Editing Ross and Cromarty (section)

{{Short description|Historic county and registration county of Scotland}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{infobox historic subdivision
<!-- Header -->
| Name                  = Ross and Cromarty
| subdivision_type      = [[Shires of Scotland|Historic county]]
| AltName               = {{Native name|gd|Ros agus Cromba}}
| Image                 = ScotlandRossCromarty.png
| image_caption         = ''Ross and Cromarty:''<br />County (1889–1975)
| arms_image            = <!--Coat of arms (display option 1)-->
| arms_link             = 
| flag_image            = 
| flag_link             = 
<!-- Geography -->
| Map                   = 
| map_caption           =  
| coordinates           = {{Coord|57|40|N|5|00|W|region:GB_type:adm2nd_source:GNS-enwiki|display=title_inline}}
| AreaFirst             = <!--Use these to record the area, and any changes over time-->
| AreaFirstYear         = 
| AreaSecond            = 
| AreaSecondYear        = 
| AreaThird             = 
| AreaThirdYear         = 
| AreaLast              = 
| AreaLastYear          = 
| area_lost1            = <!--Significant areas the territory lost-->
| lost_to1              = <!--Where it transferred to-->
| area_lost_year1       = <!--The year it happened-->
| area_gained1          = <!--Significant areas the territory gained-->
| gained_from1          = <!--Where it transferred from-->
| area_gained_year1     = <!--The year it happened-->

<!-- History -->
| Origin                = <!--What caused the unit to be created, such as legislation-->
| preceded_by           = <!--Where it came from, what it replaced or was split from-->
| Start                 = <!--Start date-->
| End                   = <!--End date-->
| Replace               = <!--What replaced it-->
<!-- Demography -->
| PopulationFirst       = <!--Use these to record the population, and any changes over time-->
| PopulationFirstYear   = 
| PopulationSecond      = 
| PopulationSecondYear  = 
| PopulationThird       = 
| PopulationThirdYear   = 
| PopulationLast        = 
| PopulationLastYear    = 
| DensityFirst          = <!--Use these to record the density, and any changes over time-->
| DensityFirstYear      = 
| DensitySecond         = 
| DensitySecondYear     = 
| DensityThird          = 
| DensityThirdYear      = 
| DensityLast           = 
| DensityLastYear       = 
<!-- Governance -->
| Status                = <!--The status(es) the unit held-->
| Government            = <!--The name of the local government--> 
| government_type       = <!--The category/type of local government-->
| Arms                  = <!--Coat of arms (display option 2)-->
| arms_caption          =  
| Civic                 = <!--Civic seal, logo or other-->
| civic_caption         = 
| Motto                 =  
| HQ                    = <!--Headquarters-->
| CodeName              = <!--Reference code series name-->
| Code                  = <!--Unique reference code for unit in the series-->
<!-- Subdivisions -->
| Divisions             = <!--The name of the subdivision type it had, for example parishes or wards-->
| DivisionsNames        = <!--The names of the subdivisions-->
| DivisionsMap          = <!--Map of the subdivisions-->
| divisions_map_caption = 
<!-- Memberships -->
| membership_title1     = <!--Type of unit it was part of-->
| membership1           = <!--Name of the unit it was part of--> 
| membership_title2     = 
| membership2           = 
| membership_title3     = 
| membership3           = 
| membership_title4     = 
| membership4           = 
| membership_title5     = 
| membership5           = 
}}

'''Ross and Cromarty''' ({{langx|gd|Ros agus Cromba}}), is an area in the [[Highlands and Islands]] of [[Scotland]]. In modern usage, it is a [[registration county]] and a [[Lieutenancy areas of Scotland|lieutenancy area]]. Between 1889 and 1975 it was a [[Shires of Scotland|county]].

Historically, [[Ross-shire]] and [[Cromartyshire]] were separate counties, with Cromartyshire comprising a number of disconnected tracts of land scattered across Ross-shire. The two counties shared a [[Sheriff of Ross and Cromarty|sheriff]] from 1748, and were both included in the [[Ross and Cromarty (UK Parliament constituency)|Ross and Cromarty constituency]] from 1832. They were formally united into a single county called Ross and Cromarty in 1889.

The mainland part of the county had a coast to the east onto the [[Moray Firth]], and a coast to the west onto [[the Minch]]. Much of the mainland is sparsely populated, including parts of the [[Northwest Highlands]] mountains. The mainland's principal towns are all on the east coast, including [[Dingwall]] (the county town), [[Alness]], [[Cromarty]], [[Fortrose]], [[Invergordon]] and [[Tain]]. The largest settlement on the west coast was the village of [[Ullapool]]. The county also covered parts of the [[Outer Hebrides]], principally the [[Isle of Lewis]], including the town of [[Stornoway]]. The neighbouring counties were [[Sutherland]] to the north and [[Inverness-shire]] to the south.

The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975. Since then, the mainland has been part of the [[Highland (council area)|Highland]] region, which became a single-tier [[Council areas of Scotland|council area]] in 1996. The Outer Hebrides parts of the county became part of the [[Western Isles]], which since 1998 has used only the [[Scots Gaelic]] version of its name, [[Na h-Eileanan an Iar]]. The pre-1975 county boundaries are still used for certain functions, being a registration county. There was a [[Districts of Scotland|local government district]] called Ross and Cromarty from 1975 to 1996, which was a lower-tier district within the Highland region, covering most but not all of the mainland part of the pre-1975 county.

The Ross and Cromarty [[Lieutenancy areas of Scotland|lieutenancy area]], which prior to 1975 had been the county, was redefined in 1975 to be the Ross and Cromarty district plus the neighbouring [[Skye and Lochalsh]] district. The registration county and lieutenancy area therefore have slightly different definitions. Notable differences are that the registration county includes the Isle of Lewis and [[Kincardine, Sutherland|Kincardine]], which are not in the lieutenancy area, whereas the lieutenancy area includes the [[Isle of Skye]], which is not in the registration county. The lieutenancy area is {{convert|8019|km2|sqmi|abbr=off}} in extent.