Belfast
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225873192
2008-07-15T20:17:27Z
CambridgeBayWeather
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Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/194.46.104.112|194.46.104.112]] ([[User talk:194.46.104.112|talk]]) to last version by ClueBot
{{otheruses4|the city in Northern Ireland|other uses|Belfast (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox UK place |
|official_name= Belfast
|irish_name= Béal Feirste
|scots_name= Bilfawst
|local_name=
|static_image= [[Image:Belfast City Hall 2007.jpg|240px]]
|static_image_caption= <small>[[Belfast City Hall]]</small>
|static_image_caption1= Pro Tanto Quid Retribuamus <br>"What shall we give in return for so much"
|latitude= 54.5973
|longitude= -5.9301
|population= City proper:<br>276,459 <br> [[Belfast Metropolitan Area]]:<br> 579,554<br>([[United Kingdom Census 2001|2001 census]])
|irish_grid_reference= J338740
|london_distance_mi= 322
|london_distance= [[Boxing the compass|SE]]
|unitary_northern_ireland= [[Belfast City Council|City of Belfast]]
|country= Northern Ireland
|post_town= BELFAST
|postcode_area= BT
|postcode_district= BT1-BT17, BT29 (part of), BT58
|dial_code= 028
|constituency_westminster= [[Belfast North (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast North]]</br>[[Belfast South (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast South]]</br>[[Belfast East (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast East]]</br>[[Belfast West (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast West]]
|constituency_ni_assembly= [[Belfast North (Assembly constituency)|Belfast North]]</br>[[Belfast South (Assembly constituency)|Belfast South]]</br>[[Belfast East (Assembly constituency)|Belfast East]]</br>[[Belfast West (Assembly constituency)|Belfast West]]
|lieutenancy_northern_ireland = [[County Antrim]]<br>[[County Down]]
|website= [http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/ www.belfastcity.gov.uk]
|area_total_sq_mi= 44.4
}}
'''Belfast''' ({{derive|Irish|Béal Feirste|Mouth of the (River) Farset}})<ref name="Belfast name">{{cite web | title = Placenames/Logainmneacha: Belfast | work = BBC Northern Ireland - Education | publisher = BBC | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/irish/blas/education/beginnersblas/1belfast.shtml | accessdate = 2007-05-17}}</ref> is the seat of government in [[Northern Ireland]].<ref name="MSN Encarta">{{cite web | title = Northern Ireland | work = MSN Encarta - Northern Ireland | publisher = Microsoft | url = http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761571415/Ireland_Northern.html | accessdate = 2007-10-29}}</ref> It is the largest [[urban area]] in [[Northern Ireland]] and the province of [[Ulster]] and the second-largest city in [[Ireland]].
The city suffered disruption, conflict, and destruction during [[The Troubles]], but later underwent a period of calmness and growth.
==History==
{{Main|History of Belfast}}
Originally a town in [[County Antrim]], the [[County borough]] of Belfast was created when it was granted city status by [[Queen Victoria]] in 1888.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast City Hall | work = Discover Northern Ireland | publisher = Ireland Tourist Board | url = http://www.discovernorthernireland.com/product.aspx?ProductID=2782 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
===Origins===
The name, ''Belfast'', is the [[Anglicisation|anglicised]] version of the Irish ''Béal Feirste,'' which translates as "Mouth of the (River) Farset".<ref name="Belfast name"/> This term refers to the [[Bar (landform)|sand bar]] that formed where the [[River Farset]] met the [[River Lagan]] at Donegall Quay and flowed into [[Belfast Lough]], which became the hub around which the city developed.<ref>{{cite book | last = Keenan | first = Desmond | title = Pre-Famine Ireland | pages = Chapter 5 | publisher = XLibris.com | url = http://www.deskeenan.com/4PrChapter5.htm | date= 2000}}</ref>
The site of Belfast has been occupied since the [[Bronze Age]]. The [[Giants Ring, Belfast|Giant's Ring]], a 5000-year-old [[henge]], is located near the city, and the remains of [[Iron Age]] [[hill fort]]s can still be seen in the surrounding hills. Belfast remained a small settlement of little importance during the [[High Middle Ages|Middle Ages]]. [[John de Courcy]] built a castle on what is now Castle Street in the city centre in the 12th century, but this was on a lesser scale and not as strategically important as [[Carrickfergus Castle]] to the north, which was built by de Courcy in 1177. The [[O'Neill (surname)|O'Neill]] clan had a presence in the area. In the 14th century the Clan Aedh Buidh, descendants of "Yellow" Hugh O'Neill built Grey Castle at Castlereagh, now in the east of the city.<ref>{{cite book | last = Komesu | first = Okifumi | title = Irish Writers and Politics | pages = 73 | publisher = Rowman & Littlefield | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=AwFO2Z8Bk0YC&pg=PA73&lpg=PA73&dq=%22yellow+hugh+o+neill%22&source=web&ots=dnze5Q6rm_&sig=C6jca10GSjfNoQmIMq03Cuc-JlA | date= 1990}}</ref> [[Conn O'Neill]] also owned land in the area, one remaining link being the Connswater River flowing thorough east Belfast.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.theflightoftheearls.net/May2406.pdf |title=Celebrations mark the arrival of first Ulster Scots in Ireland |publisher=Irish News |date=2006-04-24 |accessdate=2007-09-18}}</ref>
===Growth===
Belfast became a substantial settlement in the 17th century after being established by Sir Arthur Chichester which was initially settled by the mainly Protestant English and Scottish migrants during the [[Plantation of Ulster]].In 1791, the [[Society of United Irishmen]] was founded in Belfast, after [[Henry Joy McCracken]] and other prominent Presbyterians from the city invited [[Theobald Wolfe Tone]] and [[Thomas Russell]] to a meeting, after having read Tone's "Argument on Behalf of the Catholics of Ireland". Belfast blossomed as a commercial and industrial centre in the 18th and 19th centuries and became Ireland's pre-eminent industrial city. Industries thrived, including [[linen]], rope-making, tobacco, heavy engineering and shipbuilding, and at the end of the nineteenth century, Belfast briefly overtook Dublin as the largest and most industrialised city in Ireland. The [[Harland and Wolff]] shipyards became one of the largest shipbuilders in the world, employing up to 35,000 workers.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/3176184.stm |title=Cranes to remain on city skyline |publisher=BBC News |date=2003-10-09 |accessdate=2007-03-12}}</ref> Belfast was heavily bombed during [[World War II]]. In one raid, in 1941, German bombers killed around one thousand people and left tens of thousands homeless. Outside of London, this was the greatest loss of life in a night raid during the [[The Blitz|Blitz]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/1269206.stm |title=The Belfast blitz is remembered |publisher=BBC News |date=[[2001-04-11]] |accessdate=2007-03-12}}</ref>
===The Troubles===
Belfast has been the capital of Northern Ireland since its creation in 1920 by the [[Government of Ireland Act 1920|Government of Ireland Act]]. Since it began to emerge as a major city, it has been the scene of much sectarian conflict between its [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] and [[Protestantism|Protestant]] populations. These opposing groups in this conflict are now often termed [[Republicanism#Ireland|republican]] and [[Ulster Loyalism|loyalist]] respectively, although they are also referred to as '[[Irish nationalism|nationalist]]' and '[[Unionism (Ireland)|unionist]]'. The most recent example of this is known as [[the Troubles]] - a civil conflict that raged from c.1969 to the late 1990s. Belfast saw the worst of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, particularly in the 1970s, with rival paramilitary groups forming on both sides. Bombing, assassination and street violence formed a backdrop to life throughout The Troubles. The IRA detonated 22 bombs, all in a confined area in the city centre in 1972, on what is known as "[[Bloody Friday (1972)|Bloody Friday]]", killing nine people. Loyalists paramilitaries, the [[Ulster Volunteer Force]] (UVF) and [[Ulster Defence Association]] (UDA) claimed that murders they carried out were in retaliaton to the [[Provisional IRA campaign 1969-1997|PIRA campaign]]. Most of those their victims, however, were civilians entirely unconnected to the Provisional IRA. A particularly notorious group, based on the [[Shankill Road]] in the mid 1970s became known as the [[Shankill Butchers]]. In all, over 1,500 people were killed in political violence in the city from 1969 until 2001.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/1269206.stm |title=Sutton Index of Deaths |publisher=CAIN |accessdate=2007-09-10}}</ref>
A legacy of [[the Troubles]] is that both republican and loyalist paramilitary groups in Belfast have become involved in organised crime and [[racket (crime)|racketeering]]. On 20 December, 2004, [[Pound sterling|UK£]]26.4 million was stolen from the headquarters of the [[Northern Bank robbery|Northern Bank]] in Belfast City Centre, the largest cash robbery at the time in the United Kingdom. The police investigation linked the robbery to the Provisional Irish Republican Army.<ref>{{cite news | title = Police say IRA behind bank raid | work = BBC News Northern Ireland | publisher = BBC | date = [[2005-01-07]] | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/4154657.stm | accessdate = 2007-05-26}}</ref> Policing in Belfast is provided by the [[Police Service of Northern Ireland]]. They reported annual decreases in recorded crime in East, North, and South Belfast between 2002 and 2006.<ref name="Policing Board">{{cite paper | title = Research into Recent Crime Trends in Northern Ireland | publisher = Northern Ireland Policing Board | date= May 2007 | url = http://www.nipolicingboard.org.uk/recent_crime_trends_research_by_ipsos_mori_may_2007.pdf | format = [[PDF]] | accessdate = 2007-05-23}}</ref> [[West Belfast]] showed an increase in recorded crime during the same period.<ref name="Policing Board"/>
==Governance==
Belfast was granted [[Borough status in the United Kingdom|borough status]] by [[James I of England|James I]] in 1613 and official [[City status in the United Kingdom|city status]] by [[Queen Victoria]] in 1888.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast City Hall: History and Background | publisher = Belfast City Council | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/cityhall/history.asp?menuitem=background | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> Since 1971 it has been a [[Local Government (Boundaries) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971|local government district]] under local administration by [[Belfast City Council]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Local Government (Boundaries) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971 | publisher = Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN) | date= 2007 | url = http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/hmso/lgba1971.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> Belfast is represented in both the [[British House of Commons]] and in the [[Northern Ireland Assembly]]. For elections to the [[European Parliament]], Belfast is within the [[Northern Ireland (European Parliament constituency)|Northern Ireland constituency]].
