View source for Devon

{{Short description|County of England}}
{{Redirect|Devonshire|other uses|Devon (disambiguation)|and|Devonshire (disambiguation)}}
{{Pp-move|small=yes}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{infobox English county
| official_name                = Devon
| other_name                   = 
| image_main                   = {{multiple images
                                 |border      = infobox
                                 |perrow      = 1 2
                                 |total_width = 250px
                                 |image1      = Combe Martin Panorama (7338286364).jpg
                                 |image2      = Relax-e-vous - geograph.org.uk - 1656557.jpg
                                 |image3      = Dartmoor ponies by the B3212 - geograph.org.uk - 4546147.jpg
                                 }}
| image_caption                = '''Clockwise from top''': the Devon coast at [[Combe Martin]]; [[Dartmoor ponies|ponies]] on [[Dartmoor]]; and [[Smeaton's Tower]], [[Plymouth Hoe]]
| motto                        = {{lang|la|Auxilio Divino}}
| locator_map                  = Devon UK locator map 2010.svg
| map_caption                  = Devon within England
| coordinates                  = {{Wikidatacoord|Q23156|region:GB-DEV_type:adm1st|display=inline,title}}
| region                       = [[South West England]]
| established_date             = [[Historic counties of England|Ancient]]
| established_by               = 
| preceded_by                  = 
| origin                       = 
| MPs                          = [[List of Parliamentary constituencies in Devon|List of MPs]]
| police                       = [[Devon and Cornwall Police]]
| fire                         = [[Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service]]
| largest_city                 = [[Plymouth]]
| county_town                  = [[Exeter]]
<!-- Ceremonial county fields -->
| lord_lieutenant_office       = Lord Lieutenant of Devon
| lord_lieutenant_name         = [[David Fursdon]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/lord-lieutenant-for-devon-david-fursdon |title=Lord-Lieutenant for Devon: David Fursdon – Press releases |website=GOV.UK |date=26 March 2015 |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308200245/https://www.gov.uk/government/news/lord-lieutenant-for-devon-david-fursdon |archive-date=8 March 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| high_sheriff_office          = High Sheriff of Devon
| high_sheriff_name            = Caroline Harlow<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=64681|page=5010|date=14 March 2025}}</ref>
| ethnicity                    = 91.8% [[White British]] (2021)
<!-- Local government fields -->
| county_council               = [[Devon County Council]]
| unitary_council1             = [[Plymouth City Council]]
| unitary_council2             = [[Torbay Council]]
| admin_hq                     = [[Exeter]]
| iso_code                     = GB-DEV
| gss_code                     = E10000008
| nuts_code                    = UKK43
| website                      = {{url|devon.gov.uk}}
<!-- Districts map -->
| districts_map                = [[File:Devon numbered districts.svg|200px]]
| districts_key                = {{Colorsample|#FEFE77}} [[Unitary authorities of England|Unitary district]] {{Colorsample|#FEC1E9}} [[Non-metropolitan district]]
| districts_list               = {{collapsible list
                                 | title     = 
                                 | liststyle = list-style-type:decimal;
                                 | [[North Devon]]
                                 | [[Torridge District|Torridge]]
                                 | [[Mid Devon]]
                                 | [[East Devon]]
                                 | [[Exeter]]
                                 | [[West Devon]]
                                 | [[Teignbridge]]
                                 | [[Plymouth]]
                                 | [[South Hams]]
                                 | [[Torbay]]
                                 }}
}}

'''Devon''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ɛ|v|ən}} {{respell|DEV|ən}}; historically also known as '''Devonshire''' {{IPAc-en|-|ʃ|ɪər|,_|-|ʃ|ər}} {{respell|-sheer}}, {{respell|-shər}}) is a [[ceremonial county]] in [[South West England]]. It is bordered by the [[Bristol Channel]] to the north, [[Somerset]] and [[Dorset]] to the east, the [[English Channel]] to the south, and [[Cornwall]] to the west. The city of [[Plymouth]] is the largest settlement.

The county has an area of {{cvt|2590|mi2}} and an estimated population of {{English cerem counties|POP=Devon}} in {{English cerem counties|TXT=Year}}. The south of the county is more densely populated than the north, with Plymouth located in the south-west and the city of Exeter in the south-east. The [[seaside resort]]s of [[Torquay]] and [[Paignton]] are adjacent to each other in the south. The largest town in the north is [[Barnstaple]]. For local government purposes, Devon comprises a [[non-metropolitan county]], with eight districts, and the [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authority]] areas of [[Plymouth City Council|Plymouth]] and [[Torbay Council|Torbay]]. [[Devon County Council]] and [[Torbay Council]] collaborate through a [[combined county authority]].

Devon has a varied geography. It contains [[Dartmoor]] and part of [[Exmoor]], two upland moors which are the source of most of the county's rivers, including the [[River Taw|Taw]], [[River Dart|Dart]], and [[River Exe|Exe]]. The longest river in the county is the [[River Tamar|Tamar]], which forms most of the border with Cornwall and rises in Devon's northwest hills. The southeast coast is part of the [[Jurassic Coast]] [[World Heritage Site]], and characterised by tall cliffs which reveal the [[Triassic]], [[Jurassic]] and [[Cretaceous]] geology of the region. The county gives its name to the [[Devonian]] geologic period, which includes the slates and sandstones of the north coast. Dartmoor and Exmoor have been designated [[National parks of the United Kingdom|national parks]], and the county also contains, in whole or in part, five [[national landscape]]s.

In the [[British Iron Age|Iron Age]], [[Roman Britain|Roman]] and the [[Sub-Roman Britain|Sub-Roman]] periods, the county was the home of the [[Dumnonii]] [[Celtic Britons]]. The [[Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain]] resulted in the partial assimilation of Dumnonia into the kingdom of [[Wessex]] in the eighth and ninth centuries, and the western boundary with Cornwall was set at the Tamar by king [[Æthelstan]] in 936.

==Toponymy==
The name ''Devon'' derives from the name of the [[Brythons]] who inhabited the southwestern peninsula of Britain at the time of the [[Roman conquest of Britain]] known as the [[Dumnonii]], thought to mean 'deep valley dwellers' from [[Proto-Celtic]] {{lang|cel-x-proto|*dubnos}} 'deep'. In the [[Brittonic languages]], Devon is known as {{langx|cy|Dyfnaint}}, {{langx|br|Devnent}} and {{langx|kw|Dewnens}}, each meaning 'deep valleys'. (For an account of Celtic ''[[Dumnonia]]'', see the separate article.) Among the most common Devon placenames is ''-combe'' which derives from Brittonic {{lang|cel|cwm}} meaning 'valley' usually prefixed by the name of the possessor.{{fact|date=March 2023}}

[[William Camden]], in his 1607 edition of ''Britannia'', described Devon as being one part of an older, wider country that once included [[Cornwall]]:
{{Blockquote|THAT region which, according to the Geographers, is the first of all Britaine, and, growing straiter still and narrower, shooteth out farthest into the West, [...] was in antient time inhabited by those Britans whom Solinus called Dumnonii, Ptolomee Damnonii [...] For their habitation all over this Countrey is somewhat low and in valleys, which manner of dwelling is called in the British tongue Dan-munith, in which sense also the Province next adjoyning in like respect is at this day named by the Britans Duffneit, that is to say, Low valleys. [...] But the Country of this nation is at this day divided into two parts, knowen by later names of Cornwall and Denshire, [...]|William Camden, ''Britannia''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/cornwalleng.html |title=William Camden, Britannia (1607) with an English translation by Philemon Holland – Danmonii |publisher=The University of Birmingham |access-date=30 June 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090316070243/http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/cornwalleng.html |archive-date=16 March 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref>}}

The term ''Devon'' is normally used for everyday purposes (e.g., "Devon County Council"), but ''Devonshire'' has continued to be used in the names of the "[[Devonshire and Dorset Regiment]]" (until 2007) and "[[The Devonshire Association]]". One erroneous theory is that the ''shire'' suffix is due to a mistake in the making of the original letters patent for the [[Duke of Devonshire#Earls of Devonshire|Duke of Devonshire]], resident in [[Derbyshire]]. There are references to both {{lang|ang|Defnas}} and {{lang|ang|Defenasċīre}} in [[Anglo-Saxon]] texts from before 1000 CE (the former is a name for the "people of Devon" and the latter would mean 'Shire of the Devonians'),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://asc.jebbo.co.uk/a/a-L.html |title=Manuscript A: The Parker Chronicle |access-date=17 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726221228/http://asc.jebbo.co.uk/a/a-L.html |archive-date=26 July 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> which translates to modern English as ''Devonshire''. The term Devonshire may have originated around the 8th century, when it changed from {{lang|la|Dumnonia}} ([[Latin]]) to {{lang|ang|Defenasċīr}}.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Davies |first=Norman |title=The Isles: A History |url=https://archive.org/details/isleshistory00davi/page/n240 |url-access=limited |page=207 |year=2000 |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=0-333-69283-7}}</ref>
==History==
{{Main|History of Devon}}

===Human occupation===
[[File:Drizzlecombe stones 6.JPG|thumb|upright|left|[[Menhir]] at [[Drizzlecombe]]]]
[[Kents Cavern]] in [[Torquay]] had produced human remains from 30 to 40,000 years ago. [[Dartmoor]] is thought to have been occupied by [[Mesolithic]] [[hunter-gatherer]] peoples from about 6000 BC. The Romans held the area under military occupation for around 350 years. Later, the area began to experience Saxon incursions from the east around 600 AD, firstly as small bands of settlers along the coasts of [[Lyme Bay]] and southern estuaries and later as more organised bands pushing in from the east. Devon became a frontier between [[Britons (Celtic people)|Brittonic]] and [[Anglo-Saxon]] Wessex, and it was largely absorbed into Wessex by the mid ninth century.

