly and Westminster elections
- Infrastructure
- Hospitals
- Transport
- Utilities
- Recreation and sports
- Leisure centres
- Parks and gardens
- Sports
- Climate
- In fiction
- Notable people
- Georgian Belfast
- Victorian Belfast
- Early 20th century
- Late 20th century
- Twin towns – sister cities
- Freedom of the City
- Notes
- References
- Bibliography
- External links
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel. It is the largest city in Northern Ireland and the second-largest city in Ireland (after Dublin), with an estimated population of in , and its metropolitan area has a population of 671,559.
While chartered as an English settlement in 1613, the town's early growth was driven by an influx of Scottish Presbyterians. Their descendants' disaffection with Ireland's Anglican establishment contributed to the rebellion of 1798, and to the union with Great Britain that followed in 1801—later regarded as a key to the town's industrial transformation. When granted city status in 1888, Belfast was the world's largest centre of linen manufacture, and by the 1900s its shipyards were building up to a quarter of total United Kingdom tonnage.