===Local government===
{{details|Belfast City Council}}
The city of Belfast has a [[Mayors in the United Kingdom|mayoral]] form of [[municipal government]]. The City's officials are the [[Lord Mayor]], Deputy Lord Mayor and [[High Sheriff]] who are elected from fifty-one [[councillors]]. The first Lord Mayor of Belfast was Daniel Dixon, who was elected in 1892.<ref name="Belfast City Council - Lord Mayor">{{cite web | title = Councillors: Lord Mayor | publisher = Belfast City Council | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/councillors/index.asp?menuitem2=lord-mayor | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> As of June 2008, the Lord Mayor of Belfast is [[Sinn Féin]] politician, Tom Hartley, who is only the second Sinn Féin Lord Mayor of the city. His duties, as mayor of Belfast, include presiding over meetings of the council, receiving distinguished visitors to the city, and representing and promoting the city on the national and international stage.<ref name="Belfast City Council - Lord Mayor"/> Hartley replaces the [[Ulster Unionist Party]] Lord Mayor, [[Jim Rodgers (politician)|Jim Rodgers]] OBE.
In 1997, [[Unionism in Ireland|Unionists]] lost overall control of [[Belfast City Council]] for the first time in its history, with the [[Alliance Party of Northern Ireland]] gaining the balance of power between [[Irish nationalism|Nationalists]] and Unionists. This position was confirmed in the council elections of [[United Kingdom local elections, 2001|2001]] and [[United Kingdom local elections, 2005|2005]]. Since then it has had three Nationalist mayors, two from the [[Social Democratic and Labour Party]] (SDLP) and one from [[Sinn Féin]]. The first nationalist Lord Mayor of Belfast was Alban Maginness, a member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, in 1996.
In the 2005 local government elections, the voters of Belfast elected fifty-one councillors to Belfast City Council from the following political parties: 15 [[Democratic Unionist Party]] (DUP), 14 [[Sinn Féin]], 8 [[Social Democratic and Labour Party]] (SDLP), 7 [[Ulster Unionist Party]] (UUP), 4 [[Alliance Party of Northern Ireland|Alliance Party]], 2 [[Progressive Unionist Party]] (PUP), and 1 Independent.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast City Council Elections 1993-2005 | work = Northern Ireland Elections | publisher = Northern Ireland Social and Political Archive (ARK) | date= 2005 | url = http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/lgbelfast.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref>
===Northern Ireland Assembly and Westminster===
{{Details3|[[Northern Ireland Assembly]] and [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]]}}
{{seealso|Belfast (Northern Ireland Parliament constituencies)|Belfast (constituency)}}
[[Image:Stormont Parliamentary Building 01.JPG|thumb|175px|The Parliament Buildings at Stormont. Built in 1932 and home to the Northern Ireland Assembly.]]As Northern Ireland's capital city, Belfast is host to the [[Northern Ireland Assembly]] at [[Parliament Buildings (Northern Ireland)|Stormont]], the site of [[Devolution#Northern Ireland|home rule]] legislature in Northern Ireland. Belfast is divided into four [[Northern Ireland Assembly]] and [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|UK parliamentary]] constituencies: [[North Belfast (constituency)|North Belfast]], [[West Belfast (constituency)|West Belfast]], [[South Belfast (constituency)|South Belfast]] and [[East Belfast (constituency)|East Belfast]]. All four extend beyond the city boundaries including into parts of [[Castlereagh Borough Council|Castlereagh]], [[Lisburn City Council|Lisburn]] and [[Newtownabbey Borough Council|Newtownabbey]] districts. In the [[Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2007|Northern Ireland Assembly Elections in 2007]], Belfast elected 24 [[Members of the Legislative Assembly]] (MLAs), 6 from each [[List of Parliamentary constituencies in Northern Ireland|constituency]]. The MLA breakdown consisted of 8 [[Sinn Féin]], 6 [[Democratic Unionist Party]] (DUP), 4 [[Social Democratic and Labour Party]] (SDLP), 3 [[Ulster Unionist Party]] (UUP), 2 [[Alliance Party of Northern Ireland|Alliance Party]], and 1 [[Progressive Unionist Party]] (PUP).<ref>{{cite news | title = Northern Ireland election | publisher = BBC News | date= 2007-03-09 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2007/nielection/html/main.stm | accessdate = 2007-03-13}}</ref> In the 2005 UK general election, Belfast elected one [[Member of Parliament#United Kingdom|MP]] from each constituency to the [[British House of Commons|House of Commons]] at Westminster, [[London]]. This was comprised of 2 DUP, 1 SDLP, and 1 [[Sinn Féin]].<ref>{{cite web | title = The 2005 Westminster elections in Northern Ireland | work = Northern Ireland Elections | publisher = Northern Ireland Social and Political Archive (ARK) | date= 2005 | url = http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/fw05.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref>
===Coat of Arms and motto===
The city of Belfast has the [[Latin]] motto "''Pro tanto quid retribuamus''". This is taken from [[Psalms|Psalm]] 116 Verse 12 in the Latin [[Vulgate|Vulgate Bible]] and is literally "For (Pro) the much (tanto) it is that (quid) we repay (retribuamus)" The verse has been translated in different bibles differently - for example as "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?".<ref>King James Bible, Psalm 116 Verse 12</ref> It is also translated as "In return for so much, what shall we give back?"<ref>"I reflected on the two mottos of Belfast and America - 'Pro Tanto Quid' and 'E Pluribus Unum'. I am reliably informed that these roughly translate as 'In return for so much, what shall we give back?' and 'From many, one'" [http://www.allianceparty.org/news/000578/celebrating_diversity_by_belfast_lord_mayor_tom_ekin.html Celebrating diversity], by Belfast Lord Mayor Tom Ekin</ref> The [[Queen's University Belfast|Queen's University]] Students' Union [[Rag Week]] publication ''PTQ'' derives its name from the first three words of the motto. [[Image:Belfast city crest painting.png|100px|left]]
The city's [[coat of arms]] shows a central shield, bearing a ship and a bell, flanked by a chained wolf (or wolfhound) on the left and a seahorse on the right. A smaller seahorse sits at the top. This crest dates back to 1613, when [[James I of England|King James I]] granted Belfast town status. The seal was used by Belfast merchants throughout the seventeenth century on their signs and trade-coins.<ref name="Buildings of Belfast">{{cite book | last = Brett | first = C. E. B | title = Buildings of Belfast, 1700-1914 | publisher = Weidenfeld and Nicolson | date= 1967 | location = London}}</ref> A large stained glass window in the [[Belfast City Hall|City Hall]] displays the seal, where an explanation suggests that the seahorse and the ship refer to Belfast's significant maritime history. The wolf may be a tribute to the city's founder, [[Arthur Chichester|Sir Arthur Chichester]], and refer to his own coat of arms.<ref name="Buildings of Belfast"/>
==Geography==
[[Image:Cavehill, Belfast.jpg|thumb|right|[[Cavehill]], a basaltic hill overlooking the city.]]
Belfast is situated on Ireland's eastern [[coast]] at {{coor dms|54|35|49|N|05|55|45|W|}}. The city is flanked to the northwest by a series of hills, including [[Cavehill]], which is thought to be the inspiration for [[Jonathan Swift|Jonathan Swift's]] novel, ''[[Gulliver's Travels]]''. Belfast is located at the western end of [[Belfast Lough]] and at the mouth of the [[River Lagan]] making it an ideal location for the shipbuilding industry that once made it famous. When the [[RMS Titanic|''Titanic'']] was built in Belfast in 1912, [[Harland and Wolff]] had the largest shipyard in the world.<ref name="Titanic In History">{{cite web | title = Introduction To Titanic - Titanic In History | work = Titanic. Built in Belfast | publisher = Ulster Folk and Transport Museum | url = http://www.titanicinbelfast.com/template.aspx?pid=342&area=1&parent=321 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
Belfast is situated on Northern Ireland's eastern coast. A consequence of this northern latitude is that it both endures short winter days and enjoys long summer evenings. During the [[winter solstice]], the shortest day of the year, local sunset is before 16:00 while sunrise is around 08:45. This is balanced by the [[Solstice|summer solstice]] in June, when the sun sets after 22:00 and rises before 05:00.<ref>{{cite web | title = Sunrise and sunset in Belfast | work = Sun Calculator | publisher = time and date.com | url = http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/astronomy.html?n=919| accessdate = 2007-05-18 }}</ref>
Belfast is located at the eastern end of [[Belfast Lough]] and at the mouth of the [[River Lagan]]. In 1994, a [[Lagan Weir|weir]] was built across the river by the [[Laganside Corporation]] to raise the average water level so that it would cover the unseemly mud flats which gave Belfast its name<ref>{{cite web | title = Lagan Weir - Why it exists | publisher = Laganside | url = http://www.laganside.com/laganweir.asp | accessdate = 2007-05-25}}</ref>({{derive|Irish|Béal Feirste|The sandy ford at the river mouth}}<ref name="Belfast name"/>). The area of Belfast Local Government District is {{sq mi to km2|42.3|spell=UK}}.<ref name=Areameasurements>{{cite web | title = Area Measurements in Northern Ireland | work = 2001 census Data | publisher = Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency | date= 2001 | url = http://www.nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/census/area_measurement.html | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
The [[River Farset]] is also named after this [[silt]] deposit (from the Irish ''feirste'' meaning ‘sand spit’). Originally a more significant river than it is today, the Farset formed a dock on High Street until the mid 19th century. Bank Street in the [[Belfast City Centre|city centre]] referred to the river bank and Bridge Street was named for the site of an early Farset bridge.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast City: Did you know? | work = Discover Ireland | publisher = Tourism Ireland | date= 2007 | url = http://www.discoverireland.com/za/ireland-places-to-go/areas-and-cities/belfast-city/highlights/culture/ | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> However, superseded by the [[River Lagan]] as the more important river in the city, the Farset now languishes in obscurity, under High Street.
The city is flanked on the north and northwest by a series of hills, including [[Divis|Divis Mountain]], [[Black Mountain (Belfast)|Black Mountain]] and [[Cavehill]] thought to be the inspiration for [[Jonathan Swift|Jonathan Swift's]] ''[[Gulliver's Travels]]''. When Swift was living at Lilliput Cottage near the bottom of the Limestone Road in Belfast, he imagined that the [[Cavehill]] resembled the shape of a sleeping giant safeguarding the city.<ref name="Jonathan Swift">{{cite web | title = Belfast Hills | work = Discover Northern Ireland | publisher = Northern Ireland Tourist Board | url = http://www.discovernorthernireland.com/product.aspx?ProductID=10391 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> The shape of the giant's nose, known locally as ''Napoleon's Nose'', is officially called McArt's Fort probably named after Art O'Neill, a [[16th century|sixteenth century]] chieftain who controlled the area at that time.<ref>{{cite web | title = About the Cave Hill | publisher = The Cave Hill Conservation Campaign | date= 2007 | url = http://www.cavehill.freeuk.com/home.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-25}}</ref> The [[Castlereagh]] Hills overlook the city on the southeast.
Former poet and Catholic Bishop of Down and Connor, Dr William Philbin wrote this of Belfast: "Belfast is a city walled in by mountains, moated by sees, and undermined by deposits of history".