A genetic study carried out by the [[University of Oxford]] and [[University College London]] discovered separate genetic groups in Cornwall and Devon. Not only were there differences on either side of the River Tamar—-with a division almost exactly following the modern county boundary,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2015-03-19-who-do-you-think-you-really-are-genetic-map-british-isles |title=Who do you think you really are? A genetic map of the British Isles – University of Oxford |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170217145104/http://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2015-03-19-who-do-you-think-you-really-are-genetic-map-british-isles |archive-date=17 February 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref> but also between Devon and the rest of Southern England. Devon's population also exhibited similarities with modern northern France, including [[Brittany]]. This suggests the Anglo-Saxon migration into Devon was limited, rather than a mass movement of people.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/News/Media-office/Press-releases/2015/WTP058941.htm |title=Who do you think you really are? The first fine-scale genetic map of the British Isles |publisher=wellcome.ac.uk |access-date=19 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150321213121/http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/News/Media-office/Press-releases/2015/WTP058941.htm |archive-date=21 March 2015 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=jobs |url=http://www.nature.com/news/uk-mapped-out-by-genetic-ancestry-1.17136 |title=UK mapped out by genetic ancestry : Nature News & Comment |journal=Nature |date=18 March 2015 |doi=10.1038/nature.2015.17136 |s2cid=88369661 |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161110165750/http://www.nature.com/news/uk-mapped-out-by-genetic-ancestry-1.17136 |archive-date=10 November 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The border with Cornwall was set by King [[Æthelstan]] on the east bank of the [[River Tamar]] in 936 AD. Danish raids also occurred sporadically along many coastal parts of Devon between around 800AD and just before the time of the Norman conquest, including the silver mint at ''Hlidaforda'' [[Lydford]] in 997 and Taintona (a settlement on the [[River Teign|Teign]] estuary) in 1001.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lydford.co.uk/stockholm-museum.htm |title=Lydford Silver Pennies In The Stockholm Coin Museum |website=Lydford.co.uk |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305063037/http://www.lydford.co.uk/stockholm-museum.htm |archive-date=5 March 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Devon was the home of a number of [[anticlerical]] movements in the [[Later Middle Ages]]. For example, the [[Order of Brothelyngham]]—a fake [[monastic order]] of 1348
— regularly rode through Exeter, kidnapping both religious men and laymen, and extorting money from them as ransom.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Abbots and Priors of Late Medieval and Reformation England |last=Heale |first=M. |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2016 |isbn=978-0-19870-253-5 |location=Oxford |page=260}}</ref>

Devon has also featured in most of the civil conflicts in England since the [[Norman conquest]], including the [[Wars of the Roses]], [[Perkin Warbeck]]'s rising in 1497, the [[Prayer Book Rebellion]] of 1549, and the [[English Civil War]]. The arrival of [[William III of England|William of Orange]] to launch the [[Glorious Revolution]] of 1688 took place at [[Brixham]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ackroyd |first1=Peter |title=Rebellion: The History of England from James I to the Glorious Revolution |date=2014 |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=978-1-4668-5599-1 |page=465 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kbVzAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA465 |language=en}}</ref>

Devon has produced [[tin]], copper and other metals from ancient times. Devon's tin miners enjoyed a substantial degree of independence through [[Devon's Stannary Convocation]], which dates back to the 12th century. The last recorded sitting was in 1748.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://users.senet.com.au/~dewnans/Devon_Stannary_History.html |title=Devon's Mining History and Stannary parliament |publisher=users.senet.com.au |access-date=29 March 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511181455/http://users.senet.com.au/~dewnans/Devon_Stannary_History.html |archive-date=11 May 2008 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

==Geography==
{{See also|List of hills of Devon}}
[[File:Heath.jpg|thumb|[[Heath (habitat)|Heathland]] at [[Woodbury Common, Devon|Woodbury Common]] in south east Devon]]
[[File:Devon Cliffs.jpg|thumb|Cliffs in Devon]]
[[File:Ilfracombe.jpg|thumb|[[Ilfracombe]], on the coast of [[North Devon]]]]

Devon straddles [[South West Peninsula|a peninsula]] and so, uniquely among English counties, has two separate coastlines: on the Bristol Channel and [[Celtic Sea]] in the north, and on the English Channel in the south.<ref>Dewey, Henry (1948) ''British Regional Geology: South West England'', 2nd ed. London: H.M.S.O.</ref> The South West Coast Path runs along the entire length of both, around 65% of which is named as [[Heritage Coast]]. Before the changes to English counties in 1974, Devon was the [[Historic counties of England#List of counties|third largest county]] by area and the largest of the counties not divided into county-like divisions (only Yorkshire and Lincolnshire were larger and both were sub-divided into ridings or parts, respectively).<ref>''Whitaker's Almanack'', 1972; p. 631</ref> Since 1974 the county is ranked fourth by area (due to the creation of Cumbria) [[List of ceremonial counties of England|amongst ceremonial counties]] and is the [[List of two-tier counties of England|third largest non-metropolitan county]]. The island of [[Lundy]] and the reef of [[Eddystone Rocks|Eddystone]] are also in Devon. The county has more mileage of road than any other county in England.

Inland, the [[Dartmoor National Park]] lies wholly in Devon, and the [[Exmoor National Park]] lies in both Devon and Somerset. Apart from these areas of high moorland the county has attractive rolling rural scenery and villages with [[thatch]]ed [[Cob (building)|cob]] cottages. All these features make Devon a popular [[tourism|holiday]] destination.

In [[South Devon]] the landscape consists of rolling hills dotted with small towns, such as [[Dartmouth, England|Dartmouth]], [[Ivybridge]], [[Kingsbridge]], [[Salcombe]], and [[Totnes]]. The towns of [[Torquay]] and [[Paignton]] are the principal seaside resorts on the south coast. East Devon has the first seaside resort to be developed in the county, [[Exmouth, Devon|Exmouth]] and the more upmarket Georgian town of [[Sidmouth]], headquarters of the East Devon District Council. Exmouth marks the western end of the Jurassic Coast [[World Heritage Site]]. Another notable feature is the [[Exeter to Plymouth Line|coastal railway line]] between Newton Abbot and the Exe Estuary: the red sandstone cliffs and sea views are very dramatic and in the resorts railway line and beaches are very near.

North Devon is very rural with few major towns except [[Barnstaple]], [[Great Torrington]], [[Bideford]] and [[Ilfracombe]]. Devon's Exmoor coast has the highest cliffs in southern Britain, culminating in the [[Great Hangman]], a {{convert|318|m|ft|abbr=on}} "hog's-back" hill with a {{convert|250|m|ft|abbr=on}} cliff-face, located near Combe Martin Bay.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/index/learning_about/moor_facts.htm |title=NATIONAL PARK FACTS |access-date=1 August 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724224326/http://www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/index/learning_about/moor_facts.htm |archive-date=24 July 2008}}</ref> Its sister cliff is the {{convert|218|m|ft|abbr=on}} Little Hangman, which marks the western edge of coastal Exmoor. One of the features of the North Devon coast is that [[Bideford Bay]] and the [[Hartland Point]] peninsula are both west-facing, Atlantic facing coastlines; so that a combination of an off-shore (east) wind and an Atlantic swell produce excellent surfing conditions. The beaches of Bideford Bay ([[Woolacombe]], [[Saunton]], [[Westward Ho!]] and [[Croyde]]), along with parts of North Cornwall and South Wales, are the main centres of surfing in Britain.

===Geology===
{{See also|Geology of Dartmoor National Park|Geology of Exmoor National Park}}
[[File:Geologic map Wales & SW England EN.svg|thumb|Geological map of Wales & Southwest England]]

A geological dividing line cuts across Devon roughly along the line of the [[Bristol to Exeter line]] and the [[M5 motorway]] east of Tiverton and Exeter. It is a part of the [[Tees–Exe line]] broadly dividing Britain into a southeastern lowland zone typified by gently dipping [[sedimentary rock]]s and a northwestern upland zone typified by [[igneous rock]]s and folded sedimentary and [[metamorphic rock]]s.

The principal geological components of Devon are i) the [[Devonian]] [[strata]] of north Devon and south west Devon (and extending into Cornwall); ii) the [[Culm Measures]] (north western Devon also extending into north Cornwall); and iii) the granite [[intrusion]] of Dartmoor in central Devon, part of the [[Cornubian batholith]] forming the 'spine' of the southwestern peninsula. There are [[clastic rock|blocks]] of Silurian and Ordovician rocks within Devonian strata on the south Devon coast but otherwise no pre-Devonian rocks on the Devon mainland. The metamorphic rocks of Eddystone are of presumed Precambrian age.<ref>Edmonds, E. A., et al. (1975) ''South-West England''; based on previous editions by H. Dewey ([[British Geological Survey]] UK Regional Geology Guide series no. 17, 4th ed.) London: HMSO {{ISBN|0-11-880713-7}}</ref>

The oldest rocks which can be dated are those of the Devonian period which are approximately 395–359&nbsp;million years old. Sandstones and shales were deposited in North and South Devon beneath tropical seas. In shallower waters, limestone beds were laid down in the area now near Torquay and Plymouth.<ref>{{cite book |title=Devon's Geology: An Introduction |last=Hesketh |first=Robert |publisher=Bossiney Books |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-899-383-89-4}}</ref>
This geological period was named after Devon by [[Roderick Murchison]] and [[Adam Sedgwick]] in the 1840s and is the only British county whose name is used worldwide as the basis for a geological time period.<ref>{{cite web |title=Devon Geology Guide – Devonian Slates, Sandstones and Volcanics |last=Laming |first=Deryck |author2=Roche, David |url=http://www.devon.gov.uk/geo-devonianslatessandstonesandvolcanics.pdf |access-date=14 May 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110021248/http://www.devon.gov.uk/geo-devonianslatessandstonesandvolcanics.pdf |archive-date=10 November 2013}}</ref>

Devon's second major rock system<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.devon.gov.uk/index/environmentplanning/natural_environment/geology/geology-guide.htm |title=Devon's Rocks – A Geological Guide |publisher=Devon County Council |access-date=18 May 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303212321/http://www.devon.gov.uk/index/environmentplanning/natural_environment/geology/geology-guide.htm |archive-date=3 March 2016}}</ref> is the Culm Measures, a geological formation of the [[Carboniferous]] period that occurs principally in Devon and Cornwall. The measures are so called either from the occasional presence of a soft, sooty coal, which is known in Devon as ''culm'', or from the contortions commonly found in the beds.<ref>{{cite book |last=Edmonds |first=E. A. |author2=McKeown, M. C. |author3=Williams, M. |others=Dewey, H. |title=South-West England |publisher=HMSO/British Geological Survey |location=London |year=1975 |edition=4th |series=British Geology |page=34 |chapter=Carboniferous Rocks |isbn=0-11-880713-7}}</ref> This formation stretches from Bideford to [[Bude]] in Cornwall, and contributes to a gentler, greener, more rounded landscape. It is also found on the western, north and eastern borders of Dartmoor.

The sedimentary rocks in more eastern parts of the county include [[Permian]] and [[Triassic]] sandstones (giving rise to east Devon's well known fertile red soils); [[Bunter (geology)|Bunter pebble beds]] around Budleigh Salterton and Woodbury Common and [[Jurassic]] rocks in the easternmost parts of Devon. Smaller outcrops of younger rocks also exist, such as Cretaceous [[chalk]] cliffs at Beer Head and gravels on Haldon, plus [[Eocene]] and [[Oligocene]] [[ball clay]] and [[lignite]] deposits in the Bovey Basin, formed around 50 million years ago under tropical forest conditions.

