LONDONDERRY or Derry?
For an outsider coming into the politics of Northern Ireland, it can be difficult knowing which name to use for the northern county.
While there are historical resonances to both titles for the binomial county, here’s a little history on how it came to be known by two names.
First of all, where is it?
Described as Northern Ireland’s ‘Second City’ – the first being Belfast – Londonderry/Derry sits astride the River Foyle, on the northern tip of the region, nestled between Antrim in Northern Ireland and Donegal in the Republic of Ireland.
Where did its name come from?
During the Plantation of Ulster in the early 1600s, settlers from England and Scotland landed on the northern shores. Although the population of Northern Ireland grew rapidly, and clan castles were erected across the land, one of the largest transformations in the area was the building of the walls in Londonderry/Derry, which can still be seen and walked today.
The name was changed from the Irish ‘Doire’ to Londonderry, a Royal Charter granted by King James I.
Why is there conflict over which name to use?
Before the eruption of The Troubles in the 1960s, the usage of the name was less contentious.
In a sitting of the House of Commons on the Appropriation (Northern Ireland) Order 1984, DUP member Peter Robinson said, "Until the 1960s there was a happy use of both Londonderry and Derry [...] It was a matter that did not provoke excitement and it certainly was not taken as being an offensive remark to say that one was from Derry."
Mr Robinson went on to say that Republicans campaigned to "loosen the London connection" and as a result, Unionists emphasised the used of London as a prefix to the name.
So which is it?
Truthfully - either depending on what side of the fence you sit on.
As it stands, Londonderry is the legal name for the city. In a 2007 High Court ruling, Justice Weatherup ruled that the name could only be changed by Royal prerogative or legislation. However, it has become normalcy for many to simply use Derry to address the city and county without the political connotations and purely as a matter of shortening the name.
In major public events, such as when it was named the 2013 City of Culture, the city is referred to as Derry/Londonderry.
Could it change to just 'Derry'?
Very possibly. In 2015, a motion was put forward by Derry councillors to formally change the name from Londonderry to Derry, with opposition from Unionist councillors who labelled it as "sectarian."
As of September 2016, the Boundary Commission in Northern Ireland announced that 'Londonderry' would be lost completely - at least by the voting constituency, where it will instead be called Glenshane.