===Climate===
Belfast has a [[temperate]] climate. Average daily high temperatures are 18 °C (64 °F) in July and 6 °C (43 °F) in January. The highest temperature recorded in Belfast was 30.8 °C (87.4 °F) on [[12 July]] [[1983]].<ref name="Met Office">{{cite web | title = Climate: Northern Ireland | publisher = Met Office | url = http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/climate/uk/location/nireland/index.html | accessdate = 2007-05-25}}</ref> The city gets significant precipitation (greater than 0.01 in/0.25 mm) on 213 days in an average year with an average annual rainfall of {{mm to in|845.8|spell=UK}},<ref name="Belfast Weather">{{cite web | title = Belfast, Northern Ireland - Average Conditions | work = BBC Weather Centre | publisher = BBC | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/city_guides/city.shtml?tt=TT003750 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> less than the [[Lake District#Climate|Lake District]] or the [[Scottish Highlands]],<ref name="Met Office"/> but higher than [[Dublin]] or the south-east coast of Ireland.<ref>{{cite web | title = Rainfall in Ireland | publisher = Met Éireann | url = http://www.met.ie/climate/rainfall.asp | accessdate = 2007-05-25}}</ref> As an urban and coastal area, Belfast typically gets snow on fewer than 10 days per year.<ref name="Met Office"/>
The city is also renowned for how warm it can get during the winter month at its high latitude. In February, temperatures have hit 17 °C, at the same latitude where it is ~-45 °C in Russia and Canada.
It is not uncommon for temperatures in summer to reach as high as 27 °C (80 °F) on numerous days.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast/Harbour Climate History | work = weatheronline.co.uk | publisher = weatheronline.co.uk | url = http://weatheronline.co.uk/cgi-bin/regframe?3CODE=%26PLZN%3DBelfast%26PLZ%3DBT13&LANG=en&PRG=citybild | accessdate = 2008-03-22}}</ref> The consistently humid climate that prevails over Ireland can make temperatures feel uncomfortable when they stray into the high 20s (80-85°F), more so than similar temperatures in hotter climates in the rest of Europe.
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=== Areas and districts===
[[Image:Belfast panorama from queens tower.jpg|thumb|left|400px|View of Belfast from [[Queen's University Belfast|The Ashby Building]], part of QUB. The David Keir Building of Queen's University is in the foreground. The yellow façade of [[Belfast City Hospital]] is visible in the centre background, with the city's current tallest building [[Windsor House]] in the right background.]]
{{main|Districts of Belfast}}{{details3|[[Transport in Belfast#City layout|Belfast City Layout]]|City Layout}}
Belfast expanded very rapidly from small market town to industrial city during the course of the nineteenth century. Because of this it is less an agglomeration of villages and towns which have expanded into each other than other comparable cities, such as Manchester or Birmingham. The city expanded to the natural barrier of the hills that surround it, overwhelming other settlements. Consequently the arterial roads along which this expansion took place (such as the Falls Road or the Newtownards Road) are more significant in defining the districts of the city than nucleated settlements. Including the [[Belfast City Centre|City Centre]], the city can be divided into five areas with [[North Belfast]], [[East Belfast]], [[South Belfast]], and [[West Belfast]]. Each of these is a [[Westminster (UK Parliament constituency)|parliamentary constituency]]. Belfast remains segregated by walls, commonly known as “[[peace lines]]”, erected by the [[British Army]] after August 1969, which still divide fourteen neighbourhoods in the inner-city.<ref name="Peacelines">{{cite paper | author = Margrethe C. Lauber | title = Belfast's Peacelines: An Analysis of Urban Borders, Design and Social Space in a Divided City | url = http://www.mspacenyc.com/belfast.study.html | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> In June 2007, a [[Pound sterling|UK£]]16 million programme was announced which will transform and redevelop streets and public spaces in the city centre.<ref>{{cite web | title = Major makeover for Belfast City Centre | publisher = Department for Social Development (NI) | date= 2007-06-12 | url = http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/news_items/major-makover-belfast.htm | accessdate = 2007-06-12}}</ref> Major arterial roads ([[quality bus corridor]]s) into the city include the Antrim Road, Shore Road, Holywood Road, Newtownards Road, Castlereagh Road, Cregagh Road, [[Belfast Ormeau (UK Parliament constituency)|Ormeau Road]], [[Malone Road]], [[Lisburn Road]], [[Falls Road (Belfast)|Falls Road]], Springfield Road, [[Shankill Road]], and Crumlin Road.<ref>{{cite web | title = The Arterial Routes | work = Belfast Metropolitan Area Plan 2015 Draft Plan | publisher = The Planning Service | url = http://www.planningni.gov.uk/areaplans_policy/Plans/BMA/draft_plan/02Part4/volume2/Arterial%20Routes/ArterialRoutes.htm | accessdate = 2007-06-12}}</ref>
[[Belfast City Centre]] is divided by two postcodes, ''BT1'' for the area lying north of the [[Belfast City Hall|City Hall]], and ''BT2'' for the area to its south. The industrial estate and docklands share ''BT3''. The rest of the [[BT postal area|Greater Belfast postcodes]] are set out in a [[clockwise]] system. Although ''BT'' stands for ''Belfast'', it is used across the whole of Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite web | title = The UK Postcode System | publisher = List Masters | date= 2005 | url = http://www.listmasters.co.uk/postcodes.php | accessdate = 2007-06-12}}</ref>
[[Image:Belfast Wheel 1.jpg|thumb|left|250px|View of Belfast from the Big Wheel at the City Hall]]
Since 2001, boosted by increasing numbers of tourists, the city council has developed a number of cultural [[Belfast Quarters|quarters]]. The '''[[Cathedral Quarter, Belfast|Cathedral Quarter]]''' takes its name from [[St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast|St. Anne’s Cathedral]] (Church of Ireland) and has taken on the mantle of the city's key cultural locality.<ref name="Cathedral Quarter">{{cite web | title = Exploring Belfast's cultural life | publisher = Belfast City Council | date= 2007 | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/culture/culturallife.asp?menuitem=culturallife | accessdate = 2007-05-25}}</ref> It hosts a yearly [[Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival|visual and performing arts festival]]. [[Image:Belfast Wheel 2.jpg|thumb|right|250px|View of Belfast City Hall from the Big Wheel]]
In March 2008, [[Victoria Square, Belfast]], a £400m shopping complex opened in the centre of Belfast, consisting of shops, restaurants, a cinema (opening in June 2008) and the largest [[House of Fraser]] in the UK and Ireland, increasing the shopping area of Belfast by up to a third.
Custom House Square is one of the city's main outdoor venues for free concerts and street entertainment. The '''[[Gaeltacht Quarter, Belfast|Gaeltacht Quarter]]''' is an area around the [[Falls Road (Belfast)|Falls Road]] in [[West Belfast]] which promotes and encourages the use of the [[Irish language]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Gaeltacht Quarter | publisher = Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure | date= 2007 | url = http://www.dcalni.gov.uk/index/languages/gaeltacht_quarter.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-25}}</ref> The '''[[Queen's Quarter, Belfast|Queen's Quarter]]''' in [[South Belfast]] is named after [[Queen's University Belfast|Queen's University]]. The area has a large student population and hosts the annual [[Belfast Festival at Queen's|Belfast Festival at Queen’s]] each autumn. It is home to [[Belfast Botanic Gardens|Botanic Gardens]] and the [[Ulster Museum]], closed for major redevelopment until 2009.<ref>{{cite web | title = Contact Details | publisher = The Ulster Museum | date= 2007 | url = http://www.ulstermuseum.org.uk/contact-us/contact-details/ | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> [[Golden Mile (Belfast)|The Golden Mile]] is the name given to the mile between [[Belfast City Hall]] and Queen's University. Taking in Gt. Victoria St, Shaftesbury Square and Bradbury Place, it contains some of the best bars and restaurants in the city.<ref>{{cite web | title=The Golden Mile: Pub Crawl | publisher = Virtual Belfast | url = http://www.belfastbar.co.uk/The-Golden-Mile-articles.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-25}}</ref> Since the [[Belfast Agreement|Good Friday Agreement]] in 1998, the nearby [[Lisburn Road]] has developed into the city's most exclusive shopping strip.<ref>
{{cite web | title = Shopping At A Glance | work = Visit South Belfast | publisher = South Belfast Partnership | url = http://www.visitsouthbelfast.com/tourism/default.asp?cms=Tourism%5FThings+To+Do%5FShopping_Shopping+At+A+Glance&cmsid=19_49_81_227&id=227&viewtype=Category | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | last=Burns | first=Gemma | url=http://www.dailyireland.com/home.tvt?_scope=DailyIreland/South%20Belfast%20News/Features&id=26382&psv=13&_ticket=9NTHLXD4YGSGX4SGPNNADY7BZKLAFUUGUYRIJQOJBVXF9LLDN32STRRIVON9ANVRBNKACJ5J9QRFK11M9NTGNXT9CHUT71QFIRY4S0SEAOYFBHSJ5LE1HONDNMTEGPKACN1FURUQS10YM75OV6 |title=A passion for preserving Belfast’s beauty | publisher=South Belfast News | date=2007-02-28 | accessdate=2007-03-12}}</ref> Finally, The '''[[Titanic Quarter, Belfast|Titanic Quarter]]''' covers 0.75 km² of reclaimed land adjacent to [[Port of Belfast|Belfast harbour]], formerly known as ''Queen's Island''. Named after the [[RMS Titanic|Titanic]], which was built here in 1912,<ref name="Titanic In History"/> work has begun which promises to transform some former shipyard land into "one of the largest waterfront developments in Europe".<ref name="Titanic Quarter">{{cite web | title = Corporate Message: The Vision | work = About Us at Titanic Quarter | publisher = Titanic Quarter | date= 2006 | url = http://www.titanic-quarter.com/about.php?ID=3 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> Plans also include apartments, a riverside entertainment district, and a major Titanic-themed museum.<ref name="Titanic Quarter"/>
===Parks and gardens===
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Belfast Palm House.jpg|120px|right|thumb|The Palm House in [[Belfast Botanic Gardens|Botanic Gardens]]. The Palm House was designed by Charles Lanyon, and built in 1840 by [[Richard Turner (iron-founder)|Richard Turner]].]] -->
{{main|List of parks and gardens in Belfast}}
Belfast has over forty public parks. The Forest of Belfast is a partnership between government and local groups, set up in 1992 to manage and conserve the city's parks and open spaces. They have commissioned more than 30 public sculptures since 1993.<ref>{{cite web | title = Forest of Belfast | publisher = Belfast City Council | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/parksandopenspaces/forestofbelfast.asp?menuitem=forest | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> In 2006, the [[Belfast City Council|City Council]] set aside [[Pound sterling|UK£]]8 million to continue this work.<ref>{{cite web | title = Your City, Your Space | publisher = Belfast City Council | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/parksandopenspaces/openspacestrategy.asp?menuitem=yourcity | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> The [[Belfast Naturalists' Field Club]] was founded in 1863 and is administered by National Museums and Galleries of Northern Ireland.<ref>
{{cite web | title = About the Field Club | publisher = Belfast Naturalists' Field Club | url = http://www.habitas.org.uk/bnfc/about.html | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
With 700,000 visitors in 2005,{{Failed verification|date=December 2007}}<ref>{{cite web | title = Hansard 27 April 2006| publisher = House of Commons| url = http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/cm060427/text/60427w07.htm | accessdate = 2007-10-01}}</ref> one of the most popular parks<ref name="Botanic Gardens">{{cite web | title = Botanic Gardens | publisher = Belfast City Council | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/parksandopenspaces/parksdetails.asp?id=54 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}{{dead link|date=December 2007}}</ref> is [[Belfast Botanic Gardens|Botanic Gardens]] in the [[Queen's Quarter, Belfast|Queen's Quarter]]. Built in the 1830s and designed by [[Charles Lanyon|Sir Charles Lanyon]], Botanic Gardens Palm House is one of the earliest examples of a curvilinear and cast iron [[Greenhouse|glasshouse]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Palm House Botanic Gardens, Belfast City | publisher = Houses, Castles and Gardens of Ireland | url = http://www.gardensireland.com/palm-house.html | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> Other attractions in the park include the Tropical Ravine, a humid jungle glen built in 1889,<ref name="Botanic Gardens"/> rose gardens and public events ranging from live opera broadcasts to pop concerts. [[U2]] played here in 1997 and the [[Tennents ViTal]] festival takes place in the gardens each summer. [[Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park]], to the south of the city centre, attracts thousands of visitors each year to its International Rose Garden.<ref name="Go To Belfast: Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park">{{cite web | title = Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park and City of Belfast International Rose Garden | publisher = Go To Belfast | url = http://www.gotobelfast.com/thingstodo/viewdetail.cfm/TDVenue_Key/421/level/page/category_key/197/Page_Key/279/parent_key/0/type/Page/PaGeName/Restaurant_Month.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> Rose Week in July each year features over 20,000 blooms.<ref>{{cite web | title = Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park | work = Discover Northern Ireland | publisher = Northern Ireland Tourist Board | url = http://www.discovernorthernireland.com/product.aspx?ProductID=2795 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> It has an area of {{convert|128|acre|km2}} of meadows, woodland and gardens and features a [[Diana, Princess of Wales|Princess Diana]] Memorial Garden, a Japanese Garden, a walled garden, and the Golden Crown Fountain commissioned in 2002 as part of the [[Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II|Queen’s Golden Jubilee]] celebrations.<ref name="Go To Belfast: Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park"/>
In 2008, Belast was named a finalist in the Large City (200,001 and over) category of the [[Royal Horticultural Society|RHS]] [[Britain in Bloom]] competition along with [[London Borough of Croydon]] and [[Sheffield]].