===Climate===
{{See also|Dartmoor#Climate|climate of south-west England}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=March 2010}}

Devon generally has a cool oceanic climate, heavily influenced by the [[North Atlantic Drift]]. In winter, snow is relatively uncommon away from high land, although there are few exceptions. The county has mild summers with occasional warm spells and cool rainy periods. Winters are generally cool and the county often experiences some of the mildest winters in the world for its high latitude, with average daily maximum temperatures in January at {{convert|8|C}}. Rainfall varies significantly across the county, ranging from over {{convert|2000|mm|in|abbr=on}} on parts of Dartmoor, to around {{convert|750|mm|in|abbr=on}} in the [[rain shadow]] along the coast in southeastern Devon and around Exeter. Sunshine amounts also vary widely: the moors are generally cloudy, with the uplands near Princetown receiving less than 1,400 hours of sunshine annually, but the SE coast around Brixham and Berry Head receives more than 1,800 hours annually and is one of the sunniest areas of the UK. With westerly or south-westerly winds and high pressure the area around Torbay and Teignmouth will often be warm, with long sunny spells due to shelter by high ground ([[Foehn wind]]).

{{Weather box
| location= Devon
| metric first= Yes
| single line= Yes
| Jan high C= 8
| Feb high C= 8
| Mar high C= 10
| Apr high C= 13
| May high C= 16
| Jun high C= 19
| Jul high C= 21
| Aug high C= 21
| Sep high C= 19
| Oct high C= 15
| Nov high C= 12
| Dec high C= 9
| year high C= 13.5
| Jan low C= 4
| Feb low C= 3
| Mar low C= 5
| Apr low C= 6
| May low C= 8
| Jun low C= 11
| Jul low C= 13
| Aug low C= 13
| Sep low C= 12
| Oct low C= 9
| Nov low C= 7
| Dec low C= 5
| year low C= 8
| date= August 2010
| source=
}}

{{wide image|Devon fields stitch.jpg|800px|align-cap=center|Fields in south Devon after a snowfall}}

===Ecology===
[[File:Pnies5.jpg|thumb|Ponies grazing on Exmoor near [[Brendon]], [[North Devon]]]]

The variety of habitats means that there is a wide range of wildlife (see [[Dartmoor wildlife]], for example). A popular challenge among [[birders]] is to find over 100 species in the county in a day.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}} The county's wildlife is protected by several wildlife charities such as the [[Devon Wildlife Trust]], which looks after 40 nature reserves. The Devon Bird Watching and Preservation Society (founded in 1928 and known since 2005 as "Devon Birds") is a county bird society dedicated to the study and conservation of wild birds.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.devonbirds.org/about/the_society/introduction |title=The Society – Introduction |work=Devon Birds |access-date=15 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221213314/http://www.devonbirds.org/about/the_society/introduction |archive-date=21 December 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[RSPB]] has reserves in the county, and [[Natural England]] is responsible for over 200 Devon [[Sites of Special Scientific Interest]] and [[National nature reserves in England|National Nature Reserves]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SiteList.aspx?countyCode=11 |title=Designated sites view (Devon) |publisher=Natural England |access-date=15 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220135603/https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SiteList.aspx?countyCode=11 |archive-date=20 December 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> such as [[Slapton Ley]]. The [[Devon Bat Group]] was founded in 1984 to help conserve bats. Wildlife found in this area extend to a plethora of different kinds of insects, butterflies and moths; an interesting butterfly to take look at is the [[Carterocephalus palaemon|chequered skipper]].

Devon is a national hotspot for several species that are uncommon in Britain, including the [[cirl bunting]]; [[greater horseshoe bat]]; [[Bechstein's bat]] and [[Jersey tiger moth]]. It is also the only place in mainland Britain where the sand crocus (''[[Romulea columnae]]'') can be found – at Dawlish Warren, and is home to all six British native land reptile species, partly as a result of some reintroductions. Another recent reintroduction is the [[Eurasian beaver]], primarily on the river Otter. Other rare species recorded in Devon include seahorses and the sea daffodil.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0021053453 |title=Hippocampus Rafinesque, 1810 |work=NBN Atlas |access-date=25 September 2021 |archive-date=8 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408003228/https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0021053453 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0100002286 |title=Pancratium maritimum L. |work=NBN Atlas |access-date=25 September 2021 |archive-date=8 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408003229/https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NHMSYS0100002286 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The botany of the county is very diverse and includes some rare species not found elsewhere in the British Isles other than Cornwall. Devon is divided into two [[Watsonian vice-counties]]: north and south, the boundary being an irregular line approximately across the higher part of Dartmoor and then along the canal eastwards. Botanical reports begin in the 17th century and there is a ''Flora Devoniensis'' by Jones and Kingston in 1829.<ref>Jones, John Pike & Kingston, J. F. (1829) ''Flora Devoniensis''. 2 pts, in 1 vol. London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green</ref> A general account appeared in ''[[Victoria County History#Dormant counties|The Victoria History of the County of Devon]]'' (1906), and a ''Flora of Devon'' was published in 1939 by [[Keble Martin]] and Fraser.<ref>[[Martin, W. Keble]] & Fraser, G. T. (eds.) (1939) Flora of Devon. Arbroath</ref> An ''Atlas of the Devon Flora'' by Ivimey-Cook appeared in 1984, and ''A New Flora of Devon'', based on field work undertaken between 2005 and 2014, was published in 2016.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=R. |last2=Hodgson |first2=B. |last3=Ison |first3=J. |title=A New Flora of Devon |year=2016 |publisher=The Devonshire Association |location=Exeter |page=1 |isbn=978-1-5272-0525-3}}</ref> Rising temperatures have led to Devon becoming the first place in modern Britain to cultivate olives commercially.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/weather/article1785059.ece |title=Britain warms to the taste for home-grown olives |author=Paul Simons |work=The Times |location=UK |access-date=20 September 2007 |date=14 May 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706181106/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/weather/article1785059.ece |archive-date=6 July 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In January 2024, plans were announced to plant over 100,000 trees in northern Devon to support [[Celtic rainforest]]s, which are cherished yet at risk ecosystems in the UK. The project aims to create 50 hectares of new rainforest across three sites, planting trees near existing rainforest areas along the coast and inland. Among the tree species to be planted is the rare [[Devon whitebeam]], known for its unique reproduction method and once-popular fruit. Led by the [[National Trust]] and with the assistance of volunteers and community groups, the initiative will focus on locations in [[Exmoor]], [[Woolacombe]], [[Hartland, Devon|Hartland]], and [[Arlington Court]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Morris |first=Steven |date=29 January 2024 |title=More than 100,000 trees to be planted in Devon to boost Celtic rainforest |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/jan/29/more-than-100000-trees-to-be-planted-in-devon-to-boost-celtic-rainforest |access-date=29 January 2024 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 |archive-date=29 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240129061306/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/jan/29/more-than-100000-trees-to-be-planted-in-devon-to-boost-celtic-rainforest |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Demographics==

In the 2021 census, the ceremonial county of Devon had a usual resident population of 1,215,661. The ceremonial county of Devon is divided between one non-metropolitan county: Devon County Council, which, in the 2021 census, had a usual resident population of 811,642, and two unitary authorities: Plymouth City Council, which, in the 2021 census, had a usual resident population of 264,695, and Torbay Council, which, in the 2021 census, had a usual resident population of 139,324.

===Ethnicity===
For the overwhelming majority of Devon’s history, the population of the ceremonial county was ethnically homogeneous, with the population being of White British ethnicity.  In the 2021 census, the ethnic composition of the ceremonial county of Devon comprised: 95.8% White; 1.6% Asian; 0.5% Black; 1.5% Mixed; and 0.6% Other.

* White (95.8%): English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish or British (91.8%); Irish (0.5%); Gypsy or Irish Traveller (0.1%); Roma (0.1%); and Other White (3.4%).
* Asian (1.6%): Indian (0.4%); Pakistani (0.1%); Bangladeshi (0.1%); Chinese (0.4%); and Other Asian (0.6%).
* Black (0.5%): African (0.3%); Caribbean (0.1%); and Other Black (0.1%).
* Mixed (1.5%): White and Asian (0.5%); White and Black African (0.2%); White and Black Caribbean (0.3%); and Other Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups (0.4%).
* Other (0.6%): Arab (0.2%) and Any other ethnic group (0.4%).

<small>'''Note:''' Sub-group totals may not sum exactly to the group total due to rounding. Data for the ceremonial county are aggregated from its constituent unitary authorities.</small> 

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: right;"
|+ Ethnic groups in Devon (ceremonial county)
|-
! rowspan="2" | Ethnic Group 
! rowspan="2" |2001 Census<ref>{{cite web |title=KS006 - Ethnic group |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=1606 |website=Nomis| publisher=Office for National Statistics | access-date=27 October 2025}}</ref>
! rowspan="2" |2011 Census<ref>{{cite web |title=KS201EW - Ethnic group |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=608 |website=Nomis| publisher=Office for National Statistics | access-date=27 October 2025}}</ref>
! rowspan="2" |2021 Census<ref>{{cite web |title=TS021 - Ethnic group |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=2041 |website=Nomis| publisher=Office for National Statistics | access-date=27 October 2025}}</ref>
|-
| White || 98.7% || 97.3% || 95.8%
|-
| Asian || 0.5% || 1.2% || 1.6%
|-
| Black || 0.1% || 0.3% || 0.5%
|-
| Mixed || 0.5% || 1% || 1.5%
|-
| Other || 0.1% || 0.3% || 0.6%
|}

<small>'''Note:''' The 2001 census figures for 'Asian' and 'Other' have been adjusted to reflect the 2011 reclassification of the Chinese ethnic group from 'Other' to 'Asian' to allow comparison across census years.</small> 

===Religion===

{{Pie chart
| thumb = right
| caption = Religion in Devon (ceremonial county) (2021 United Kingdom census)
| label1 = [[Christianity]]
| value1 = 46.1
| color1 = DodgerBlue
| label2 = [[Irreligion|No religion]]
| value2 = 45.3
| color2 = Beige
| label3 = [[Islam]]
| value3 = 0.7
| color3 = Green
| label4 = [[Buddhism]]
| value4 =0.4
| color4 = Yellow
| label5 = [[Hinduism]]
| value5 = 0.2
| color5 = Orange
| label6 = [[Judaism]]
| value6 = 0.1
| color6 = Grey
| label7 = [[Sikhism]]
| value7 = 0.0
| color7 = OrangeRed
| label8 = Other religion
| value8 = 0.6
| color8 = DeepPink
| label9 = Not stated
| value9 = 6.4
| color9 = Black
}}

