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A vandalised road-sign at nearby Strabane, County Tyrone in which the "London" in "Londonderry" has been daubed over with black paint.
A sign near the N13 in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, reads Derry in English (and Doire in Irish)The names of the city, county, and local government district of Derry or Londonderry in Northern Ireland are the subject of a naming dispute between nationalists and unionists. Generally, although not always, one will find nationalists calling them Derry, and unionists referring to them as Londonderry. Legally, the city and county are called "Londonderry", while the local government district is called "Derry".
The debate became particularly politicised at the outset of the Troubles, with the mention of either name used to associate the speaker with one of Northern Ireland's two main communities.
Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Origins of the name
1.2 Pronunciation
1.3 Historical usage
1.4 District council
1.5 Debate on renaming the city
1.5.1 Judicial review
1.5.2 Equality impact assessment
2 Further issues
3 Response to the dispute
3.1 Correspondence
3.2 Media
3.3 Avoidance strategies
4 In popular culture
5 Derived names
5.1 Geocodes
6 References
6.1 Notes
7 External links
[edit] History
[edit] Origins of the name
The earliest Irish name for the site of the modern city was Daire Calgaich, Old Irish for "oak wood of Calgach", after an unknown pagan.[1][2][3] John Keys O'Doherty, Bishop of