==Demography==
{{further|[[Demography and politics of Northern Ireland]]}}
{| cellpadding="1" border="0" style="float: right; margin: 0em 1em 1em 0em; border: 1px #bbbbbb solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 90%;"
|- align="center" bgcolor=#EDD5A3
| colspan="3" | [[Demographics of Northern Ireland from the 2001 United Kingdom census|Northern Ireland 2001 census]]<ref name="Belfast Urban Area"/>
|- align="center" {{bgcolor-gold}}
| ||Belfast||Northern Ireland
|- align="center"
|Protestant||49%||53%
|- align="center"
|Roman Catholic||47%||44%
|- align="center"
|Male||47%||49%
|- align="center"
|Under 16 years old||22%||24%
|- align="center"
|Between 20 and 44 years old||37%||37%
|- align="center"
|Over 65 years old||15%||13%
|- align="center"
|Ethnically white||99%||99%
|}
In the [[United Kingdom 2001 census|2001 census]], the population within the city limits (the Belfast Urban Area) was 276,459,<ref name="Belfast Urban Area">{{cite web | title = Comparative Demography Profile: Belfast District Council, Northern Ireland | work = 2001 census data (Crown Copyright) | publisher = Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency | date= 2001 | url = http://www.nicensus2001.gov.uk/nica/browser/profile.jsp?profile=Demography&mainLevel=CouncilArea&mainArea=Belfast&mainText=&mainTextExplicitMatch=null&compLevel=CountryProfile&compArea=Northern+Ireland&compText=&compTextExplicitMatch=null | accessdate = 2007-05-17}}</ref> while 579,554 people lived in the wider [[Belfast Metropolitan Area]].<ref name="Belfast Metropolitan Area">{{cite web | title = Area Profile of Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area (BMUA) | work = 2001 Census data | publisher = Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency | date= 2001 | url = http://www.ninis.nisra.gov.uk/mapxtreme_towns/report.asp?settlementName=Belfast%20Metropolitan%20Urban%20Area%20(BMUA)&BandName=Belfast%20Metropolitan%20Urban%20Area%20(BMUA) | accessdate = 2007-05-16}}</ref> This made it the [[list of largest United Kingdom settlements by population|fifteenth-largest city]] in the [[United Kingdom]], but the [[list of conurbations in the United Kingdom|eleventh-largest conurbation]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Pointer, Graham|url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_compendia/fom2005/03_FOPM_UrbanAreas.pdf|format=PDF|title=The UK's major urban areas|publisher= UK National Statistics|accessdate=2007-12-07}}</ref>
Belfast experienced a huge growth in [[population]] around the first half of the twentieth century. This rise slowed and peaked around the start of [[the Troubles]] with the 1971 census showing almost 600,000 people in the ''Belfast Urban Area''.<ref name="Geography in Action Urban Growth">{{cite web | last = Stephen | first = Roulston | title = Urban Structure: Growth of Belfast | work = Geography in Action | publisher = National Grid for Learning | date= 2006 | url = http://www.geographyinaction.co.uk/Urban_structure/Urban_growth.html | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> Since then, the inner city numbers have dropped dramatically as people have moved to swell the [[Greater Belfast]] suburb population. The 2001 census population within the same Urban Area, had fallen to 277,391<ref name="Belfast Urban Area"/> people, with 579,554 people living in the wider [[Belfast Metropolitan Area]].<ref name="Belfast Metropolitan Area"/> The population density in the same year was 2,415 people/km² (compared to 119 for the rest of Northern Ireland).<ref name="Belfast LGD">{{cite web | title = Local Government District Information for Belfast LGD | work = Northern Ireland Neighbourhood Information Service (NINIS) | publisher = Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency | date= 2003 | url = http://www.ninis.nisra.gov.uk/mapxtreme/report.asp?INIT=YES&POSTCODE=BT015GS&DESC=FromGeneral&CurrentLevel=COA&ID=95GG390015&Name=95GG390015&Tab=DC | accessdate = 2007-06-01}}</ref> As with many cities, Belfast's inner city is currently characterised by the elderly, students and single young people, while families tend to live on the periphery. Socio-economic areas radiate out from the [[Belfast City Centre|Central Business District]], with a pronounced wedge of affluence extending out the [[Malone Road]] to the [[South Belfast|south]].<ref name="Geography in Action Urban Growth"/> An area of greater deprivation extends to the [[West Belfast|west]] of the city. The areas around the [[Falls Road (Belfast)|Falls]] and [[Shankill Road|Shankill]] Roads are the most deprived wards in Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite web | title = Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure | publisher = Department of Finance and Personnel | date= 2005-05 | url = http://www.nisra.gov.uk/archive/deprivation/NIMDM2005FullReport.pdf | format = [[PDF]] | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
Despite a period of relative peace, most areas and districts of Belfast still reflect the divided nature of Northern Ireland as a whole. Many areas are still highly segregated along ethnic, political and religious lines, especially in [[working class]] neighbourhoods.<ref>{{cite web | last = Stephen | first = Roulston | title = Ethnic Diversity: Segregation in Belfast. Introduction to Ethnic Diversity in Belfast | work = Geography in Action | publisher = National Grid for Learning | date= 2006 | url = http://www.geographyinaction.co.uk/Ethnic%20Diversity/Ethnic_intro.html | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> These zones ‘[[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]]’ or ‘[[Protestantism|Protestant]]’, ‘[[Irish Republicanism in Northern Ireland|Republican]]’ or ‘[[Ulster loyalism|Loyalist]]’ are invariably marked by [[Northern Ireland flags issue|flags]], [[graffiti]] and [[Northern Irish murals|murals]]. Segregation has been present throughout the history of Belfast, but has been maintained and increased by each outbreak of violence in the city. This escalation in segregation, described as a "ratchet effect", has shown little sign of decreasing during times of peace.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Lloyd | first = C | coauthors = Shuttleworth, I; McNair, D | title = Measuring local segregation in Northern Ireland | journal = Centre for Spatial Territorial Analysis and Research (C-STAR) | date= 2003 | publisher = School of Geography, Queen’s University | url = http://www.qub.ac.uk/c-star/pubs/lloydetal.pdf | accessdate = 2006-03-12 }}
</ref> When violence flares, it tends to be in interface areas. The highest levels of segregation in the city are in [[West Belfast]] with many areas greater than 90% [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]]. Opposite but comparatively high levels are seen in the predominantly [[Protestantism|Protestant]] [[East Belfast]].<ref name="Ethnic Segregation">{{cite journal | last = Doherty | first = P | coauthors = Poole, M | title = Ethnic Residential Segregation in Belfast | journal = Centre for the Study of Conflict | pages = Chapter 8 | date= 1995 | publisher = University of Ulster, Coleraine | url = http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/csc/reports/apartbel.htm#conclude | accessdate = 2006-03-12 }}</ref> Areas where segregated working-class areas meet are known as [[interface area]]s.
[[Ethnic minorities in Northern Ireland|Ethnic minority]] communities have been in Belfast since the 1930s.<ref name="Who lives here">{{cite web | title = Ethnic minorities: Who lives here? | work = Northern Ireland Learning: Teacher's Notes | publisher = BBC | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/schools/11_16/citizenship/pdfs/ctz_eth_pg02_tn.pdf | format = [[PDF]] | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> The largest groups are Chinese and [[Irish travellers]]. Since the expansion of the European Union, numbers have been boosted by an influx of Eastern European immigrants. Census figures (2001) showed that Belfast has a total ethnic minority population of 4,584 or 1.3% of the population. Over half of these live in [[South Belfast]] with numbers reaching 2.63% of the population.<ref name="Who lives here"/> The majority of the estimated 5000 [[Muslims]]<ref>{{cite web | title = About Us | publisher = Belfast Islamic Centre | url = http://belfastislamiccentre.org.uk/about_us/about_us.htm | date= 2007 | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> and 200 [[Hindu]] families<ref>{{cite web | title = Hinduism | work = Primary Focus: Programme 1 - Indian Community | publisher = BBC | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/schools/4_11/pfocus/citizenship/spring2001/ | accessdate = 2007-10-08}}</ref> living and working in Northern Ireland live in the [[Greater Belfast]] area.