In the 2021 census, the religious composition of the ceremonial county of Devon comprised: 46.1% Christian; 45.3% No religion; 0.7% Muslim; 0.4% Buddhist; 0.2% Hindu; 0.1% Jewish; 0.0% Sikh; 0.6% Other religion; and 6.4% Not stated.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: right;"
|+ Religion in Devon (ceremonial county)
|-
! rowspan="2" | Religion 
! rowspan="2" |2001 Census<ref>{{cite web |title=KS007 - Religion |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=616 |website=Nomis| publisher=Office for National Statistics | access-date=27 October 2025}}</ref>
! rowspan="2" |2011 Census<ref>{{cite web |title=KS209EW - Religion |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=1607 |website=Nomis| publisher=Office for National Statistics | access-date=27 October 2025}}</ref>
! rowspan="2" |2021 Census<ref>{{cite web |title=TS030 - Religion |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/query/construct/summary.asp?mode=construct&version=0&dataset=2049 |website=Nomis| publisher=Office for National Statistics | access-date=27 October 2025}}</ref>
|-
| Christianity || 74.7% || 61.0% || 46.1%
|-
| No religion || 16.5% || 29.4% || 45.3%
|-
| Islam || 0.3% || 0.5% || 0.7%
|-
| Buddhism || 0.2% || 0.4% || 0.4%
|-
| Hinduism || 0.1% || 0.1% || 0.2%
|-
| Judaism || 0.1% || 0.1% || 0.1%
|-
| Sikhism || 0.0% || 0.0% || 0.0%
|-
| Other religion || 0.4% || 0.5% || 0.6%
|-
| Not stated || 7.7% || 8.0% || 6.4%
|}

====Ancient and medieval history====
The region of Devon was the dominion of the pre-Roman Dumnonii [[Celtic tribe]], known as the "Deep Valley Dwellers". The region to the west of Exeter was less Romanised than the rest of Roman Britain since it was considered a remote part of the province. After the formal Roman withdrawal from Britain in AD 410, one of the leading Dumnonii families attempted to create a dynasty and rule over Devon as the new Kings of Dumnonii.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.britannia.com/history/devon/devon.html |title=Britannia History: Overview of Devon |website=britannia.com |access-date=4 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180203034354/http://www.britannia.com/history/devon/devon.html |archive-date=3 February 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[Celtic paganism]] and [[Religion in ancient Rome|Roman practice]]s were the first known religions in Devon, although in the mid-fourth century AD, Christianity was introduced to Devon.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.devon.gov.uk/fs28_-_anglo_saxon_devon.pdf |title=Devon Libraries: Sources for Anglo-Saxon Devon |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202000320/http://www.devon.gov.uk/fs28_-_anglo_saxon_devon.pdf |archive-date=2 February 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>{{citation needed|date=June 2017}} In the [[Sub-Roman Britain|Sub-Roman period]] the church in the [[British Isles]] was characterised by some differences in practice from the [[Latin Christianity]] of the continent of Europe and is known as [[Celtic Christianity]];<ref>Bowen, E. G. (1977) ''Saints, Seaways and Settlements in the Celtic Lands''. Cardiff: University of Wales Press {{ISBN|0-900768-30-4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/issues/issue-60/patrick-and-celtic-christianity-did-you-know.html |title=St. Patrick and Celtic Christianity: Did You Know? |work=Christian History {{!}} Learn the History of Christianity & the Church |access-date=4 July 2017 |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170612083814/http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/issues/issue-60/patrick-and-celtic-christianity-did-you-know.html |archive-date=12 June 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.northumbriacommunity.org/articles/monasticism-the-heart-of-celtic-christianity/ |title=Monasticism – The Heart of Celtic Christianity – Northumbria Community |work=Northumbria Community |access-date=4 July 2017 |language=en-US |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170117005904/http://www.northumbriacommunity.org/articles/monasticism-the-heart-of-celtic-christianity/ |archive-date=17 January 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref> however it was always in communion with the wider [[Roman Catholic Church]]. Many [[Cornish saints]] are commemorated also in Devon in legends, churches and place-names. [[Western Christianity]] came to Devon when it was over a long period incorporated into the [[Kingdom of Wessex]] and the jurisdiction of the bishop of Wessex. [[Saint Petroc]] is said to have passed through Devon, where ancient dedications to him are even more numerous than in Cornwall: a probable seventeen (plus [[Timberscombe]] just over the border in Somerset), compared to Cornwall's five. The position of churches bearing his name, including one within the old Roman walls of Exeter, are nearly always near the coast, as in those days travelling was done mainly by sea. The Devonian villages of [[Petrockstowe]] and [[Newton St Petroc]] are also named after Saint Petroc and the [[flag of Devon]] is dedicated to him.

The history of Christianity in the South West of England remains to some degree obscure. Parts of the historic county of Devon formed part of the diocese of Wessex, while nothing is known of the church organisation of the Celtic areas. About 703 Devon and Cornwall were included in the separate diocese of Sherborne and in 900 this was again divided into two, the Devon bishop having from 905 his seat at Tawton (now [[Bishop's Tawton]]) and from 912 at [[Crediton]], birthplace of St Boniface. [[Lyfing, Abbot of Tavistock|Lyfing]] became [[Bishop of Crediton]] in 1027 and shortly afterwards became [[Bishop of Cornwall]].

The two dioceses of Crediton and Cornwall, covering Devon and Cornwall, were united under [[Edward the Confessor]] by Lyfing's successor [[Bishop Leofric]], hitherto Bishop of Crediton, who became first Bishop of Exeter under Edward the Confessor, which was established as his cathedral city in 1050. At first, the abbey church of St Mary and St Peter, founded by Athelstan in 932 and rebuilt in 1019, served as the cathedral.

Devon came under the political influence of several different nobles during the Middle Ages, especially the Courtenays [[Earl of Devon]]. During the Wars of the Roses, important magnates included the Earl of Devon, [[William Bonville, 1st Baron Bonville]], and [[Humphrey Stafford, 1st Earl of Devon]] whose wider influence stretched from Cornwall to Wiltshire. After 1485, one of the county's influential figures included Henry VII's courtier [[Robert Willoughby, 1st Baron Willoughby de Broke]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stansfield-Cudworth |first=R. E. |title=Political Elites in South-West England, 1450–1500: Politics, Governance, and the Wars of the Roses |publisher=[[Edwin Mellen Press]] |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-77344-714-1 |location=[[Lewiston, New York|Lewiston]], New York |pages=165–73, 206–13, 321–29}}</ref>

====Later history====
In 1549, the [[Prayer Book Rebellion]] caused the deaths of thousands of people from Devon and Cornwall. During the [[English Reformation]], churches in Devon officially became affiliated with the [[Church of England]]. From the late sixteenth century onwards, zealous Protestantism – or 'puritanism' – became increasingly well-entrenched in some parts of Devon, while other districts of the county remained much more conservative. These divisions would become starkly apparent during the English Civil War of 1642–46, when the county split apart along religious and cultural lines.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Stoyle |first1=Mark |date=1994 |title=Loyalty and Locality: Popular Allegiance in Devon During the English Civil War |location=Exeter, UK |publisher=University of Exeter Press |isbn=978-0-85989-428-9 |page=passim |language=en}}</ref> The [[Methodism]] of [[John Wesley]] proved to be very popular with the working classes in Devon in the 19th century. Methodist chapels became important social centres, with male voice choirs and other church-affiliated groups playing a central role in the social lives of working class Devonians. Methodism still plays a large part in the religious life of Devon today, although the county has shared in the post-World War II decline in British religious feeling.

The [[Diocese of Exeter]] remains the Anglican diocese including the whole of Devon. The [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Plymouth]] was established in the mid 19th century.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.plymouth-diocese.org.uk/ |title=Home |website=Plymouth-diocese.org.uk |date=15 February 2015 |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021130930/http://www.plymouth-diocese.org.uk/ |archive-date=21 October 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Governance==
{{See also|2025 Devon County Council election|Local Government Act 2010}}
[[File:Clock tower, County Hall, Exeter.jpg|thumb|County Hall, Exeter. Headquarters for Devon County Council.]]

The administrative centre and capital of Devon is the city of Exeter. The largest city in Devon, Plymouth, and the conurbation of [[Torbay]] (which includes the largest town in Devon and capital of Torbay, Torquay, as well as Paignton and Brixham) have been [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authorities]] since 1998, separate from the remainder of Devon which is administered by [[Devon County Council]] for the purposes of local government.

Devon County Council is under [[no overall control]], and the political representation of its 60 councillors are: 27 [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]], 16 [[Reform UK]], 7 [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservatives]], 6 [[Green Party of England and Wales|Greens]], and 4 [[Independent politician|Independent]]s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Political make-up - Democracy in Devon |url=https://www.devon.gov.uk/democracy/councillors-info/political-make-up/ |website=Devon County Council |access-date=30 October 2025}}</ref>

At the [[2024 United Kingdom general election|2024 general election]], Devon returned six Liberal Democrats, four Conservatives and three Labour MPs to the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-07-05 |title='Disastrous night' for Conservatives in Devon, former MP says |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce98jryemv7o |access-date=2024-07-21 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>

===Hundreds===
Historically Devon was divided into 32 [[Hundred (county subdivision)|hundreds]]:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/Hundreds.html |title=Devon Hundreds |publisher=Newcastle University |date=23 June 2013 |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160427064112/http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/Hundreds.html |archive-date=27 April 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Axminster Hundred|Axminster]], [[Bampton Hundred|Bampton]], [[Black Torrington Hundred|Black Torrington]], [[Braunton Hundred|Braunton]], [[Cliston Hundred|Cliston]], [[Coleridge Hundred|Coleridge]], [[Colyton Hundred|Colyton]], [[Crediton Hundred|Crediton]], [[East Budleigh Hundred|East Budleigh]], [[Ermington Hundred|Ermington]], [[Exminster Hundred|Exminster]], [[Fremington Hundred|Fremington]], [[Halberton Hundred|Halberton]], [[Hartland Hundred|Hartland]], [[Hayridge Hundred|Hayridge]], [[Haytor Hundred|Haytor]], [[Hemyock Hundred|Hemyock]], [[Lifton Hundred|Lifton]], [[North Tawton and Winkleigh Hundred|North Tawton and Winkleigh]], [[Ottery Hundred|Ottery]], [[Plympton Hundred|Plympton]], [[Roborough Hundred|Roborough]], [[Shebbear Hundred|Shebbear]], [[Shirwell Hundred|Shirwell]], [[South Molton Hundred|South Molton]], [[Stanborough Hundred|Stanborough]], [[Tavistock Hundred|Tavistock]], [[Teignbridge Hundred|Teignbridge]], [[Tiverton Hundred|Tiverton]], [[West Budleigh Hundred|West Budleigh]], [[Witheridge Hundred|Witheridge]], and [[Wonford Hundred|Wonford]].

