Renfrewshire

Renfrewshire
Siorrachd Rinn Friù (Scottish Gaelic)
Renfrewshire shown within Scotland
Coordinates: 55°49′47″N 4°32′34″W / 55.829858°N 4.542838°W / 55.829858; -4.542838
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
CountryScotland
Lieutenancy areaRenfrewshire
Unitary authority1 April 1996
Administrative HQRenfrewshire House, Paisley
Government
  TypeCouncil
  BodyRenfrewshire Council
  ControlNo overall control
  MPs
  MSPs
Area
  Total
101 sq mi (261 km2)
  Rank24th
Population
 (2022)
  Total
184,340
  Rank9th
  Density1,830/sq mi (705/km2)
Time zoneUTC+0 (GMT)
  Summer (DST)UTC+1 (BST)
ISO 3166 codeGB-RFW
GSS codeS12000038
Websiterenfrewshire.gov.uk

Renfrewshire (/ˈrɛnfrʃɪər, -ʃər/) (Scots: Renfrewshire; Scottish Gaelic: Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Renfrewshire is located in the west central Lowlands. It borders East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire, and lies on the southern bank of the River Clyde. The current council area of Renfrewshire was established in 1996. The town of Paisley is the area's main settlement and centre of local government. The area also contains the historic county town of Renfrew.

The council area has the same name as the historic county of Renfrewshire, which had been abolished for local government purposes in 1975, but the modern council area only covers the central part of the historic county. The eastern part of the pre-1975 county is covered by the East Renfrewshire council area, and the western part by the Inverclyde council area.

The term Renfrewshire may also be used to refer to the larger historic county, which was established in the fifteenth century. The three council areas of Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, and East Renfrewshire together form the Renfrewshire lieutenancy area. The same area also has a joint valuation board area for electoral registration and local tax valuation purposes. The three council areas together are sometimes referred to as Greater Renfrewshire to distinguish them from the council area called Renfrewshire.