Ayr

Ayr
Scottish Gaelic: *Inbhir Àir*
Scots: *Ayr*
Ayr Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Àir; Scots: Ayr;
Administrative centre and town
	From top, left to right: Ayr harbour, Ayr Town Hall, Pavilion building and Place De Saint-Germain-en-Laye fountain, Burns Cottage in Alloway and Wellington Square Gardens and Ayr Court House
	Coat of arms of Ayr
	Ayr Location within South Ayrshire Council area Ayr Location within Scotland Ayr Location within South Ayrshire
Population	46,260 (mid-2020 est.)
Urban	62,270
OS grid reference	NS 33853 21445
• Edinburgh	66 mi (106 km)
• London	330 mi (530 km)
Council area	South Ayrshire;
Lieutenancy area	Ayrshire and Arran;
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	AYR
Postcode district	KA6-KA8
Dialling code	01292
UK Parliament	Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock; (Scottish National Party – Allan Dorans);
Scottish Parliament	Ayr; (SNP – Siobhian Brown);
Councillors	Conservatives (4) Ian Davis; Martin Dowey; Mary Kilpatrick; Lee Lyons; ; SNP (3) Laura Brennan-Whitefield; George Weir; Mark Dixon; ; Labour (2) Ian Cavana; Brian McGinley; ; Independent (1) Bob Shields; ; Alba (1) Chris Cullen;

Ayr (/ɛər/ AIR; Scots: Ayr; Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. A former royal burgh, today it is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire Council, and the historic county town of Ayrshire. With a population of 46,982, Ayr is the 15th largest settlement in Scotland and second largest town in Ayrshire by population. The town is contiguous with the smaller town of Prestwick to the north.

Ayr was established as a Royal Burgh in 1205 and is the county town of Ayrshire. It served as Ayrshire's central marketplace and harbour throughout the medieval period and was a well-known port during the early modern period. On the southern bank of the River Ayr sits the ramparts of a citadel constructed by Oliver Cromwell's men during the mid-17th century. Towards the south of the town is the birthplace of Scottish poet Robert Burns in the suburb of Alloway. Ayr has been a popular tourist resort since the expansion of the railway in 1840 owing to the town's fine beach and its links to golfing and Robert Burns.

Ayr is one of the largest retail centres in the south of Scotland and was recognised as the second healthiest town centre in the United Kingdom by the Royal Society for Public Health in 2014. Ayr has hosted the Scottish Grand National horseracing steeplechase annually since 1965 and the Scottish International Airshow annually since 2014. The town also accommodates the headquarters of the Ayr Advertiser and Ayrshire Post newspapers.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.