===Combined County Authority===
{{Main|Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority}}

[[Devon County Council]] and [[Torbay Council]] are constituent members of the Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority, which has devolved powers over transport, housing, skills, and support for business.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-02-09 |title=Devolution FAQs - Devon and Torbay Devolution Deal |url=https://www.devontorbaydeal.org.uk/devolution-faqs/ |access-date=2024-05-04 |language=en-GB}}</ref> 

The authority consists of 12 members: six constituent members with full voting rights, four non-constituent members who do not have voting powers unless extended to them by the constituent members, and two associate members who cannot vote. Devon County Council and Torbay Council each choose half of the constituent members. Two of the non-constituent members are selected collectively by the district councils of Devon to represent their interests, and one is reserved for the [[Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Commissioner]]. The remaining non-constituent member and the two associate members are elected by the constituent members of the authority.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=3 May 2024 |title=Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority – Final Proposal |url=https://www.torbay.gov.uk/DemocraticServices/documents/s149535/Appendix%20B%20-%20Final%20proposal%20for%20DT%20CCA.pdf |access-date=4 May 2024 |website=Torbay Council}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Signed legislation brings Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority into being |url=https://www.devonairradio.com/news/devon-news/signed-legislation-brings-devon-and-torbay-combined-county-authority-into-being/ |website=DevonAir Radio |access-date=11 February 2025 |language=en |date=12 February 2025}}</ref>

==Settlements==
{{Main|List of places in Devon|List of towns and cities in Devon by population}}

[[File:devon.brixham.750pix.jpg|thumb|left|The inner harbour, [[Brixham]], south Devon, at low tide]]

The main settlements in Devon are the cities of Plymouth, a historic port now administratively independent, Exeter, the [[county town]], and [[Torbay]], the county's tourist centre. Devon's coast is lined with tourist resorts, many of which grew rapidly with the arrival of the railways in the 19th century. Examples include Dawlish, [[Exmouth, Devon|Exmouth]] and Sidmouth on the south coast, and [[Ilfracombe]] and [[Lynmouth]] on the north. The Torbay conurbation of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham on the south coast is now administratively independent of the county. Rural [[market town]]s in the county include Barnstaple, Bideford, [[Honiton]], [[Newton Abbot]], [[Okehampton]], [[Tavistock, Devon|Tavistock]], Totnes and [[Tiverton, Devon|Tiverton]].

The boundary with Cornwall has not always been on the River Tamar as at present: until the late 19th century a few parishes in the Torpoint area were in Devon and five parishes now in north-east Cornwall were in Devon until 1974 (however, for ecclesiastical purposes these were nevertheless in the [[Archdeaconry of Cornwall]] and in 1876 became part of the [[Diocese of Truro]]).

==Symbols==
===Coat of arms===
[[File:Coat of Arms of Devon County Council.svg|alt=|thumb|The coat of arms of Devon County Council]]

There was no established [[coat of arms]] for the county until 1926: the arms of the City of Exeter were often used to represent Devon, for instance in the badge of the [[Devonshire Regiment]]. During the forming of a county council by the [[Local Government Act 1888]] adoption of a common seal was required. The seal contained three shields depicting the arms of Exeter along with those of the first chairman and vice-chairman of the council ([[Charles Hepburn-Stuart-Forbes-Trefusis, 20th Baron Clinton|Lord Clinton]] and the [[Earl of Morley]]).<ref>Fox-Davies, A. C. (1915) ''The Book of Public Arms'', 2nd edition, London</ref>

On 11 October 1926, the county council received a grant of arms from the [[College of Arms]]. The main part of the shield displays a red crowned lion on a silver field, the arms of [[Richard Plantagenet, Earl of Cornwall]]. The ''chief'' or upper portion of the shield depicts an ancient ship on wavers, for Devon's seafaring traditions. The Latin motto adopted was ''Auxilio Divino'' (by Divine aid), that of Sir [[Francis Drake]]. The 1926 grant was of arms alone. On 6 March 1962 a further grant of crest and supporters was obtained. The crest is the head of a [[Dartmoor Pony]] rising from a "Naval Crown". This distinctive form of crown is formed from the sails and sterns of ships, and is associated with the [[Royal Navy]]. The supporters are a [[Devon bull]] and a sea lion.<ref>W. C. Scott-Giles, ''Civic Heraldry of England and Wales'', 2nd edition, London, 1953</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.devon.gov.uk/index/democracycommunities/county_councillors/historic/brief_history.htm |title=A brief history of Devon's coat of arms (Devon County Council) |publisher=Devon.gov.uk |access-date=14 June 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511234359/http://www.devon.gov.uk/index/democracycommunities/county_councillors/historic/brief_history.htm |archive-date=11 May 2011}}</ref>

Devon County Council adopted a "ship silhouette" logo after the 1974 reorganisation, adapted from the ship emblem on the coat of arms, but following the loss in 1998 of Plymouth and Torbay re-adopted the coat of arms. In April 2006 the council unveiled a new logo which was to be used in most everyday applications, though the coat of arms will continue to be used for "various civic purposes".<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/devon/4851278.stm |title=Council's designs cause logo row |work=BBC News |date=27 March 2006 |access-date=14 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110512153333/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/devon/4851278.stm |archive-date=12 May 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.devon.gov.uk/index/democracycommunities/decision_making/cma/cma_document.htm?cmadoc=minutes_spr_20060403.html |title=Policy and Resources Overview Scrutiny Committee Minutes, 3 April 2006 |publisher=Devon.gov.uk |access-date=14 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511234349/http://www.devon.gov.uk/index/democracycommunities/decision_making/cma/cma_document.htm?cmadoc=minutes_spr_20060403.html |archive-date=11 May 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Flag===
{{Main|Flag of Devon}}

[[File:Flag of Devon.svg|thumb|The flag of the historic county of Devon]]

Devon also has its own flag which has been dedicated to Saint Petroc, a local [[saint]] with dedications throughout Devon and neighbouring counties. The flag was adopted in 2003 after a competition run by [[BBC Radio Devon]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/community_life/features/devon_flag.shtml |title=Flag celebrates Devon's heritage |publisher=BBC |date=18 July 2003 |access-date=14 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100425161755/http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/community_life/features/devon_flag.shtml |archive-date=25 April 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref> The winning design was created by website contributor Ryan Sealey, and won 49% of the votes cast. The colours of the flag are those popularly identified with Devon, for example, the colours of the [[University of Exeter]], the [[rugby union]] team, and the Green and White flag flown by the first [[Viscount Exmouth]] at the [[Bombardment of Algiers (1816)|Bombardment of Algiers]] (now on view at the Teign Valley Museum), as well as one of the county's [[Association football|football]] teams, [[Plymouth Argyle]]. On 17 October 2006, the flag was hoisted for the first time outside County Hall in Exeter to mark Local Democracy Week, receiving official recognition from the county council.<ref>[http://www.devon.gov.uk/press_devonflagpr Devon County Council Press Release, 16 October 2006] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014214602/http://www.devon.gov.uk/press_devonflagpr |date=14 October 2008 }}</ref> In 2019 [[Devon County Council]] with the support of both the Anglican and Catholic churches in Exeter and Plymouth, officially recognised [[Saint Boniface]] as the Patron Saint of Devon.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Quick |first1=Alan |title=St Boniface of Crediton to become Patron Saint of Devon |url=https://www.creditoncourier.co.uk/article.cfm?id=138406&headline=St%20Boniface%20of%20Crediton%20to%20become%20Patron%20Saint%20of%20Devon&sectionIs=news&searchyear=2019 |access-date=9 November 2020 |work=Crediton Country Courier |date=24 May 2019 |language=en |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109214516/https://www.creditoncourier.co.uk/article.cfm?id=138406&headline=St%20Boniface%20of%20Crediton%20to%20become%20Patron%20Saint%20of%20Devon&sectionIs=news&searchyear=2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Place names and customs==
[[File:westwardho.beach.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|The beach at [[Westward Ho!]], North Devon, looking north towards the shared [[estuary]] of the rivers [[River Taw|Taw]] and [[River Torridge|Torridge]]]]

Devon's toponyms include many with the endings "coombe/combe" and "tor". Both 'coombe' (valley or hollow, cf. Welsh ''cwm'', Cornish ''komm'') and 'tor' (Old Welsh {{lang|owl|twrr}} and Scots Gaelic ''tòrr'' from Latin ''turris''; 'tower' used for granite formations) are rare [[List of English words of Welsh origin|Celtic loanwords in English]] and their frequency is greatest in Devon which shares a boundary with historically [[Brittonic languages|Brittonic]] speaking Cornwall. Ruined medieval settlements of [[Dartmoor longhouse]]s indicate that dispersed rural settlement (OE ''tun'', now often -ton) was very similar to that found in Cornish 'tre-' settlements, however these are generally described with the local placename {{lang|ang|-(a)cott}}, from the Old English for homestead, cf. [[cottage]]. Saxon endings in -worthy (from Anglo-Saxon {{lang|ang|worthig}}) indicate larger settlements. Several 'Bere's indicate Anglo-Saxon wood groves, as 'leighs' indicate clearings.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/DevonMisc/Nomenclature.html |title=Origins of Devon Place-Names |publisher=Newcastle University |date=2 November 2014 |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161114083054/http://genuki.cs.ncl.ac.uk/DEV/DevonMisc/Nomenclature.html |archive-date=14 November 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Devon has a variety of festivals and traditional practices, including the traditional orchard-visiting [[Wassail]] in [[Whimple]] every 17 January, and the carrying of flaming tar barrels in [[Ottery St. Mary]], where people who have lived in Ottery for long enough are called upon to celebrate [[Guy Fawkes Night|Bonfire Night]] by running through the village (and the gathered crowds) with flaming barrels on their backs.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/discovering/legends/ottery_tar_barrels.shtml |title=Ottery Tar Barrels |publisher=BBC |access-date=14 May 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080519081002/http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/discovering/legends/ottery_tar_barrels.shtml |archive-date=19 May 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Berry Pomeroy]] still celebrates [[Queene's Day]] for [[Elizabeth I]].

