A county is generally a sub-unit of regional self-government within a sovereign jurisdiction. Originally, in continental Europe, a county was the land under the jurisdiction of a count. Counts are called earls in post-Celtic Britain and Ireland—the term is from Old Norse jarl and was introduced by the Vikings—but there is no correlation between counties and earldoms. Rather, county, from French comté, was simply used by the Normans after 1066 to replace the native English term scir ()—Modern English shire. A shire was an administrative division of an Anglo-Saxon kingdom (Wessex, Mercia, East Anglia, etc.), usually named after its administrative centre: for example, Gloucestershire, in Gloucester; Worcestershire, in Worcester; etc.Etymology of the word county.

Thus, whereas the word comté denoted a sovereign jurisdiction in the original French, the English county denotes a subdivision of a sovereign jurisdiction.

Overview

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Country/Area	Language	Singular	Plural	Number	Notes
Counties of Canada	English and French
Counties of Croatia	Croatian	županija	županije	20
Counties of Denmark	Danish	amt	amter
Counties of Estonia	Estonian	maakond	maakonnad	15
Counties of Finland	Swedish and Finnish	län/läänit	län/läänit	6
Counties of Germany	German	Kreis	Kreise	323+116
Counties of Hungary	Hungarian	megye	megyék	19/22/1	for numbers: see main article
Counties of Ireland	Irish and English	contae	contaethe	32*
Counties of Japan	Japanese	gun
Counties of Latvia	Latvian	rajons	rajoni	26
Counties of Liberia	English language			15
Counties of Lithuania	Lithuanian	apskritis	apskritys	10
Counties of Moldova	Romanian language	judeţ	judeţe	9	disbanded in 2003
Counties of the Netherlands	Dutch language	graafschap	graafschappen		only historic
Counties of Norway	Norwegian language	fylke	fylker	19
Counties of Poland	Polish language	powiat	powiaty
Counties of Romania	Romanian language	judeţ	judeţe	41+1
Counties of Serbia and Montenegro	Serbian language	okrug	okruzi	29+1/21
Counties of Sweden	Swedish language	län	län
Counties of the United Kingdom	English language
Counties of the United States	English language			3141

* The 32 refers to the counties of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland combined. For more information, see the sections on Ireland and United Kingdom below.

More on [ County ]

GreenvilleOnline.com -

Customer's complaint about car loan launches fraud probe, deputies say
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 09:43:00 -0400
Two men who worked for a Simpsonville finance company are facing criminal charges after a customer's complaint about overpaying on a car loan helped launch a broader investigation that uncovered more than $31,000 in missing funds, authorities say.
Greer councilman faces lawsuit
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 09:53:00 -0400
A lawsuit has been filed against Greer Councilman Wayne Griffin, alleging that he failed to pay back thousands of dollars in advance commissions on insurance polices that have since lapsed.
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Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:57:00 -0400
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Greenville man found shot faces charges
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 07:39:00 -0400
A Greenville man today faces charges that he entered a Rutherford Road apartment and fired more than 10 shots at one of the two people inside, according to warrants from the Greenville County Sheriff's Office.
Health officials issue ozone advisory
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:36:00 -0400
GREENVILLE -- As Tropical Storm Hanna churns off the U.S.' southeastern coast, South Carolina health officials have issued an ozone advisory for people in the state's northwest corner.
Student Tasered in high school parking lot
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:30:00 -0400
FORT MILL -- Authorities say a student at Indian Land High School was shot with a Taser after he hit a police officer during an argument with his mother and the principal.

MyrtleBeachOnline.com: Local

Palin's big night pumps up party
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:42:00 -0400
Greeted by thunderous applause, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin presented herself to the Republican National Convention on Wednesday, and millions of Americans watching from home, as a small-town outsider ready to join John McCain's ticket in waging "a tough fight in this election against confident opponents at a crucial hour for our country."The first female member of a GOP presidential ticket, who styles herself "a hockey mom," showed she could deliver a body check.Palin described herself as a victim of hostile reporters and a scornful Washington establishment. "Here's a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators," she said in remarks prepared for delivery, skewering a favorite conservative target. "I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion. I'm going to Washington to serve the people of this country."
Hurricane watch issued for Myrtle Beach area
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 06:32:00 -0400
Hurricane watches have been issued for much of South Carolina's coastline as Tropical Storm Hanna moves slowly toward the U.S.The National Weather Service issued the watches at 5 a.m. Thursday for areas just north of Edisto Beach, S.C., stretching 250 miles northeast to Surf City, N.C.A hurricane watch means hurricane conditions are possible within 36 hours.
DNR: More charges likely in fatal boat crash
Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:42:00 -0400
Additional charges probably will be forthcoming against two men who police say were fleeing a burglary when their boat collided with another one on Saturday, killing a 13-year-old Aiken boy, an official with the S.C. Department of Natural Resources said Wednesday.Lt. Robert McCullough of the DNR, which is investigating Saturday's incident on the Intracoastal Waterway at Socastee, said any additional charges would depend on what the investigation uncovers."You'll see some more stuff coming," McCullough said. "It's just a slow process."

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