Newtownabbey

Newtownabbey
Irish: Baile Nua na Mainistreach[1]

Overlooking the Rathcoole area of Newtownabbey from Cavehill
 Newtownabbey shown within Northern Ireland
Population 62,056 (2001 Census)
DistrictAntrim and Newtownabbey
CountyCounty Antrim
CountryNorthern Ireland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post town NEWTOWNABBEY
Postcode district BT36, BT37
Dialling code 028
Police Northern Ireland
Fire Northern Ireland
Ambulance Northern Ireland
EU Parliament Northern Ireland
NI AssemblyEast Antrim
List of places
UK
Northern Ireland
Antrim

Coordinates: 54°39′25″N 5°54′25″W / 54.657°N 5.907°W / 54.657; -5.907

Newtownabbey is a major urban area on the outskirts of north Belfast it is separated from the city by the M2 motorway. At the 2001 Census, Newtownabbey Urban Area had a population of 62,056, making it the fourth largest settlement in Northern Ireland. It is part of Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council.

Largely a residential area, the borough is also home to many engineering and computer industries. Retail and leisure facilities include the Abbey Centre, the Valley Leisure Centre, the Ballyearl Arts & Leisure Centre,The Theatre at the Mill, Glengormley Moviehouse, Glengormley Sportsbowl and three large public parks. The main campus for the University of Ulster is based in the Jordanstown area of Newtownabbey. Although the Jordanstown campus of the University of Ulster is due to merge with the current Belfast campus which is due to be completed by 2018.

History

Newtownabbey was formed by the merging of seven villages; Carnmoney, Glengormley, Jordanstown, Monkstown, Whiteabbey, Whitehouse and Whitewell. It was formally brought into being on 1 April 1958. Before its inception the expanse fell under the jurisdiction of the Belfast Rural District Council.

The timeline of the local government authority is: Newtownabbey Urban District Council (1958–1973), Newtownabbey District Council (1973–1977), Newtownabbey Borough Council (1977–2015) and Antrim & Newtownabbey District Council (2015– ).

By the spring of 2015 Newtownabbey Borough Council will be officially merged with adjacent Antrim Council to form the new Antrim & Newtownabbey District Council under Local Government restructuring plans devised by the Northern Ireland Executive. This name is still to be confirmed.

The Troubles

For more information see The Troubles in Newtownabbey, which includes a list of incidents in Newtownabbey during The Troubles resulting in two or more deaths.

Geography

The Glengormley area of Newtownabbey from Carnmoney Hill

Townlands

Below is a list of townlands that are within Newtownabbey's urban area, alongside their likely etymologies.

* citation for derivations[2]

The following housing estates have Irish-derived names, although they are not named after townlands:[3]

Electoral areas and wards

Until 2014 Newtownabbey operated under its own council comprising Ballyclare, Glengorley, Jordanstown, Carnmoney, Mallusk and Rathcoole. However, from 2014 it has operated as a larger Council after merging with Antrim to create Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council. The current electoral ward and areas are:

(Aldergrove, Clady, Crumlin, Mallusk, and Templepatrick)

(Antrim Centre, Fountain Hill, Greystone, Springfarm, Steeple, and Stiles)

(Ballyclare East, Ballyclare West, Ballynure, Ballyrobert, and Doagh)

(Cranfield, Parkgate, Randalstown, Shilvodan, and Toome)

(Ballyhenry, Burnthill, Carnmoney, Collinbridge, Glebe, Glengormley, and Hightown)

(Abbey, Carnmoney Hill, O'Neill, Rathcoole, Valley, and Whitehouse)

(Ballyduff, Fairview, Jordanstown, Monkstown, Mossley, and Rostulla)

Demography

Newtownabbey Urban Area is classified as a large town (i.e. with population between 18,000 and 75,000 people in the 2001 census) by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA)[4] and is within the Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area (BMUA). On Census day (27 March 2011) there were 85,139 people living in Newtownabbey. Of these:

Education

Higher-level education
Secondary-level education
Primary-level education

Sport

Cricket
Football
Gaelic games
Hockey
Rugby

Churches

Transport

Trains

Northern Ireland Railways runs trains serving three railway stations: Mossley West railway station on the Belfast–Derry railway line and Jordanstown railway station and Whiteabbey railway station on the Belfast–Larne railway line.

Connecting trains run on the Belfast-Derry railway line from Mossley West, "Northbound" to: Antrim, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Coleraine (for the branch to University (Coleraine), Dhu Varren and Portrush), Castlerock, Bellarena, Londonderry. And "Southbound" to Yorkgate, Belfast Central (change for Belfast-Bangor railway line and the Enterprise), Botanic, City Hospital, Belfast Great Victoria Street and onwards.

Whilst the Belfast-Larne railway line serving Whiteabbey and Jordanstown and connects with other stations including the principal stations of Carrickfergus, Whitehead, Larne Town and Larne Harbour, heading "Northbound". And heading "Southbound" the same stations as listed above apply.

Buses

Bus services are provided by Metro.

Roads

Newtownabbey is linked to the M2 motorway (which passes through it) and the M5 motorway (which begins at its southeastern edge).

Twin towns

Newtownabbey is twinned with:

Newtownabbey has one sister city, as designated by Sister Cities International:

References

  1. ↑ "Baile na Mainistreach/Newtownabbey". logainm.ie.
  2. ↑ "Northern Ireland Placenames Project". Retrieved 12 June 2010.
  3. ↑ "logainm.ie". logainm.ie.
  4. ↑ "NISRA - Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (c) 2015". nisra.gov.uk.
  5. ↑ "Rybnik Official Website – Twin Towns". 2008 Urząd Miasta Rybnika. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
  6. ↑ "List of Twin Towns in the Ruhr District" (PDF). 2009 Twins2010.com. Retrieved 28 October 2009. External link in |publisher= (help)
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Newtownabbey.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/20/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.