==Economy==
{{Main|Economy of Devon}}

Devon's total economic output in 2019 was over £26&nbsp;billion, larger than either Manchester, or Edinburgh.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossvalueaddedgva/datasets/nominalregionalgrossvalueaddedbalancedperheadandincomecomponents |title=Regional gross value added (balanced) per head and income components – Office for National Statistics |access-date=24 September 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230605110645/https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossvalueaddedgva/datasets/nominalregionalgrossvalueaddedbalancedperheadandincomecomponents |url-status=live }}</ref> A 2021 report states that "health, retail and tourism account for 43.1% of employment. Agriculture, education, manufacturing, construction and real estate employment are also over-represented in Devon compared with nationally".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.devon.gov.uk/strategic-plan/the-best-place/investing-in-devons-economic-recovery/#:~:text=The%20economy%20of%20Devon%20is,in%20Devon%20compared%20with%20nationally |title=Strategic Plan 2021-2025 |date=15 June 2021 |work=Devon County Council |access-date=26 December 2023 |quote= |archive-date=31 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131174030/https://www.devon.gov.uk/strategic-plan/the-best-place/investing-in-devons-economic-recovery/#:~:text=The%20economy%20of%20Devon%20is,in%20Devon%20compared%20with%20nationally |url-status=live }}</ref>

Like neighbouring Cornwall to the west, historically Devon has been disadvantaged economically compared to other parts of [[Southern England]], owing to the decline of a number of core industries, notably fishing, mining, and farming, but it is now significantly more diverse. Agriculture has been an important industry in Devon since the 19th century. The [[2001 UK foot and mouth crisis]] harmed the farming community severely.<ref>''In Devon, the county council estimated that 1,200 jobs would be lost in agriculture and ancillary rural industries'' – [https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200001/cmhansrd/vo010425/debtext/10425-17.htm#column_357 ''Hansard'', 25 April 2001] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170404043956/https://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200001/cmhansrd/vo010425/debtext/10425-17.htm#column_357 |date=4 April 2017 }}</ref> Since then some parts of the agricultural industry have begun to diversify and recover, with a strong local food sector and many artisan producers. Nonetheless, in 2015 the dairy industry was still suffering from the low prices offered for wholesale milk by major dairies and especially large supermarket chains.

The pandemic negatively affected the economy during 2020 and early 2021; an August 2021 report states that "the immediate economic impacts of COVID-19 for the County as a whole [was] as severe as any in living memory".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://democracy.devon.gov.uk/documents/s36779/Devon%20Economy%20Briefing%20summary%20August%202021.pdf |title=Economy Service Briefing |date=15 August 2021 |work=Devon County Council |access-date=26 December 2023 |quote= |archive-date=26 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240326090147/https://democracy.devon.gov.uk/documents/s36779/Devon%20Economy%20Briefing%20summary%20August%202021.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:torquay.devon.750pix.jpg|thumb|left|Part of the seafront of [[Torquay]], south Devon, at high tide]]

Between 2014 and 2016, the attractive lifestyle of the area was drawing in new industries which were not heavily dependent upon geographical location;<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.investdevon.co.uk/ |title=Devon Delivers |publisher=Invest Devon |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161223012937/https://www.investdevon.co.uk/ |archive-date=23 December 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.northdevon.gov.uk/ndc_northern_devon_economic_strategy.pdf |title=NORTHERN DEVON Economic Strategy 2014 – 2020 |access-date=12 December 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141216023315/http://www.northdevon.gov.uk/ndc_northern_devon_economic_strategy.pdf |archive-date=16 December 2014}}</ref> Dartmoor, for instance, saw a significant rise in the percentage of its inhabitants involved in the digital and financial services sectors. The [[Met Office]], the UK's national and international weather service, moved to Exeter in 2003. Plymouth hosts the head office and first ever store of [[The Range (retailer)|The Range]], the only major national retail chain headquartered in Devon.

Since the rise of seaside resorts with the arrival of the railways in the 19th century, Devon's economy has been heavily reliant on tourism. The county's economy followed the declining trend of British seaside resorts since the mid-20th century, but with some recent revival and regeneration of its resorts, particularly focused around camping; sports such as surfing, cycling, sailing and heritage. This revival has been aided by the designation of much of Devon's countryside and coastline as the Dartmoor and Exmoor national parks, and the Jurassic Coast and Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Sites. In 2019 the county's visitor spend was almost £2.5&nbsp;billion.<!-- Should try to put this in context of total Devon economy – the GVA is around 9&nbsp;billion, but I don't know enough about economic statistics to know if it's valid to compare the two? --><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.devon.gov.uk/tourism_trends_2005.pdf |title=tourism trends 2005.pdf |access-date=18 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090326065518/http://www.devon.gov.uk/tourism_trends_2005.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2009}}</ref> More successful visitor attractions are particularly concentrated on food and drink, including sea-view restaurants in North-West Devon (such as one example belonging to [[Damien Hurst]]), walking the [[South West Coast Path]], cycling on the [[Devon Coast to Coast Cycle Route]] and other cycle routes such as the [[Tarka Trail]] and the Stover Trail; watersports; surfing; indoor and outdoor folk music festivals across the county and sailing in the {{convert|5|mi|adj=on}} hill-surrounded inlet ([[ria]]) at Salcombe.

Incomes vary significantly and the average is bolstered by a high proportion of affluent retired people. Incomes in much of the South Hams and in villages surrounding Exeter and Plymouth are close to, or above the national average, but there are also areas of severe deprivation, with earnings in some places among the lowest in the UK.

The table also shows the population change in the ten years to the 2011 census by subdivision. It also shows the proportion of residents in each district reliant upon lowest income and/or joblessness benefits, the national average proportion of which was 4.5% as at August 2012, the year for which latest datasets have been published. It can be seen that the most populous district of Devon is East Devon but only if excluding [[Torbay]] which has marginally more residents and Plymouth which has approximately double the number of residents of either of these. West Devon has the fewest residents, having 63,839 at the time of the census.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ ''Population from census to census. Claimants of [[Jobseeker's Allowance]] (JSA) or Income Support ([[Department for Work and Pensions|DWP]])''<ref name=ons>[http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk Key Statistics: Population; Quick Statistics: Economic indicators] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030211201309/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/ |date=11 February 2003 }}. ([[United Kingdom Census 2011|2011 census]] and [[United Kingdom Census 2001|2001 census]]) Retrieved 27 February 2015.</ref>
|-
!Unit||JSA or Inc. Supp. claimants (August 2012) % of 2011 population||JSA and Income Support claimants (August 2001) % of 2001 population||Population (April 2011)||Population (April 2001)
|-
|	'''Devon'''	||	2.7%	||	6.6%	||	746,399	||	704,493
|- align=center
|colspan="4"|''Ranked by district''
|-
|	Exeter	||	3.5%	||	7.5%	||	117,773	||	111,076
|-
|	Torridge	||	3.3%	||	7.7%	||	63,839	||	58,965
|-
|	North Devon	||	2.8%	||	7.8%	||	93,667	||	87,508
|-
|	Teignbridge	||	2.6%	||	6.7%	||	124,220	||	120,958
|-
|	Mid Devon	||	2.6%	||	6.0%	||	77,750	||	69,774
|-
|	West Devon	||	2.5%	||	5.9%	||	53,553	||	48,843
|-
|	South Hams	||	2.1%	||	6.0%	||	83,140	||	81,849
|-
|	East Devon	||	1.9%	||	5.4%	||	132,457	||	125,520
|- align=center
|colspan="4"|''In historic Devon''
|-
|	Torbay	||	5.3%	||	11.0%	||	130,959	||	129,706
|-
|	Plymouth	||	5.1%	||	9.5%	||	256,384	||	240,720
|}

==Transport==
===Bus===
There is a network of buses across Devon, the largest operator in Devon is [[Stagecoach South West]], having operated 93% of services in the county in 2021.<ref name="EPPS">{{cite web |title=Enhanced Partnership Plan and Scheme |url=https://devoncc.sharepoint.com/sites/PublicDocs/Transport/Travel/Forms/AllItems.aspx?id=%2Fsites%2FPublicDocs%2FTransport%2FTravel%2FBSIP%20%2D%20Published%20Documents%2FDevon%20CC%20%2D%20Enhanced%20Partnership%20Plan%20%26%20Scheme%20v%2E6%2020%2E3%2E24%2Epdf&parent=%2Fsites |publisher=[[Devon County Council]] |access-date=28 May 2025}}</ref> Smaller operators include Dartline, Country Bus and [[Plymouth Citybus]].

[[Devon County Council]] oversees and co-ordinates bus transport through [[DevonBus]], an [[Bus Services Act 2017|Enhanced Partnership]] covering the county, with the purpose of improving the network and creating a unified brand for buses in the county.<ref name="TravelDevon enhanced">{{cite web |title=DevonBus Enhanced Partnership |url=https://www.traveldevon.info/bus/bsip/devonbus-enhanced-partnership/ |website=TravelDevon |publisher=[[Devon County Council]] |access-date=28 May 2025}}</ref>

===Rail===
The key train operator for Devon is [[Great Western Railway (train operating company)|Great Western Railway]], which operates numerous regional, local and suburban services, as well as inter-city services north to [[London Paddington]] and south to {{rws|Plymouth}} and {{rws|Penzance}}. Other inter-city services are operated by [[CrossCountry]] north to [[Manchester Piccadilly]], [[Edinburgh Waverley]], {{rws|Glasgow Central}}, {{rws|Dundee}}, {{rws|Aberdeen}} and south to Plymouth and Penzance; and by [[South Western Railway (train operating company)|South Western Railway]], operating hourly services between [[London Waterloo]] and [[Exeter St Davids]], via the [[West of England Main Line]]. All Devon services are diesel-hauled, since there are no electrified lines in the county.

[[Okehampton station]] in Devon was closed in 1972 to passenger traffic as a result of the [[Beeching cuts]], but regained regular passenger services run by GWR to Exeter in November 2021, funded by the UK Government's Restoring your Railway programme.

There are proposals to reopen the line from {{rws|Tavistock}} to {{rws|Bere Alston}} for a through service to Plymouth.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Harris |first=Nigel |title=Taking trains back to Tavistock |journal=Rail |issue=590 |pages=40–45 |publisher=Bauer |year=2008}}</ref> The possibility of reopening the line between Tavistock and Okehampton, to provide an alternative route between Exeter and Plymouth, has also been suggested following damage to the railway's [[South Devon Railway sea wall|sea wall at Dawlish]] in 2014, which caused widespread disruption to trains between Exeter and Penzance. However, a study by Network Rail determined that maintaining the existing railway line would offer the best value for money<ref>{{cite web |title=West of Exeter Route Resilience Study |publisher=Network Rail |year=2014 |url=https://cdn.networkrail.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/West-of-Exeter-Route-Resilience-Study-1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603173013/https://cdn.networkrail.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/West-of-Exeter-Route-Resilience-Study-1.pdf |archive-date=3 June 2020}}</ref> and work to strengthen the line at [[Dawlish]] began in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dawlish Sea Wall |url=https://www.networkrail.co.uk/running-the-railway/our-routes/western/south-west-rail-resilience-programme/dawlish-sea-wall/ |access-date=3 June 2020 |website=Network Rail |language=en-GB |archive-date=26 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200726151828/https://www.networkrail.co.uk/running-the-railway/our-routes/western/south-west-rail-resilience-programme/dawlish-sea-wall/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

