- published: 07 Oct 2012
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Coordinates: 53°4′N 0°11′W / 53.067°N 0.183°W / 53.067; -0.183
Lincolnshire ( /ˈlɪŋkənʃə/ or /ˈlɪŋkənʃɪə/; abbreviated Lincs) is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the northwest, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders Northamptonshire in the south for just 20 yards (18 m), England's shortest county boundary. The county town is Lincoln, where the county council has its headquarters.
The ceremonial county of Lincolnshire is composed of the non-metropolitan county of Lincolnshire and the area covered by the unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire and North-East Lincolnshire. Therefore, part of the ceremonial county is in the Yorkshire and the Humber region, and part is in the East Midlands region. The county is the second largest of the English counties and one that is predominantly agricultural in land use. The county can be broken down into a number of geographical sub-regions including: the Lincolnshire Fens (south Lincolnshire), the Carrs (similar to the Fens but in north Lincolnshire), the Lincolnshire Wolds, and the industrial Humber Estuary and North Sea coast around Grimsby and Scunthorpe.
North Lincolnshire is a unitary authority area in the region of Yorkshire and the Humber in England. For ceremonial purposes it is part of Lincolnshire. There are three significant towns: Scunthorpe (the administrative centre), Brigg and Barton-upon-Humber.
It is also home to the Haxey Hood, which is a traditional event which takes place in Haxey on 6 January in the afternoon and is a kind of large rugby football scrum where a leather tube (called the "hood") is pushed to 1 of 4 pubs, where it remains until next year's game.
The 846 km2 (327 sq mi) council area lies on the south side of the Humber estuary and consists mainly of agricultural land, including land on either side of the River Trent. It borders onto North East Lincolnshire, Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire. The council's administrative base is at Pittwood House in Scunthorpe.
Before the creation of Humberside in 1974, it was part of Lincolnshire, becoming North Lincolnshire only in 1996, on the abolition of Humberside. Until 1 April 1996, the area had been part of Humberside. The district was formed by a merger of the boroughs of Glanford and Scunthorpe, and southern Boothferry.