==Economy==
{{main|Economy of Belfast}}
The [[Provisional Irish Republican Army#End of the armed campaign|IRA Ceasefire]] in 1994 and the signing of the [[Belfast Agreement|Good Friday Agreement]] in 1998 have given investors increased confidence to invest in Belfast.<ref>{{cite web | title = Durkan "hopeful" For Future Of Good Friday Agreement | publisher = Department of Finance and Personnel| url = http://archive.nics.gov.uk/dfp/010209f-dfp.htm | accessdate = 2007-09-17}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title = House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 13 February 2002 | publisher = House of Commons | url = http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/vo020213/text/20213w02.htm | accessdate = 2007-09-17}}</ref> This has led to a period of sustained economic growth and large-scale redevelopment of the [[Belfast City Centre|city centre]]. Developments include Victoria Square, the [[Cathedral Quarter, Belfast|Cathedral Quarter]], and the [[Laganside]] with the [[Odyssey (Belfast)|Odyssey]] complex and the landmark [[Waterfront Hall]]. [[Image:Waterfront Hall, Belfast.jpg|thumb|left|180px|The Waterfront Hall. Built in 1997, the hall is a concert, exhibition and conference venue.]]
Other major developments include the regeneration of the [[Titanic Quarter, Belfast|Titanic Quarter]], and the erection of the [[Obel Tower]], a skyscraper set to be the tallest tower on the island until eclipsed by the [[U2 Tower]] in Dublin.<ref>{{cite news | title = U2 Tower strikes bad chord with residents | publisher = BBC News | date= 2006-08-07 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/5251794.stm | accessdate = 2007-03-13}}</ref> In 2007, Belfast launched its vision for a [[Worldwide world trade center|World Trade Centre]]—currently a 'virtual' centre but with plans to become a physical building—which aims to promote the city to the international business market.<ref>{{cite web | title = World Trade Centre Belfast | publisher = Belfast City Council | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/worldtradecentre/ | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
Today, Belfast is Northern Ireland's educational and commercial hub. In February 2006, Belfast's unemployment rate stood at 4.2%, lower than both the Northern Ireland<ref>{{cite web | title = Monthly Labour Market Report | publisher = Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment | date= 2006-02-15 | url = http://www.detini.gov.uk/cgi-bin/downdoc?id=1941 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> and the UK average of 5.5%.<ref>
{{cite web | title = Employment | work = National Statistics | publisher = Office of National Statistics | date= 2006-03 | url = http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=12 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> Over the past 10 years employment has grown by 16.4 per cent, compared with 9.2 per cent for the UK as a whole.<ref>{{cite news | title = From bombs and bullets to boom towns | publisher = Guardian Unlimited | date= 2007-04-01 | url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/Northern_Ireland/Story/0,,2047327,00.html | accessdate = 2007-05-16}}</ref>
Northern Ireland's [[peace dividend]] has led to soaring property prices in the city. In 2007, Belfast saw house prices grow by 50%, the fastest rate of growth in the UK.<ref>{{cite press release | title = Northern Ireland Reaches Watershed in House Price Growth | publisher = University of Ulster | date= 2007-11-15 | url = http://news.ulster.ac.uk/releases/2007/3504.html | accessdate = 2007-12-10}}</ref> In March 2007, the average house in Belfast cost £191,819, with the average in [[South Belfast]] being £241,000.<ref>{{cite news | last =Carson | first = Helen | title = Typical price of Ulster home edges ever closer to [[Pound sterling|UK£]]200,000 | publisher = Belfast Telegraph | date= 2007-02-28 | url = http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/article2311541.ece | accessdate = 2007-03-13}}</ref> In 2004, Belfast had the lowest owner occupation rate in Northern Ireland at 54%.<ref>{{cite press release | title = House Owner Occupation Rates | publisher = Halifax | date= 2004-11-19 | url = http://www.hbosplc.com/economy/includes/19-11-04UKowneroccupation.doc | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
Peace has also boosted the numbers of tourists coming to Belfast. There were 6.4 million visitors in 2005, which was a growth of 8.5% from 2004. The visitors spent £285.2 million, supporting more than 15,600 jobs.<ref>{{Citation | title = Belfast 2005: Tourism Facts and Figures | place = Belfast | publisher = Belfast City Council | year = 2006 | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/tourism/docs/FactsFigures2005.pdf | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> Visitor numbers rose by 6% to reach 6.8 million in 2006, with tourists spending £324 million, an increase of 15% on 2005.<ref>{{cite news | title= Record number of visitors come to Belfast | work= GO Belfast | page=6 | date=July/August 2007}}</ref> The city's two airports have help make the city one of the most visited weekend destinations in Europe.<ref>{{cite web | title = Invest in Belfast: A 2007 City Guide for Investors | publisher = Belfast City Council | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/investinbelfastguide/lifequality.asp | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
===Industrial growth===
When the population of Belfast town began to grow in the [[17th century|seventeenth century]], its economy was built on [[Trade|commerce]].<ref name="Belfast, The Making of the City 1">{{cite book | last = Beckett | first = JC | coauthors = et al. | title = Belfast, The Making of the City. Chapter 1: Belfast to the end of the eighteenth century | publisher = Appletree Press Ltd | date= 2003 | location = Belfast | pages = pp13-26 | id = 0862818788}}</ref> It provided a market for the surrounding countryside and the natural inlet of [[Belfast Lough]] gave the city its own [[Port of Belfast|port]]. The port supplied an avenue for trade with Great Britain and later Europe and North America. In the mid-seventeenth century, Belfast exported beef, butter, hides, tallow and corn and it imported coal, cloth, wine, brandy, paper, timber and tobacco.<ref name="Belfast, The Making of the City 1"/> Around this time, the [[linen]] trade in Northern Ireland blossomed and by the middle of the [[18th century|eighteenth century]], one fifth of all the linen exported from Ireland was shipped from Belfast.<ref name="Belfast, The Making of the City 1"/> The present city however is a product of the [[Industrial Revolution]].<ref name="Columbia Encyclopedia">{{cite book | title = The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. | publisher = Columbia University Press | date= 2005 | url = http://www.bartleby.com/65/be/Belfast.html}}</ref> It was not until industry transformed the linen and shipbuilding trades that the economy and the population boomed. By the turn of the [[19th century|nineteenth century]], Belfast had transformed into the largest linen producing centre in the world,<ref name="Belfast, The Making of the City 3">{{cite book | last = Beckett | first = JC | coauthors = Boyle, E | title = Belfast, The Making of the City. Chapter 3: "Linenopolis": the rise of the textile industry | publisher = Appletree Press Ltd | date= 2003 | location = Belfast | pages = pp41-56 | id = 0862818788}}</ref> earning the nickname "Linenopolis".
[[Image:Belfast Shipyard 1907.jpg|350px|thumb|right|A 1907 [[stereoscope]] postcard depicting the construction of a liner at the [[Harland and Wolff]] shipyard.]] Belfast harbour was dredged in 1845 to provide deeper berths for larger ships. Donegall Quay was built out into the river as the harbour was developed further and trade flourished.<ref name="Belfast, The Making of the City 4">{{cite book | last = Beckett | first = JC | coauthors = Sweetman, R | title = Belfast, The Making of the City. Chapter 4: The development of the port | publisher = Appletree Press Ltd | date= 2003 | location = Belfast | pages = pp. 57–70 | id = 0862818788}}</ref> The [[Harland and Wolff]] shipbuilding firm was created in 1861, and by the time [[HMS Titanic|the Titanic]] was built in Belfast in 1912 it had become the largest shipyard in the world.<ref name="Titanic In History"/>
[[Short Brothers]] plc is a British aerospace company based in Belfast. It was the first aircraft manufacturing company in the world. The company began its association with Belfast in 1936, with Short & Harland Ltd, a venture jointly owned by Shorts and Harland and Wolff. Now known as Shorts Bombardier it works as an international aircraft manufacturer located near the [[Port of Belfast]].<ref name="Corporate Series">{{cite web | title = Coprorate Series Northern Ireland | work = Corporate Northern Ireland 2007 | publisher = Coprorate Series | url = http://www.corporateseries.com/nireland/07/CNI_section07.pdf | accessdate = 2007-12-07}}</ref> The rise of mass-produced and cotton clothing following [[World War I]] were some of the factors which led to the decline of Belfast's international linen trade.<ref name="Belfast, The Making of the City 3"/> Like many British cities dependent on traditional heavy industry, Belfast suffered serious decline since the 1960s, exacerbated greatly in the 1970s and 1980s by [[The Troubles]]. More than 100,000 manufacturing jobs have been lost since the 1970s.<ref name="Management Today">{{cite journal | title = Northern Ireland - Where is the bright new future? | journal = Management Today | date = [[2006-03-23]] | url = http://www.managementtoday.co.uk/news/542849/ | accessdate = 2007-05-16}}</ref> For several decades, Northern Ireland's fragile economy required significant public support from the [[Exchequer|British exchequer]] of up to [[Pound sterling|UK£]]4 billion per year.<ref name="Management Today"/> Ongoing sectarian violence has made it difficult for Belfast to compete with Dublin's [[Celtic Tiger]] economy.<ref name="Management Today"/>
==Architecture==
{{main|Buildings and structures in Belfast}}
[[Image:City Hall And The Belfast Wheel.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Belfast City Hall and the Big Wheel at night]]
[[Image:Belfast wheel and city hall.jpg||left|200px|thumb|City hall and Big Wheel during daytime]]
The architectural style of Belfast's buildings range from [[Edwardian Baroque architecture|Edwardian]], like the [[Belfast City Hall|City Hall]], to modern, like [[Waterfront Hall]]. Many of the city's [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] landmarks, including the main ''Lanyon Building'' at [[Queen's University Belfast]] and the [[Linenhall Library]], were designed by [[Charles Lanyon|Sir Charles Lanyon]].