====Devon Metro====
{{Main|Devon Metro}}

Devon County Council has proposed a 'Devon Metro' scheme to improve rail services in the county and offer a realistic alternative to car travel. This includes the opening of [[Cranbrook railway station (Devon)|Cranbrook station]] in December 2015, plus four new stations to be constructed (including {{rws|Edginswell}}) as a priority.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.devon.gov.uk/devon_metro_briefing.pdf |access-date=25 April 2015 |url-status=dead |title=Devon Metro – fulfilling the potential of rail |publisher=Devon City Council |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303214602/http://www.devon.gov.uk/devon_metro_briefing.pdf |archive-date=3 March 2016}}</ref> Several elements of the scheme have, or are in the process of being delivered including the building of [[Marsh Barton station]] on the edge of Exeter<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.devonnewscentre.info/work-starts-on-marsh-barton-rail-station/ |title=Work starts on Marsh Barton rail station – News |publisher=Devon City Council |date=15 April 2021 |access-date=28 February 2022 |archive-date=25 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210925144657/https://www.devonnewscentre.info/work-starts-on-marsh-barton-rail-station/ |url-status=live }}</ref> which was opened in July 2023,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Parker-Bray |first=Michael |date=2023-07-04 |title=Marsh Barton station now open |url=https://dcrp.org.uk/marsh-barton-station-now-open/ |access-date=2024-05-03 |website=Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership |language=en-GB}}</ref> and a regular half hourly local rail service now extended from the [[Avocet Line]] across Exeter to include the [[Riviera Line]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gwr.com/~/media/gwr/pdfs/plan-journey/timetables/2021/september-timetable-updates/d1-1309-a4-web-v1.pdf?la=en/ |title=D1 Train Times |publisher=Great Western Railway |access-date=28 February 2022 |archive-date=9 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209160410/https://www.gwr.com/~/media/gwr/pdfs/plan-journey/timetables/2021/september-timetable-updates/d1-1309-a4-web-v1.pdf?la=en/ |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Air===
[[Exeter Airport]] is the only passenger airport in Devon and in 2019 was used by over one million people. Until 2020, [[Flybe (1979-2020)|Flybe]] had its headquarters at the airport. Destinations include various locations within the UK ([[London City Airport|London City]], Manchester, [[Belfast]], Edinburgh, etc.), as well as locations in [[Cyprus]], Italy, Netherlands, [[Lapland (Finland)|Lapland]], Portugal, Spain, France, [[Malta]], Switzerland and Turkey.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.exeter-airport.co.uk/flights-holidays/ |title=Flights & Holidays |website=Exeter Airport |language=en-GB |access-date=10 September 2019 |archive-date=24 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424104904/https://www.exeter-airport.co.uk/flights-holidays/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Education==
{{Main|List of schools in Devon}}

Devon has a mostly [[comprehensive education]] system. There are 37 state and 23 independent secondary schools. There are three tertiary ([[Further education|FE]]) colleges and an [[agricultural college]] ([[Bicton College]], near [[Budleigh Salterton]]). Torbay has eight state (with three grammar schools) and three independent secondary schools, and Plymouth has 17 state (with three grammar schools – two all-girls and one all-boys) and one independent school, [[Plymouth College]]. East Devon and Teignbridge have the largest school populations, with West Devon the smallest (with only two schools). Only one school in Exeter, Mid Devon, Torridge and North Devon have a [[sixth form]] – the schools in other districts mostly have sixth forms, with all schools in West Devon and East Devon having a sixth form.

Three universities are located in Devon, the [[University of Exeter]] (split between the [[Streatham Campus]] and [[St Luke's Campus]], both in Exeter, and a campus in Cornwall); in Plymouth the [[University of Plymouth]] in Britain is present, along with the [[University of St Mark & St John]] to the city's north. The universities of Exeter and Plymouth have together formed the [[Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry]] which has bases in Exeter and Plymouth. There is also [[Schumacher College]].

==Cuisine==
{{Main|Cuisine of Devon}}

The county has given its name to a number of culinary specialities. The Devonshire [[cream tea]], involving [[Scone (bread)|scones]], [[jam]] and [[clotted cream]], is thought to have originated in Devon (though claims have also been made for neighbouring counties); in other countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, it is known as a "Devonshire tea".<ref>Mason, Laura; Brown, Catherine (1999) From Bath Chaps to Bara Brith. Totnes: Prospect Books</ref><ref>Pettigrew, Jane (2004) Afternoon Tea. Andover: Jarrold</ref><ref>Fitzgibbon, Theodora (1972) A Taste of England: the West Country. London: J. M. Dent</ref> It has also been claimed that the [[pasty]] originated in Devon rather than Cornwall, with the first record of the pasty coming from Plymouth in 1509.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/cornwall/6144460.stm BBC News, "Devon invented the Cornish pasty", 13 November 2006] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504203005/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/cornwall/6144460.stm |date=4 May 2020 }}. Retrieved 27 January 2020</ref>

In October 2008, Devon was awarded Fairtrade County status by the [[Fairtrade Foundation]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bulmer |first=Joseph |date=20 October 2008 |title=Devon achieves Fairtrade status |url=https://www.northdevongazette.co.uk/devon-achieves-fairtrade-status/ |access-date=13 April 2023 |website=North Devon Gazette |language=en |archive-date=13 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230413203126/https://www.northdevongazette.co.uk/devon-achieves-fairtrade-status/ |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Fairtrade |url=https://www.devon.gov.uk/fairtrade/ |access-date=13 April 2023 |website=Devon County Council |date=20 January 2017 |language=en-GB |archive-date=13 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230413203126/https://www.devon.gov.uk/fairtrade/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Sport==
{{More citations needed|section|date=February 2019}}

Devon has been home to a number of customs, such as its own form of [[Devon wrestling]], similar in some ways to [[Cornish wrestling]]. As recently as the 19th century, a crowd of over 17,000 at Devonport, near Plymouth, attended a match between the champions of Devon and Cornwall.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://creditonhistory.org.uk/history-society/read-our-online-articles/wrestling.aspx |title=Devon Wrestling |publisher=Crediton Museum |access-date=9 May 2023 |archive-date=26 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926141128/http://creditonhistory.org.uk/history-society/read-our-online-articles/wrestling.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> Another Devon sport was [[Cornish hurling|outhurling]] which was played in some regions until the 20th century (e.g. 1922, at [[Great Torrington]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://football-origins.com/13-celtic-art-ball-games-of-the-ancient-celts/ |title=Out Hurling |date=20 June 2013 |publisher=Football origins |access-date=9 May 2023 |archive-date=9 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230509110420/https://football-origins.com/13-celtic-art-ball-games-of-the-ancient-celts/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Other ancient customs which survive include Dartmoor step dancing, and "[[Crying The Neck]]".

Devon has three professional football teams, based in each of its most populous towns and cities. As of 2025, [[Plymouth Argyle F.C.]] and [[Exeter City F.C.]] compete in the [[EFL League One]], whilst [[Torquay United F.C.]] compete in the [[National League (division)|National League]]. Plymouth's highest Football League finish was fourth in the [[Football League Second Division|Second Division]], which was achieved twice, in 1932 and 1953. Torquay and Exeter have never progressed beyond the third tier of the league; Torquay finished second on [[goal average]] in the [[Football League Third Division|Third Division (S)]] behind Sir [[Alf Ramsey]]'s [[Ipswich Town]] in 1957. Exeter's highest position has been eighth in the Third Division (S). The county's biggest non-league clubs are [[Plymouth Parkway F.C.]] and [[Tiverton Town F.C.]] which compete in the [[Southern Football League Premier Division]], and [[Bideford A.F.C.]], [[Exmouth Town F.C.]] and [[Tavistock A.F.C.]] which are in the [[Southern Football League Division One South and West]].

[[Rugby Union]] is popular in Devon with over forty clubs under the banner of the [[Devon Rugby Football Union]], many with various teams at senior, youth and junior levels. One club – [[Exeter Chiefs]] – play in the [[English Premiership (rugby union)|Aviva Premiership]], winning the title in 2017 for the first time in their history after beating [[Wasps RFC]] in the final 23–20. [[Plymouth Albion]] who are, {{as of|2023|lc=y}}, in the [[National League 1]] (The third tier of English Professional Rugby Union).

There are five [[rugby league]] teams in Devon: [[Plymouth Titans]], [[Exeter Centurions]], and [[Devon Sharks]] from Torquay, North Devon Raiders from Barnstaple, and [[East Devon Eagles]] from [[Exmouth]]. They all play in the [[Rugby League Conference]].

[[Plymouth City Patriots]] represent Devon in the [[British Basketball League]]. Formed in 2021, they replaced the former professional club, [[Plymouth Raiders]], after the latter team were withdrawn from competition due to venue issues.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/news/plymouth-news/plymouth-raiders-replaced-bbl-new-5763248 |title=Plymouth Raiders replaced in BBL by new basketball team Plymouth Patriots |work=[[Plymouth Herald]] |date=9 August 2021 |access-date=25 March 2022 |archive-date=28 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220128154030/https://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/news/plymouth-news/plymouth-raiders-replaced-bbl-new-5763248 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Motorcycle speedway]] is also supported in the county, with both the [[Exeter Falcons]] and [[Plymouth Gladiators]] succeeding in the National Leagues in recent years.

The [[University of Exeter Hockey Club]] enter teams in both the [[Men's England Hockey League|Men's]] and [[Women's England Hockey League]]s.

Horse Racing is also popular in the county, with two [[National Hunt]] racecourses (Exeter and Newton Abbot), and numerous [[point to point (steeplechase)|point to point]] courses. There are also many successful professional racehorse trainers based in Devon.

The county is represented in [[cricket]] by [[Devon County Cricket Club]], who play at a [[Minor counties of English and Welsh cricket|Minor counties]] level.

