Counties & Regions of the UK
(common abbreviations in parenthesis)
see also the map of historic counties

ENGLAND
Avon
Bedfordshire (Bed)
Berkshire (Berks)
Buckinghamshire (Bucks)
Cambridgeshire (Cambs)
Cheshire (Ches)
Cleveland
Cornwall
Cumbria
Derbyshire (Derby)
Devon
Dorset
Durham
East Sussex
Essex
Gloucestershire (Glos)
Greater London
Greater Manchester
Hampshire (Hants)
Hereford and Worcester
Hertfordshire (Hert)
Humberside (Humber)
Isle of Wight
Kent
Lancashire (Lancs)
Leicestershire (Leics)
Lincolnshire (Lincs)
Merseyside (Mer)
Norfolk
North Yorkshire
Northamptonshire (Northants)
Northumberland
Nottinghamshire (Notts)
Oxfordshire (Oxfd)
Shropshire (Shrop)
Somerset
South Yorkshire
Staffordshire (Staf)
Suffolk
Surrey
Tyne and Wear (Tyne)
Warwickshire (War)
West Midlands
West Sussex
West Yorkshire
Wiltshire (Wilts)

the Home Counties border London:
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, and Surrey

WALES
Clwyd
Dyfed
Gwent (Gwnt)
Gwynedd (Gwyn)
Mid Glamorgan
South Glamorgan
Powys
West Glamorgan
SCOTLAND
Aberdeenshire
Angus
Argyll & Bute
Ayrshire
Borders
Caithness
Clackmannanshire
Dumfries & Galloway
Dunbartonshire
Dundee (City)
Edinburgh (City)
Falkirk
Fife
Glasgow (City)
Highland
Inverclyde
Lanarkshire
Lothians
Moray
Orkney Islands
Perth & Kinross
Renfrewshire
Selkirkshire
Shetland Islands
Stirling
Western Isles
NORTHERN IRELAND
Antrim
Armagh
Derry/Londonderry
Down
Fermanagh
Tyrone
Compiling such a list is a tricky business. Scotland in particular is a headache.
If your county is missing and you find it upsetting, let us know.