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Belfast City Hall - Carisenda.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Belfast City Hall, completed in 1906. The grounds of the building are a popular meeting point in the summer months.]] -->
The [[Belfast City Hall|City Hall]] was finished in 1906 and was built to reflect Belfast’s [[city status]], granted by [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria]] in 1888. The [[Edwardian Baroque architecture|Edwardian]] architectural influenced the [[Victoria Memorial (India)|Victoria Memorial]] in [[Calcutta]], [[India]], and [[Durban]] City Hall in [[South Africa]].<ref>{{cite book | last = Krishna | first = Dutta | title = Calcutta: A Cultural and Literary History | pages = 132 | publisher = Signal Books | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=UKfoHi5412UC&pg=PA132&dq=%22victoria+memorial%22+calcutta+belfast+-wikipedia&sig=33xuTDWVAdn7YGQvChu2PBL46wQ | date= 2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/25/world/africa/25durban.html?_r=1&oref=slogin |title=Where the Road to Renaming Does Not Run Smooth |publisher=New York Times |date=2006-05-25 |accessdate=2007-10-01|author=Wines, Michael}}</ref> The dome is 173 ft (53 m) high and figures above the door state “[[Hibernia]] encouraging and promoting the Commerce and Arts of the City”.<ref name="Go To Historic Buildings">{{cite web | title = Historic Belfast: A guide to the City’s landmark buildings | publisher = Go To Belfast | url = http://www.gotobelfast.com/index.cfm/level/page/category_key/197/Page_Key/428/Parent_Key/0/type/Page/PaGeName/Historic_Buildings_of_Belfast | accessdate = 2007-05-23}}</ref> Among the city's grandest buildings are two former banks: [[Ulster Bank]] in Waring Street (built in 1860) and [[Northern Bank]], in nearby Donegall Street (built in 1769). The [[Royal Courts of Justice, Belfast|Royal Courts of Justice]] in Chichester Street are home to Northern Ireland's [[Courts of Northern Ireland|Supreme Court]]. Many of Belfast's oldest buildings are found in the [[Cathedral Quarter, Belfast|Cathedral Quarter]] area, which is currently undergoing redevelopment as the city's main cultural and tourist area.<ref name="Cathedral Quarter"/> Windsor House, 262 ft (80 m) high, has twenty-three floors and is the tallest building (as distinct from structure) in [[Ireland]].<ref>{{cite web | last = Morgan | first = Ian | title = Ireland's tallest building to be turned into flats | publisher = 24dash.com | date= 2007-03-04 | url = http://www.24dash.com/printNews/1/17408.htm | accessdate = 2007-06-02}}</ref> Work has started on the taller [[Obel Tower]] and in 2007, plans were approved for the [[Aurora building]]. At 37 storeys and 358 ft (109 m) high, this will surpass both previous buildings.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast's tallest building revealed | publisher = Archiseek | date= 2007-01-19 | url = http://ireland.archiseek.com/news/2007/000024.html | accessdate = 2007-06-02}}</ref>
The ornately decorated [[The Crown Liquor Saloon|Crown Liquor Saloon]], designed by Joseph Anderson 1876, in Great Victoria Street is the only bar in the [[UK]] owned by the [[List of National Trust properties in Northern Ireland|National Trust]]. It was made internationally famous as the setting for the classic film, ''[[Odd Man Out]]'', starring [[James Mason]].<ref>{{cite news | title = BBC seeks stars of Belfast film noir | publisher = BBC News Northern Ireland | date= 2007-02-23 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6388303.stm | accessdate = 2007-05-23}}</ref> The restaurant panels in the Crown Bar were originally made for Britannic, the sister ship of the [[HMS Titanic|Titanic]],<ref name="Go To Historic Buildings"/> built in Belfast. The [[Harland and Wolff]] shipyard is now the location of the world's largest [[dry dock]],<ref>{{cite web | title = Welcome to Belfast City | publisher = Irish News | url = http://www.irishnews.com/tourism/belfast/index.html | accessdate = 2007-05-23}}</ref> where the giant cranes, [[Samson and Goliath (Cranes)|Samson and Goliath]] stand out against Belfast's skyline.
Including the [[Waterfront Hall]] and the [[Odyssey Arena]], Belfast has several other venues for performing arts. The architecture of the [[Grand Opera House (Belfast)|Grand Opera House]] has a distinctly oriental theme and was completed in 1895. It was bombed several times during [[the Troubles]] but has now been restored to its former glory.<ref>{{cite web | title = Grand Opera House | publisher = Cinema Treasures | url = http://cinematreasures.org/theater/2061/ | accessdate = 2007-06-01}}</ref> [[Lyric Players' Theatre|The Lyric Theatre]], the only full-time producing theatre in the country, is where film star [[Liam Neeson]] began his career.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/4083973.stm |title=Neeson in bid to revive theatre |publisher=BBC News |date=2004-12-10 |accessdate=2007-12-07|author=BBC}}</ref> The [[Ulster Hall]] (1859-1862) was originally designed for grand dances but is now used primarily as a concert and sporting venue. [[Lloyd George]], [[Charles Stewart Parnell|Parnell]] and [[Patrick Pearse]] all attended political rallies there.<ref name="Go To Historic Buildings"/>
==Infrastructure==
Belfast saw the worst of [[The Troubles]] in Ireland, with nearly half of the total deaths in the conflict occurring in the city. However, since the [[Belfast Agreement|Good Friday Agreement]] in 1998, there has been significant [[urban regeneration]] in the [[Belfast City Centre|city centre]] including Victoria Square, [[Titanic Quarter, Belfast|Queen's Island]] and [[Laganside]] as well as the [[Odyssey (Belfast)|Odyssey]] complex and the landmark [[Waterfront Hall]]. The city is served by two airports: The [[George Best Belfast City Airport]] adjacent to Belfast Lough and [[Belfast International Airport]] which is near [[Lough Neagh]]. [[Queen's University of Belfast]] is the main university in the city. The [[University of Ulster]] also maintains a campus in the city, which concentrates on fine art, design and architecture.
Belfast is one of the constituent cities that makes up the [[Dublin-Belfast corridor]] region, which has a population of just under 3 million.
===Utilities===
[[Image:SilentValley.jpg|left|thumb|180px|Silent Valley Reservoir, showing the brick-built overflow]]
Most of Belfast's water is supplied from the [[Silent Valley Reservoir]] in [[County Down]], created to collect water from the [[Mourne Mountains]].<ref>{{cite web | title = The Silent Valley | publisher = Northern Ireland Water | date= 2007 | url = http://www.niwater.com/thesilentvalley.asp | accessdate = 2007-05-26}}</ref> The rest of the city's water is sourced from [[Lough Neagh]], via ''Dunore Water Treatment Works'' in County Antrim.<ref name="BMA plan">{{cite web | title = Strategic Plan Framework: Public Services and Utilities | work = Draft Belfast Metropolitan Area Plan 2015 | publisher = The Planning Service | url = http://www.planningni.gov.uk/areaplans_policy/Plans/BMA/draft_plan/01Part1_3/03Strategic_Framework/publics_u.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-26}}</ref> The citizens of Belfast pay for their water in their [[Rates (tax)|rates]] bill. Plans to bring in additional water tariffs have been deferred by [[Northern Ireland Assembly|devolution]] in May 2007.<ref>{{cite web | title = Water Reform Implemented: Secretary of State announces deferral of charges | publisher = Water Reform NI | date= March 2007 | url = http://www.waterreformni.gov.uk/ | accessdate = 2007-05-26}}</ref> Belfast has approximately 1,300 km of [[sewer]]s, which are currently being replaced in a project costing over [[Pound sterling|UK£]]100 million and due for completion in 2009.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast Sewers Project - Key Facts | publisher = Northern Ireland Water | date= 2007 | url = http://www.niwater.com/belfastsewersproject.asp | accessdate = 2007-05-26}}</ref>
[[Northern Ireland Electricity]] is responsible for transmitting electricity in Northern Ireland. Belfast's electricity comes from [[Kilroot]] Power Station, a 520 [[Megawatt#Megawatt|megawatt]] dual [[coal]] and [[oil]] fired [[power station|plant]], situated near [[Carrickfergus]].<ref name="BMA plan"/> [[Phoenix Natural Gas|Phoenix Natural Gas Ltd.]] has been granted the licence for the transportation of natural gas across the Irish Sea from [[Stranraer]] to supply Greater Belfast from a base station near [[Carrickfergus]].<ref name="BMA plan"/> [[Rates (tax)|Rates]] in Belfast (and the rest of Northern Ireland) were reformed in April 2007. The discrete [[Capital (economics)|capital]] value system means rates bills are determined by the capital value of each domestic property as assessed by the ''Valuation and Lands Agency''.<ref>{{cite web | title = Summary of domestic rating reforms | publisher = Department of Finance and Personnel | date= 2005 | url = http://www.ratingreviewni.gov.uk/index/domestic/domestic-summary.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-26}}</ref> The recent dramatic rise in house prices has made these reforms unpopular.<ref>{{cite web | title = Domestic Rates Reform | publisher = Fair Rates Campaign | url = http://www.fairratescampaign.co.uk/rates_reform.html | accessdate = 2007-05-26}}</ref>
===Health Care===
The [[Belfast Trust]] is one of five [[National Health Service|NHS]] trusts which were created on 1 April 2007 by the Department of Health. Belfast contains most of Northern Ireland's regional specialist centres.<ref>{{cite web | title = Review Of Public Administration: Consultation On Draft Legislation To Establish Five New Integrated Health And Social Services Trusts | publisher = DHSSPS | url = http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/hpssreview-trust-consultation-document.pdf | accessdate = 2007-09-17}}</ref> The [[Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast|Royal Victoria Hospital]], serving mainly [[West Belfast]], is an internationally renowned centre of excellence in trauma care and provides specialist trauma care for all of Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Payne | first = William | title = Hospital Development:PFI beyond DBFO | journal = ProQuest Information and Learning Company | publisher = Wilmington Publishing Ltd. | date= 1998-09 | url = http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3873/is_199809/ai_n8824797/print | accessdate = 2007-05-06}}</ref> It also provides the city's specialist neurosurgical, ophthalmology, [[Otolaryngology|ENT]], and Dentistry services. The [[Belfast City Hospital|City Hospital]], serving South Belfast, is the regional specialist centre for Haematology and is home to the most modern equipped regional Cancer Centre in the UK.{{Failed verification|date=December 2007}}<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast Cancer Centre, Northern Ireland | publisher = Scott Wilson | url = http://www.scottwilson.com/projects/environment/landscape__urban_design/belfast_cancer_centre.aspx | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> The Mary G McGeown Regional Nephrology Unit at the [[Belfast City Hospital]] is the Kidney Transplant Centre and provides regional renal services for N.Ireland.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast City Hospital: About the Unit | publisher = The Renal Association | date= 2006-11 | url = http://www.renal.org/unit/index.pl?c=belfast | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref>
[[Musgrave Park Hospital]] in [[South Belfast]] specialises in orthopaedics, rheumatology, sports medicine and rehabilitation. It is home to Northern Ireland's first Acquired Brain Injury Unit, costing [[Pound sterling|GB£]]9 million and opened by the [[Prince of Wales]] and the [[Duchess of Cornwall]] in May, 2006.<ref>{{cite news | title = TRH open Northern Ireland's first Regional Acquired Brain Injury Unit | publisher = The Prince of Wales | date= 2006-05-15 | url = http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/newsandgallery/news/trh_open_northern_ireland_s_first_regional_acquired_brain_in_778.html | accessdate = 2007-05-06}}</ref> Other hospitals in Belfast include the [[Mater Infirmorum Hospital|Mater Hospital]] in [[North Belfast]], the [[Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children|Children's Hospital]], and the [[Ulster Hospital]], [[Dundonald]].