==Notable Devonians==
{{Main|Notable people from Devon}}

<gallery widths="170px" heights="200px">
File:Agatha Christie.png|[[Agatha Christie]], best selling crime novelist
File:Chris Martin + Guitar, 2011 (1, cropped).jpg|[[Chris Martin]], lead singer of [[Coldplay]]
File:Roger Deakins Feb-2011 02 (cropped).jpg|[[Roger Deakins]], multi-award winning cinematographer
File:Manchester United v Aston Villa, 25 September 2021 (17) (cropped).jpg|[[Ollie Watkins]], plays football for [[England national football team|England]]
</gallery>

Devon is known for its [[mariner]]s, such as [[Sir Francis Drake]], [[Sir Humphrey Gilbert]], [[Sir Richard Grenville]], [[Sir Walter Raleigh]], [[Sir Francis Chichester]] and [[Sir William Robert Patrick Knox-Johnston]].<ref>{{cite news |title= Sailing legend crosses the line |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/devon/6623703.stm |work=BBC News|date=4 May 2007}}</ref> [[Henry Every]], described as the most notorious pirate of the late 17th century, was probably born in the village of [[Newton Ferrers]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Pirates of the Americas |url=https://archive.org/details/piratesamericasv00marl |url-access=limited |last=Marley |first=David F. |year=2010 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |location=Santa Barbara, CA |isbn=978-1-59884-201-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/piratesamericasv00marl/page/n609 589]}}</ref> [[John Oxenham]] (1536–1580) was a lieutenant of Drake but considered a pirate by the Spanish. [[Thomas Morton (colonist)|Thomas Morton]] (1576–1647) was an avid Elizabethan outdoorsman probably born in Devon who became an attorney for The Council For New England, and built the New England fur-trading-plantation called Ma-Re Mount or Merrymount around a West Country-style Maypole, much to the displeasure of Pilgrim and Puritan colonists. Morton wrote a 1637 book ''New English Canaan'' about his experiences, partly in verse, and may have thereby become America's first poet to write in English.<ref>''New English Canaan or New Canaan. Containing an abstract of New England, composed in three bookes. The first booke setting forth the originall of the natives, their manners and customes, together with their tractable nature and love towards the English. The second booke setting forth the naturall indowments of the country, and what staple commodities it yealdeth. The third booke setting forth, what people are planted there, their prosperity, what remarkable accidents have happened since the first planting of it, together with their tenents and practise of their church''. Written by Thomas Morton of Cliffords Inne gent, upon tenne yeares knowledge and experiment of the country. Amsterdam: Jacob Stam</ref> Another famous mariner and Devonian was [[Robert Falcon Scott]], the leader of the unfortunate [[Terra Nova Expedition]] to reach the geographical South Pole.<ref>H. G. R. King, 'Scott, Robert Falcon (1868–1912)', ''[[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, January 2011 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/35994 accessed 21 June 2011]</ref> 

The actor [[Matthew Goode]] was raised in Devon, and [[Bradley James]], also an actor, was born there. The singer [[Joss Stone]] was brought up in Devon and frontman [[Chris Martin]] from the British rock group [[Coldplay]] was born there. [[Matt Bellamy]], [[Dominic Howard]] and [[Chris Wolstenholme]] from the English group [[Muse (band)|Muse]] all grew up in Devon and formed the band there. Dave Hill of rock band [[Slade]] was born in [[Flete House]] which is in the South Hams district of Devon. Singer-songwriter [[Ben Howard]] grew up in Totnes, a small town in Devon. Another famous Devonian is the model and actress [[Rosie Huntington-Whiteley]], who was born in [[Plymouth]] and raised in [[Tavistock]]. The singer and songwriter [[Rebecca Newman]] was born and raised in Exmouth.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/8216-Rising-star-8217-returns-Exmouth-support/story-17157815-detail/story.html |title='Rising star' returns to Exmouth to support RNLI |date=23 October 2012 |access-date=13 November 2016}}{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> [[Roger Deakins]], called "the pre-eminent [[cinematographer]] of our time", was born and lives in Devon.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Cinematographer Roger Deakins Takes Visceral Approach To His Craft |url=https://variety.com/2015/film/features/cinematographer-roger-deakins-takes-visceral-approach-to-his-craft-1201593464/ |magazine=Variety |date=4 October 2017 |access-date=20 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171211164026/http://variety.com/2015/film/features/cinematographer-roger-deakins-takes-visceral-approach-to-his-craft-1201593464/ |archive-date=11 December 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Ollie Watkins]], professional [[association football|footballer]] was born in Devon.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.torbayweekly.co.uk/news/home/1551610/south-devon-s-star-footballer-ollie-watkins-fires-england-into-euro-24-final.html |title= South Devon's star footballer Ollie Watkins fires England into Euro 24 final |date=10 July 2024|website=Torbay Today |access-date=13 July 2024}}</ref> Similarly, footballer [[Trevor Francis]] was raised in Devon.<ref name="Telegraph obit">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2023/07/24/trevor-francis-birmingham-european-cup-nottingham-forest/ |title=Trevor Francis, Nottingham Forest and England striker who became Britain's first £1 million player – obituary |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |date=24 July 2023 |access-date=20 November 2023}}</ref> Swimmer [[Sharron Davies]]<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.plymouth.gov.uk/newsreleases?newsid=128760 |title=New centre to honour Plymouth Olympian Sharron Davies |publisher=Plymouth City Council |date=14 March 2007 |access-date=31 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070330201315/http://www.plymouth.gov.uk/newsreleases?newsid=128760 |archive-date=30 March 2007}}</ref> and diver [[Tom Daley]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/Olympic-hero-Tom-Daley-goes-school/story-11240535-detail/story.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120913014859/http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/Olympic-hero-Tom-Daley-goes-school/story-11240535-detail/story.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 September 2012 |title=tom daley olympic hero goes back to school, Eggbuckland Community College in Plymouth, Devon |publisher=This is Bristol |date=3 September 2008 |access-date=14 February 2012}}</ref> were born in Plymouth. The Olympic runner [[Jo Pavey]] was born in Honiton. [[Peter Cook]] the satirist, writer and comedian was born in Torquay, Devon. [[Leicester Tigers]] and [[British and Irish Lions]] Rugby player [[Julian White]] was born and raised in Devon and now farms a herd of pedigree South Devon beef cattle. The dog breeder [[John "Jack" Russell]] was also from Devon. [[Jane McGrath]], who married Australian cricketer [[Glenn McGrath]] was born in Paignton, her long battle with and subsequent death from breast cancer inspired the formation of the [[McGrath Foundation]], which is one of Australia's leading charities.

Devon has also been the home, inspiration or base for a number of notable writers, artists, [[entrepreneur]]s and politicians. The poet [[Samuel Taylor Coleridge]], the crime writers [[Agatha Christie]] and [[Bertram Fletcher Robinson]], the Irish writer [[William Trevor]], and the poet [[Ted Hughes]] each lived in Devon. The painter and founder of the [[Royal Academy]], [[Sir Joshua Reynolds]], was born in Devon. [[Chris Dawson (businessman)|Chris Dawson]], the billionaire owner of retailer [[The Range (retailer)|The Range]] was born in Devon, where his business retains its head office in [[Plymouth]]. Devon has also been represented in the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] by notable [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Members of Parliament]] (MPs) such as [[Nancy Astor]], [[Gwyneth Dunwoody]], [[Michael Foot]] and [[David Owen]] and the Prime Ministers [[Lord John Russell]] and [[Lord Palmerston]].

==See also==
{{div col|colwidth=25em}}
* [[:Category:Rivers of Devon]]
* [[Circular linhay]]
* [[Custos Rotulorum of Devon]] – Keepers of the Rolls
* [[Devon Sinfonia]]
* [[Duchy of Cornwall]]
* [[Healthcare in Devon]]
* [[List of High Sheriffs of Devon]]
* [[List of English and Welsh endowed schools (19th century)#Devon]]
* [[List of hills of Devon]]
* [[List of Lord Lieutenants of Devon]]
* [[List of monastic houses in Devon]]
* [[Devon (UK Parliament constituency)|List of MPs for Devon constituency]]
* [[List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Devon]]
* [[North Devon Coast]]
* [[Tamar Valley AONB]]
* [[West Country English]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite book |last1=Oliver |first1=George |author-link=George Oliver (historian) |title=Monasticon Dioecesis Exoniensis: being a collection of records and instruments illustrating the ancient conventual, collegiate, and eleemosynary foundations, in the Counties of Cornwall and Devon, with historical notices, and a supplement, comprising a list of the dedications of churches in the Diocese, an amended edition of the taxation of Pope Nicholas, and an abstract of the Chantry Rolls (with supplement and index) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_6U_AQAAMAAJ |date=1846–1889 |location=Exeter |publisher=P. A. Hannaford |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Pevsner |first1=Nikolaus |author-link=Nikolaus Pevsner |date=1952 |title=North Devon |series=Buildings of England |location=London |publisher=Penguin Books |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Pevsner |first1=Nikolaus |author-link=Nikolaus Pevsner |date=1952 |title=South Devon |series=Buildings of England |location=London |publisher=Penguin Books |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Stabb |first1=John |date=1908–1916 |title=Some Old Devon Churches: Their Rood Screens, Pulpits, Fonts, Etc. |location=London |publisher=Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent & Co. |language=en}} [https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101067698538&seq=1 Vol. I], [https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=njp.32101067698546&seq=1 Vol. II],  and [https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=nyp.33433065874566&seq=1 Vol. III].
* {{Cite book |last1=Stansfield-Cudworth |first1=R. E. |date=2009 |title=Political Elites in South-West England, 1450–1500: Politics, Governance, and the Wars of the Roses |location=[[Lewiston, New York|Lewiston]], New York |publisher=[[Edwin Mellen Press]] |isbn=978-0-77344-714-1 |language=en}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Stansfield-Cudworth |first=R.E. |year=2013 |title=The Duchy of Cornwall and the Wars of the Roses: Patronage, Politics, and Power, 1453–1502 |journal=Cornish Studies |series=2nd Series |volume=21 |pages=104–50 |doi=10.1386/corn.21.1.104_1 |doi-broken-date=11 July 2025 |language=en}}

==External links==
{{Commons and category}}
{{Wikivoyage|Devon}}
{{EB9 Poster|Devonshire}}
<!--
READ THIS BEFORE ADDING LINKS
* Commercial directories and accommodation guides are not appropriate
* Foreign language websites belong on the relevant non-English Wikipedias
-->
* [http://www.devon.gov.uk Devon County Council]
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/ BBC Devon] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090815141014/http://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/ |date=15 August 2009 }}
* [http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/genuki/DEV/ Genuki Devon] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030401173044/http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/genuki/DEV/ |date=1 April 2003 }} Historical, geographical and genealogical information
* [http://www.devonassoc.org.uk The Devonshire Association], a Devon-centric equivalent of the [[British Association]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140924042248/http://viewfinder.english-heritage.org.uk/search/results.aspx?index=0&mainQuery=&searchType=all&form=basic&theme=&county=DEVON&district=&placeName= Images of Devon] at the [[English Heritage Archive]]
* {{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7AFJ-wqrjY |title=Dartmoor Step Dancing and Broom Dance at South Tawton |date=September 30, 2025 |orig-date=1971 |publisher=
5PY Heritage}}

{{Adjacent communities
|title     = '''Neighbouring counties'''
|Centre    = Devon
|North     = ''[[Bristol Channel]]''
|Northeast = [[Somerset]]
|East      = [[Dorset]]
|Southeast = ''[[English Channel]]''
|South     = ''[[English Channel]]''
|Southwest = [[Cornwall]]<br />''[[English Channel]]''
|West      = [[Cornwall]]
|Northwest = ''[[Bristol Channel]]''
}}
{{Geology of England |state=expanded}}
{{SW England}}
{{England counties}}
{{Devon}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Devon| ]]
[[Category:Ceremonial counties of England]]
[[Category:Counties in South West England]]
[[Category:Counties of England established in antiquity]]
[[Category:Geological type localities]]
[[Category:Non-metropolitan counties]]
[[Category:West Country]]