Fife
§ This page gives an overview of the Fife local authority district, bringing together key facts, maps, and data to help you quickly understand the area. One of 361 district profiles on Baseview.
Overview ⁞ Fife lies between the Firth of Forth and Firth of Tay, known for its coastline, fishing villages, and the historic town of St Andrews, home to Scotland’s oldest university and the “Home of Golf.” Its largest town is Dunfermline, now a city.
The administrative boundary of Fife can be viewed on OpenStreetMap: District Boundary of Fife.
Key Facts about Fife
What region is Fife in? Fife is in Scotland, a statistical region and also a country in United Kingdom.
Is Fife a city? Yes, Fife is a city. Fife holds official city status as one of the 76 designated cities in the UK.
Who governs Fife? The local government for this district is: Fife Council (Scotland Council Area).
▶ Official website of Fife Council 🔗 fife.gov.uk
Which police force covers Fife? Policing in Fife is provided by Police Scotland 🔗 scotland.police.uk, which covers the whole of Scotland.
Fife in International Geographies
In the International Territorial Levels (ITLs) hierarchy, Fife is within an ITLs Level 3 area:
- (ITL 1) Scotland
- (ITL 2) ⇒ Eastern Scotland
- (ITL 3) ⇒⇒ Clackmannanshire and Fife
The International Territorial Levels are used by OECD member countries for statistical purposes to classify administrative areas. We have this listable page for easy browsing of ITL names and codes: International Territorial Levels.
Constituencies in Fife
A constituency is a specific geographical area that elects one Member of Parliament (MP) to represent them in the House of Commons. The United Kingdom is divided into 650 parliamentary constituencies, 57 of them are in Scotland. We have this list page for easy browsing of all UK parliamentary constituencies: List of Constituencies.
Wards in Fife
Fife is divided into 22 wards, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Buckhaven, Methil and Wemyss Villages
- Burntisland, Kinghorn and Western Kirkcaldy
- Cowdenbeath
- Cupar
- Dunfermline Central
- Dunfermline North
- Dunfermline South
- East Neuk and Landward
- Glenrothes Central and Thornton
- Glenrothes North, Leslie and Markinch
- Glenrothes West and Kinglassie
- Howe of Fife and Tay Coast
- Inverkeithing and Dalgety Bay
- Kirkcaldy Central
- Kirkcaldy East
- Kirkcaldy North
- Leven, Kennoway and Largo
- Lochgelly, Cardenden and Benarty
- Rosyth
- St Andrews
- Tay Bridgehead
- West Fife and Coastal Villages
In the UK, a ward is a subdivision of a local authority area, used mainly for electoral and statistical purposes. Defined by the ONS, wards represent the primary unit for local elections, each returning one or more councillors to the local council. Wards are also used as a key geography for presenting population and census data.
Built-up Areas in Fife
Fife covers 69 built-up areas, listed below in alphabetical order.
- Aberdour
- Anstruther
- Auchtermuchty
- Ballingry and Lochore *
- Balmullo
- Blairhall
- Bowershall
- Bowhill
- Buckhaven
- Burntisland
- Cairneyhill
- Cardenden
- Carnock
- Ceres
- Charlestown
- Coaltown of Balgonie
- Coaltown of Wemyss
- Cowdenbeath
- Crail
- Crossford (Fife)
- Crossgates (Fife)
- Culross
- Cupar
- Dalgety Bay
- Drumoig
- Dunfermline
- East Wemyss
- Elie
- Falkland
- Freuchie
- Gauldry
- Glenrothes
- Guardbridge
- High Valleyfield
- Inverkeithing
- Kelty *
- Kennoway
- Kincardine
- Kinghorn
- Kinglassie
- Kingseat (Fife)
- Kirkcaldy
- Ladybank
- Leslie
- Leuchars
- Leven (Fife)
- Limekilns
- Lochgelly
- Lower Largo
- Markinch
- Methil
- Newburgh (Fife)
- Newport-on-Tay
- North Queensferry
- Oakley and Comrie
- Pittenweem
- Rosyth
- Saline
- Springfield
- St Andrews
- St Monance
- Star
- Steelend
- Strathkinness
- Strathmiglo
- Tayport
- Thornton (Fife)
- Torryburn and Newmills
- Windygates
In the UK, a Built-up Area (BUA) is a continuous urban area of at least 20 hectares (0.2 km²), defined by the ONS as land where buildings are generally no more than 200 metres apart, such as towns, cities, or large villages. (Note: A BUA name marked with an asterisk (*) indicates that the area is situated partly in the district of Fife.)