===Transportation===
{{main|Transport in Belfast}}
Belfast is a relatively car-dependent city, by European standards, with an extensive road network including the ten lane [[M2 motorway (Northern Ireland)|M2 motorway]]. A recent survey of how people travel in Northern Ireland showed that people in Belfast made 77% of all journeys by car, 11% by public transport and 6% on foot.<ref name="Travel Survey">{{cite paper | author = Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency | title = Travel Survey for Northern Ireland 2002-04 | publisher = Department for Regional Development | date = [[2005-10-18]] | url = http://www.drdni.gov.uk/statistic-details.htm?publication_id=161 | format = [[PDF]] | accessdate = 2007-05-06}}</ref> It also showed that Belfast has 0.70 cars per household compared to figures of 1.18 in the East and 1.14 in the West of Northern Ireland.<ref name="Travel Survey"/> A significant road improvement scheme in Belfast began early in 2006, with the upgrading of two junctions along the [[Westlink Belfast|Westlink]] dual carriageway to [[grade separation|grade separated]] standard. The Westlink, a dual carriageway skirting the western edge of the City Centre, connects all three Belfast motorways and often suffers from chronic congestion. The work will cost [[Pound sterling|UK£]]103.9 million and is scheduled for completion in 2009.<ref>{{cite web | title = Westlink Upgrade | work = Road Improvements | publisher = Road Service | date= 2006 | url = http://roadimprovements.roadsni.gov.uk/index/schemes/westlink_upgrade.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-23}}</ref> Commentators have argued that this may simply create a bottleneck at York Street, the next [[at-grade intersection]], until that too is upgraded (planned for 2011).<ref>{{cite web | last = Johnston | first = Wesley | title = Westlink & M1 Upgrade, Belfast | work = Northern Ireland Roads Site | url = http://www.wesleyjohnston.com/roads/a12notes.html | accessdate = 2007-05-23}}</ref>
[[Hackney carriage|Black taxis]] are common in the city, operating on a [[Share taxi|share]] basis in some areas. However, these are outnumbered by private hire [[Taxicabs of the United Kingdom#Private hire ('Minicabs')|minicabs]]. Bus and rail [[public transport]] in Northern Ireland is operated by subsidiaries of [[Translink (Northern Ireland)|Translink]]. Bus services in the city proper and the nearer suburbs are operated by [[Metro (Belfast)|Translink Metro]], with services focusing on linking residential districts with the City Centre on twelve [[quality bus corridor]]s running along main radial roads, resulting in poor connections between different suburban areas. More distant suburbs are served by [[Ulsterbus]]. [[Northern Ireland Railways]] provides [[Belfast Suburban Rail|suburban services]] along three lines running through Belfast’s northern suburbs to [[Carrickfergus]] and [[Larne]], eastwards towards [[Bangor, County Down|Bangor]] and south-westwards towards [[Lisburn]] and [[Portadown]]. This service is known as the [[Belfast Suburban Rail]] system. Belfast also has a direct rail connection with Dublin called ''[[Enterprise (train)|Enterprise]]'' which is operated jointly by NIR and [[Iarnród Éireann]], the state railway company of the Republic of Ireland. In April 2008 the DRD reported on a plan for a light rail system, similar to Dublin's system, suggesting that investment in more modern buses would be prefereable.<ref>{{cite web | last = | first = | title = City to get rapid transit network | work = BBC Northern Ireland | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7335313.stm | accessdate = 2008-04-04}}</ref>
The city has two airports: the [[Belfast International Airport]] offers domestic, European and transatlantic flights and is located north of the city, near [[Lough Neagh]], while the [[George Best Belfast City Airport]] is closer to the city centre, adjacent to Belfast Lough. In 2005, Belfast International Airport was the 11th busiest commercial airport in the UK, accounting for just over 2% of all UK terminal passengers while the George Best Belfast City Airport was the 16th busiest and had 1% of UK terminal passengers.<ref>{{cite paper | author = Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency | title = Northern Ireland Transport Statistics Annual 2005-2006 | publisher = Department for Regional Development | date = [[2006-09-28]] | url = http://www.drdni.gov.uk/statistic-details.htm?publication_id=170 | format = [[PDF]] | accessdate = 2007-05-02}}</ref>
Belfast has a large [[Port of Belfast|port]] which is used for exporting and importing goods, and for passenger ferry services. [[Stena Line]] run regular routes to [[Stranraer]] in Scotland using their HSS (High Speed Service) vessel—with a crossing time of around 90 minutes—and/or their conventional vessel—with a crossing time of around 3hrs 45 minutes. [[Norfolkline]]—formally Norse Merchant Ferries—run a passenger/cargo ferry to and from Liverpool, with a crossing time of 8 hours and a seasonal sailing to [[Douglas, Isle of Man]] is operated by the [[Isle of Man Steam Packet]] company—formally [[SeaCat]].
==Culture==
{{main|Culture of Belfast}}
[[Image:Imagine Belfast 2008.JPG|150px|left|thumb|"One Belfast Where Hope and History Rhyme" the Logo for ''Imagine Belfast'' bid]]
Belfast's population is evenly split between its [[Protestantism|Protestant]] and [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] residents<ref name="Belfast Urban Area"/> (politically [[Unionism in Ireland|Unionist]] and [[Irish Republicanism in Northern Ireland|Nationalist]] respectively). These two distinct vibrant cultural communities have both contributed significantly to the city's culture. Throughout [[the Troubles]], Belfast artists continued to express themselves through poetry, art and music. In the period since the [[Belfast Agreement|Good Friday Agreement]] in 1998, Belfast has begun a social, economic and cultural transformation giving it a growing international cultural reputation.<ref>{{cite web | title = Summary of the bid | work = One Belfast Where Hope and History Rhyme (Internet Archive) | publisher = Imagine Belfast 2008 | date= 2002-11-22 | url = http://web.archive.org/web/20021207124752/www.imaginebelfast2008.com/front.html | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> In 2003, Belfast had an unsuccessful bid for the 2008 [[European Capital of Culture]]. The bid was run by an independent company, ''Imagine Belfast'', who boasted that it would "make Belfast the meeting place of Europe's legends, where the meaning of history and belief find a home and a sanctuary from caricature, parody and oblivion."<ref>{{cite news | title = The official websites on UK bids for European capital of culture 2008 | publisher = The Guardian | date= 2002-10-30 | url = http://society.guardian.co.uk/regeneration/page/0,,774007,00.html | accessdate = 2007-03-13}}</ref> According to ''[[The Guardian]]'' the bid may have been undermined by the [[History of Belfast|city's history]] and volatile politics.<ref>{{cite news | last = Ward | first = D | coauthors = Carter, H | title = Six cities shortlisted for culture capital bid | publisher = The Guardian | date= 2002-10-31 | url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,822886,00.html | accessdate = 2007-03-13}}</ref>
In 2004-05, art and cultural events in Belfast were attended by 1.8 million people (400,000 more than the previous year). The same year, 80,000 people participated in culture and arts activities, twice as many as in 2003-04.<ref name="Belfast Cultural Strategy">{{cite web | title = Integrated Cultural Strategy for Belfast | publisher = Capital City: Belfast City Councils Development Agenda | date= 2006-05 | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/culture/culturalstrategy.asp | format = [[PDF]] | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> A combination of relative peace, international investment and an active promotion of arts and culture is attracting more tourists to Belfast than ever before. In 2004-05, 5.9 million people visited Belfast, a 10% increase from the previous year, and spent [[Pound sterling|UK£]]262.5 million.<ref name="Belfast Cultural Strategy"/>
The [[Ulster Orchestra]], based in Belfast, is Northern Ireland's only full-time [[symphony orchestra]] and is well renowned in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1966, it has existed in its present form since 1981, when the [[BBC Northern Ireland]] Orchestra was disbanded.<ref>{{cite web | title = Welcome to the new season | publisher = Ulster Orchestra Society | url = http://www.ulster-orchestra.org.uk/concerts/welcome.html | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref>
===Media===
[[Image:BBC Northern Ireland Belfast.jpg|thumb|Broadcasting House on Ormeau Avenue, home to BBC Northern Ireland.]]
Belfast is the home of ''[[The News Letter]]'', the oldest [[English language]] newspaper in the world still in publication.<ref>{{cite web | title = Research Guide: Irish News & Newspapers | publisher = Boston College | date= 2007 | url = http://www.bc.edu/libraries/research/guides/s-irishnews/ | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last = Johnston | first = Ruth | title = Belfast News Letter | work = Your Place and Mine | publisher = BBC | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/yourplaceandmine/belfast/newsletter.shtml | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> Other newspapers include the ''[[Irish News]]'' and ''[[Belfast Telegraph]]'' and an Irish language daily newspaper called ''[[Lá Nua]]'' ({{derive|Irish|Lá Nua|New Day}}). The current affairs magazine ''Fortnight'', published (ironically) on a monthly basis, is Northern Ireland's longest running independent publication.<ref>{{cite web | title = Fortnight Magazine | publisher = Fortnight Publications | url = http://www.fortnight.org/ | accessdate = 2007-06-01}}</ref>
The city is the headquarters of [[BBC Northern Ireland]], the [[ITV]] station [[Ulster Television|UTV]] and the commercial radio stations [[Belfast CityBeat]] & [[U105]]. Two community radio stations, [[Feile FM]] and Irish language station [[Raidió Fáilte]] broadcast to the city from west Belfast, as well as [[Queen's Radio]] - a student-run radio station which broadcasts from [[Queen's University]] Students' Union. One of Northern Ireland's two community TV stations [[NvTv]] is based in the [[Cathedral Quarter, Belfast|Cathedral Quarter]] of the city. There are two independent cinemas in Belfast, the [[Queen's Film Theatre]] and the [[Strand Cinema]], which host screenings during the [[Belfast Film Festival]] and the [[Belfast Festival at Queen's]].
===Sports===
{{main|Sport in Belfast}}
[[Image:BestCregaghEstateMural.jpg|thumb|left|100px|George Best mural, close to his childhood home in the Cregagh estate.]]
