Newtownabbey

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

Newtownabbey
Irish: Baile na Mainistreach[1]
Overlooking the Rathcoole area of Newtownabbey from Cavehill
Newtownabbey shown within Northern Ireland
Population	62,056 (2001 Census)
District	Newtownabbey
County	County Antrim
Country	Northern Ireland
Sovereign state	United 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 Assembly	East Antrim
List of places: UK • Northern Ireland • Antrim

Newtownabbey is a large town north of Belfast in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Sometimes considered to be a suburb of Belfast, it is separated from the rest of the city by Cavehill and Fortwilliam golf course. At the 2001 Census, Newtownabbey Urban Area had a population of 62,056, making it the fourth largest settlement in Northern Ireland.

Largely a residential area the town 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, Glengormley Moviehouse, Glengormley Sportsbowl and three large Parks. The main campus for the University of Ulster is based in the Jordanstown area of Newtownabbey.

History

Newtownabbey Urban Area covers the former civil parish of Carnmoney. It was formed by the merging of seven villages; Carnmoney, Glengormley, Jordanstown, Monkstown, Whiteabbey, Whitehouse and Whitewell. It was brought into being on 1 April 1958.

In 1973, Ballyclare and its rural hinterland were added to the Newtownabbey Urban District Council to form the new Newtownabbey District Council, which was later awarded the status of borough.

The government has proposed new council structures for all of Northern Ireland. As a result, Newtownabbey Borough Council will be subsumed into Inner East Council.^[2]

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 fatalities.

Geography

The Glengormley area of Newtownabbey from Cavehill

Townlands

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

• Ballybought (from Irish: Baile Bocht, meaning "poor town")*
• Ballyduff (historically Ballymacelduffe; from Baile Mhic Giolla Dhuibh meaning "MacElduff's townland")*
• Ballygolan (historically Ballingowlan; from Baile an Ghabhláin or Baile Gobhláin meaning "townland of the fork")*
• Ballyhenry (from Baile Enri meaning "Henry's townland")*
• Ballyvesey (from Baile Feasoighe meaning "Vesey's townland")*
• Ballywonard (from Baile Mhuine Ard meaning "townland of the high thicket")*
• Carnmoney (from Carn Monaidh meaning "cairn of the bog")*
• Collinward (from Coll an Bháird meaning "the bard's hazel")*
• Croghfern (historically Ballycurraghfarny; from Cruach Fearna meaning "stack of the alder" or Currach Fearnaí meaning "marsh of the place of alders")*
• Drumnadrough (from Druimainn Dorcha meaning "dark ridge" or Druim na gCruach meaning "ridge of the stacks"), where Merville Garden Village is located
• Dunanney (from Dún Aine meaning "Aine's stronghold")*
• Glengormley (from Gleann Ghormlaithe meaning "blue-grey valley")*
• Jordanstown (historically Ballyjordan and Ballyjurdan; from Baile Mhic Shiúrtáin meaning "MacShiúrtáin's townland")
• Mallusk or Molusk (historically Moyvluske and Moyvliske; from Maigh Bhloisce meaning "Bloisce's plain")*
• Monkstown (historically Ballynamanagh; from Baile na Manach meaning "townland of the monks")
• Whiteabbey
• White House

* citation for derivations ^[3]

The following housing estates have Irish-derived names, although they are not named after townlands:^[4]

• Mossley (likely from Maslaí)
• Rathcoole (likely from Ráth Cúile meaning "nook of the ringfort")

Electoral areas and wards

• University

(Rostulla, Hawthorne, Jordanstown, Monkstown, Ballyduff, Carnmoney and Mossley)

• Ballyclare

(Ballyclare North, Ballyclare South, Ballyrobert, Doagh and Ballynure)

• Macedon

(Cloughfern, Coole, Dunanney, Valley, Abbey and Whitehouse)

• Antrim Line

(Mallusk, Colinbridge,Hightown, Ballyhenry, Burnthill, Glengormley and Glebe)

Demography

Newtownabbey Urban Area is classified as a large town (i.e. with population between 18,000 and 75,000 people) by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA)^[5] and is within the Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area (BMUA). On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 62,056 people living in Newtownabbey. Of these:

• 21.8% were aged under 16 years and 19.1% were aged 60 and over
• 48.1% of the population were male and 51.9% were female
• 19.4% were from a Catholic background and 76.2% were from a Protestant background.
• 3.2% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed.

For more details see: Northern Ireland Neighbourhood Information Service^[6]

Education

Higher-level education

• University of Ulster at Jordanstown (UUJ)
• Northern Regional College (NRC)

Secondary-level education

• Belfast High School
• Edmund Rice College
• Glengormley High School
• Monkstown Community School
• Newtownabbey Community High School

Primary-level education

• Abbots Cross Primary School
• Ashgrove Primary School^[7]
• Carnmoney Primary School^[8]
• EarlView Primary School
• Glengormley Integrated Primary School
• Hazelwood Integrated Primary School
• HillCroft Special Needs School
• Hollybank Primary School
• Jordanstown Schools for the Deaf and Blind
• Kings Park Primary School
• Mossley Primary School
• Rathcoole Primary School
• Rosstulla Special School
• St Bernard's Primary School
• St James’s Primary School
• St MacNissi's Primary School
• St Mary's on the Hill Primary School
• Thornfield House School
• Whiteabbey Primary School
• Whitehouse Primary School

Sport

Cricket

• Academy Cricket Club
• Cliftonville Cricket Club

Football

• Mossley Young Men F.C.
• Nortel F.C.
• U.U.J. F.C.

Gaelic games

• St Enda's GAC

Hockey

• East Antrim Hockey Club
• Mossley Hockey Club

Others

• Belfast International Sports Club
• Valley Ju-jitsu Club (WJJF)

Churches

• Abbey Presbyterian Church
• Abbots Cross Congregational Church
• Ballycraigy Congregational Church
• Monkstown Baptist Church
• Saint James’s Catholic Church
• St Mary's On The Hill Parish Church
• St Bernard's Church
• St Mac Nissi's Church
• St. Patrick's Church (Church of Ireland)
• Straid Congregational Church
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
• Whiteabbey Congregational Church
• Whiteabbey Methodist Church
• Whiteabbey Presbyterian Church
• The Church of the Good Shepherd (United Church of Ireland and Methodist)
• Trinity Reformed Presbyterian Church

Transport

Newtownabbey is linked to the M2 motorway (which passes through it) and the M5 motorway (which begins at its southeastern edge). It is also served by two railway stations: Jordanstown railway station on the Belfast–Larne railway line and Whiteabbey railway station on the Belfast–Derry railway line.

Twin towns

Newtownabbey is twinned with:

• Rybnik, Poland (since 18.10.2003) ^[9]
• Dorsten, Germany^[10]

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

• Gilbert, Arizona, United States

References

External links

• Culture Northern ireland
• Newtownabbey Today website of the Newtownabbey Times Newspaper
• Newtownabbey In Touch website of the Newtownabbey In Touch Magazine

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Newtownabbey

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