Ballymena

Coordinates: 54°52′N 6°17′W / 54.86°N 6.28°W / 54.86; -6.28

Ballymena /ˌbæliˈmiːnə/ (from Irish: an Baile Meánach, meaning "the middle townland",Irish pronunciation: [ən̪ˠ ˈbˠalʲə ˈmˠaːn̪ˠəx]) is a large town in County Antrim, and the eighth largest in Northern Ireland. It is part of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council. It had a population of 29,467 people in the 2011 Census.

The town is built on land given to the Adair family by King Charles I in 1626, on the basis that the town hold two annual fairs and a free Saturday market in perpetuity. As of 2012, the Saturday market still runs.

Ballymena is the hometown of notable actor Liam Neeson, who was awarded "Freedom of the Town" in 2013. It is a popular shopping hub within Northern Ireland and is home to Ballymena United F.C.

Ballymena incorporates an area of 632 km² and is home to large villages such as Galgorm, Ahoghill and Broughshane.

The town used to host Ireland’s largest one-day agricultural show at the Ballymena Showgrounds. The town center has many historic buildings. The Town Hall was built in 1924 on the site of the old Market House, and was refurbished in 2007 at a cost of roughly £20 million.

Without You Near

Without You Near is Markus Schulz's debut artist album and was released in 2005.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Markus Schulz (except "Without You Near" co-written with Gabriel & Dresden featuring Departure. 

References

Ballymena (borough)

Ballymena is a local government district with borough status in Northern Ireland. It is one of twenty-six districts created on 1 October 1973 and covers the town of Ballymena and the surrounding area which includes small towns including Broughshane, Cullybackey, Galgorm, Ahoghill and Portglenone. The borough has an area of 200 square miles (520 km²) and a population of 64,044 according to the 2011 census. The borough has a central location within Northern Ireland and is served by the M2 motorway and with a station on the Belfast-Derry/Londonderry railway line. Belfast International Airport itself is only 18 miles (29 km) away and the Belfast City Airport is 30 miles (48 km) from Ballymena. It is also accessible to the seaports of Larne and Belfast, 20 and 27 miles (43 km) away respectively.

Borough council

The present borough of Ballymena was created in 1973 from the merging of the former municipal borough of Ballymena with most of the surrounding Ballymena Rural District. The new council inherited the 1937 charter of incorporation of the municipal borough, continuing the borough status and mayoralty.