Watching and playing sports is an important part of Belfast culture. Almost six out of ten (59%) of the adult population in [[Northern Ireland]] regularly participate in one or more sports.<ref>{{cite web | title = Chapter Twelve: Sport and Recreation as an activity | work = The Organisation of Sport & Recreation in the UK | publisher = Central Council of Physical Recreation | date= 2005 | url = http://www.yorkshiresport.org.uk/ccpr/c12.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> Belfast has several notable sports teams playing a diverse variety of sports including [[association football]], [[rugby]], [[Gaelic games]], and North American sports like American football and ice hockey. The [[Belfast Marathon]] is run annually on May Day, and attracted 14,300 participants in 2007.<ref name="Belfast Marathon">
{{cite web | title = Mutai wins Belfast Marathon | publisher = Belfast City Council | date= 2007-05-07 | url = http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/news/news.asp?id=864 | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> The [[Northern Ireland national football team]], ranked 27th in September 2007 in the [[FIFA World Rankings]],<ref>{{cite web | title = FIFA/Coca Cola World Rankings | publisher = FIFA | date= September 2007 | url = http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/ranking/lastranking/gender=m/fullranking.html | accessdate = 2007-09-10}}</ref> and 1st in the FIFA rankings per capita in April 2007<ref>
{{cite web | title = List of Teams with Per Capita Factor | work = FIFA World Rankings | date= 2007-04-26 | url = http://www.fifaworldrankings.egowar.com/per_capita.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref> play their home matches in [[Windsor Park]]. The 2005-06 [[Irish Football League|Irish League]] champions [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] are also based at [[Windsor Park]], in the south of the city. Other Premier League teams include [[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] based in east Belfast, [[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] and [[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]] in north Belfast and [[Donegal Celtic]] in west Belfast. Belfast was the hometown of the renowned player [[George Best]] who died in November 2005. On the day he was buried in the city, 100,000 people lined the route from his home on the Cregagh Road to Roselawn cemetery.<ref>{{cite news | last = McCann | first = Nuala | title = A city mourns for the Belfast Boy | work = BBC News Northern Ireland | publisher = BBC | date= 2005-12-03 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/4495026.stm | accessdate = 2005-05-18}}</ref> Since his death the [[George Best Belfast City Airport|City Airport]] was named after him and a trust has been set up to fund a memorial to him in the city centre.<ref>{{cite web | title = George Best Memorial Trust | publisher = George Best Trust | url = http://www.georgebesttrust.com/ | accessdate = 2007-05-18}}</ref>
[[Gaelic football]] is the most popular spectator sport in Ireland,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.gaa.ie/files/04arstat.pdf | title = Information and Statistics | work = GAA Attendance Figures | publisher = Gaelic Athletic Association [[Gaelic Athletic Association]] | accessdate=2006-05-18}}</ref> and Belfast is home to over 20 football and [[hurling]] clubs.<ref>[http://antrim.gaa.ie/clubs/?2 South Antrim Clubs]. CLG Aontroim. Retrieved on [[11 November]], [[2007]].</ref> [[Casement Park]] in West Belfast, home to the [[Antrim GAA|Antrim]] county teams, has a capacity of 32,000 which makes it the second largest [[Gaelic Athletic Association]] ground in [[Ulster]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Antrim chief in protest at Maze games | publisher = Sunday Mirror | url = http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4161/is_20050313/ai_n12944637 | accessdate = 2007-09-17}}</ref> The 2006 [[Celtic League (Rugby Union)|Celtic League]] champions and 1999 [[Heineken Cup|European Rugby Union champions]] [[Ulster Rugby|Ulster]] play at [[Ravenhill Stadium|Ravenhill]] in South Belfast. Belfast has four teams in rugby's [[AIB League|All-Ireland League]]: [[Belfast Harlequins]] (who play at Deramore Park in south Belfast) and [[Malone RFC|Malone]] (who play at Gibson Park in south-east Belfast) are in the Second Division; and [[Instonians]] (Shaw's Bridge, south Belfast) and [[Queen's University RFC]] (south Belfast) are in the Third Division.
Belfast boasts Ireland's premier [[cricket]] venue at [[Stormont, Belfast|Stormont]]. The Ireland cricket team plays many of its home games at this venue, which in 2006 hosted the first ever One Day International between Ireland and England. In 2007, Ireland, India and South Africa will play a triangular series of one-day internationals at Stormont. At club level, Belfast has seven senior teams: [[Instonians]] (Shaw's Bridge, south Belfast) and [[Civil Service North]] (Stormont, east Belfast) are in Section 1 of the Northern Cricket Union League; [[CIYMS]] (Circular Road, east Belfast), [[Cooke Collegians]] (Shaw's Bridge) and Woodvale (Ballygomartin Road, west Belfast) are in Section 2; and [[Cregagh]] (Gibson Park, south-east Belfast) and [[Police Service of Northern Ireland]] (Newforge Lane, south Belfast) are in Section 4.
Ireland's first professional ice hockey team, the [[Belfast Giants]] play their home matches at the [[Odyssey (Belfast)|Odyssey Arena]], watched by up to 7,000 fans.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/low/northern_ireland/1852369.stm | title = Ayr Eagles win Challenge Cup | publisher = BBC | accessdate=2007-09-17}}</ref> The [[Belfast Bulls]] and [[Belfast Trojans]] [[American football]] teams represent Belfast in the [[IAFL]], competing for the [[Shamrock Bowl]]. Other significant sportspeople from Belfast include double world snooker champion [[Alex Higgins|Alex "Hurricane" Higgins]]<ref>{{cite web | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/4913768.stm | title = Snooker on the ropes - Hurricane | publisher = BBC | date= 2007-04-16 | accessdate=2007-09-17}}</ref> and world champion boxers [[Wayne McCullough]] and [[Rinty Monaghan]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wbaonline.com/dates/dates03.asp | title = WBA History | publisher = World Boxing Association | accessdate=2007-09-17}}</ref>
==Education==
{{seealso|List of Primary schools in Belfast|List of Secondary schools in Belfast|List of Grammar schools in Belfast}}
[[Image:QUB.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Lanyon Building of [[Queen's University Belfast|Queen's University]] in south Belfast]]
Belfast has two universities. [[Queen's University Belfast]] was founded in 1845 and is a member of the [[Russell Group]], an association of 20 leading research-intensive universities in the UK.<ref>{{cite web | title = About The Russell Group: Aims and objectives | publisher = The Russell Group | date= 2007 | url = http://www.russellgroup.ac.uk/about.html | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> It is one of the largest universities in the UK with 25,231 undergraduate and postgraduate students spread over 250 buildings, 120 of which are listed as being of architectural merit.<ref>{{cite web | title = About Queen's: Facts and Figures | publisher = Queen's University Belfast | date= 2007 | url = http://www.qub.ac.uk/home/TheUniversity/AboutQueens/UniversityInformation/FactsandFigures/ | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> The [[University of Ulster]], created in its current form in 1984, is a multi-centre university with a campus in the [[Cathedral Quarter, Belfast|Cathedral Quarter]] of Belfast. The Belfast campus has a specific focus on Art and Design and Architecture, and is currently undergoing major redevelopment. The [[Jordanstown]] campus, just seven miles (11 km) from Belfast city centre concentrates on engineering, health and social science. The Conflict Archive on the INternet (CAIN) Web Service receives funding from both universities and is a rich source of information and source material on [[the Troubles]] as well as society and politics in Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite web | title = Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland (1968 to the Present) | publisher = Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN) | date= 2007 | url = http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/ | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref>
[[Belfast Metropolitan College]] is a large [[further education]] college with several campuses around the city. Formerly known as Belfast Institute of Further and Higher Education, it specialises in [[vocational education]]. The college has over 53,000 students enrolled on full-time and part-time courses, making it one of the largest further education colleges in the UK.<ref>{{cite web | title = Belfast Metropolitan College - About Us | publisher = Belfast Metropolitan College | date= 2007 | url = http://www.belfastmet.ac.uk/aboutus/ | accessdate = 2007-12-12}}</ref>
The [[Belfast Education and Library Board]] was established in 1973 as the local authority responsible for education, youth and library services within the city.<ref>{{cite web | title = About Us: The Roles and Functions of the Belfast Education and Library Board | publisher = Belfast Education and Library Board | date= 2003 | url = http://www.belb.org.uk/aboutus/ | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref> There are 184 [[Primary education|primary]], [[Secondary education|secondary]] and [[Grammar school|grammar]] schools in the city.<ref>{{cite web | title = Schools Database - List of Institutions | publisher = Department of Education | url = http://www.denidata.nics.gov.uk/appinstitutes/instmain.aspx | accessdate = 2007-05-24}}</ref>
[[Ulster Museum]] is also located in Belfast.
==Twin cities==
Belfast is [[town twinning|twinned]] with:<ref name="sisters">"[http://www.sister-cities.org/icrc/directory/Europe/UK/index Sister Cities Online Directory: UK, Europe]." ''[http://www.sister-cities.org/ Sister Cities International, Inc.].'' Retrieved on [[March 26]], [[2007]].</ref>
*{{flagicon|United States}} '''[[Nashville, Tennessee]]''', [[United States]]
*{{flagicon|United States}} '''[[Belfast, Maine]]''', [[United States]]
*{{flagicon|Germany}} '''[[Bonn]]''', [[Germany]]
*{{flagicon|China}} '''[[Hefei]]''', [[China]]<ref name="sisters2">"[http://www.4ni.co.uk/northern_ireland_news.asp?id=41466 Belfast signs sister city agreement with Hefei]." ''[http://www.4ni.co.uk/ 4NI.co.uk].'' Retrieved on [[February 19]], [[2008]].</ref>
== References ==
{{reflist|2}}
</div>
==Further reading==
* Beesley, S. and Wilde, J. 1997. ''Urban Flora of Belfast''. Institute of Irish Studies & The Queen's University of Belfast.
* Deane, C.Douglas. 1983. ''The Ulster Countryside.'' Century Books. ISBN 0903152177
* Nesbitt, Noel. 1982. ''The Changing Face of Belfast.'' Ulster Museum, Belfast. Publication no. 183.
* Gillespie, R. 2007. ''Early Belfast.'' Belfast Natural History & Philosophical Society in Association with Ulster Historical Foundation. ISBN 978-1-903688-72-4.
==External links==
{{commons|Belfast}}
* [http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/ Belfast City Council]
** [http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/factsandfigures/ Belfast City Council - Profile of the City]
* [http://www.belfastcityonline.net/ Belfast City Online] - public service portal
* [http://www.belfastmurals.net/ Belfast's political wall murals]
* [http://www.gotobelfast.com/ Go To Belfast - Tourism]
* {{wikitravel}}
* [http://www.belfast.info/ Belfast Travel Guide] Travel, Weather, News, Video, Photos, History etc.
*[http://www.libraryireland.com/Belfast-History/Contents.php/ The Story of Belfast and Its Surroundings] An illustrated history, circa 1913
* [http://www.irish-architecture.com/buildings_ireland/antrim/belfast/index.html Architecture of Belfast]
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[[Category:Irish Sea]]
[[Category:Port cities and towns in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:University towns]]
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