Ballymoney

Ballymoney, a market-town of County Antrim, 53 miles NNW. of Belfast by rail. Pop. 2955.

Ballymote

Ballymote, a town in the county, and 14 miles S. of the town of Sligo. Pop. 997.

Ballynahinch

Ballynahinch, a market-town of County Down, 12 1/2 miles S. of Antrim. Pop. 1542.

Ballyragget

Ballyragget, a town in the county, and 10 miles NW. of the town of Kilkenny. Pop, 518.

Ballyshannon

Ballyshannon, a seaport of County Donegal, at the mouth of the river Erne, on a small inlet running off from Donegal Bay, 157 miles NW. of Dublin by rail. It is celebrated for its salmon-fishing. Pop. 2359.

Ballywalter

Ballywalter, a fishing-village of County Down, 10 miles SE. of Newtonards.

Balme

Balme, Col de, a mountain pass (7200 feet) between Mont Blanc and the Dent du Midi, taking over the route from Martigny to Chamonix.

Balmerino

Balmer'ino, a small village of Fife, on the Firth of Tay, 3 1/2 miles SW. of Dundee by water. Near it are scanty remains of a Cistercian abbey (1227). See a work by J. Campbell (1867).

Balmoral

Balmo'ral, a royal residence in Braemar, Aberdeenshire, 9 miles W. of Ballater, and 52 1/2 of Aberdeen. Standing 926 feet above sea-level on a natural platform that slopes gently clown from the base of Craig-gowan (1437 feet) to the Dee, it commands a magnificent prospect on every side. The estate was acquired by Prince Albert in 1848-52; and the castle rebuilt (1853-55) at a cost of £100,000 in the Scottish Baronial style of architecture.

Balqnhidder

Balqnhidder (Bal-whidd'er), a Perthshire parish, 28 miles NW. of Stirling, with Rob Roy's grave.

Balrampur

Balrampur, a town of Oudh, India, near the frontier of Nepaul. Pop. 15,000.

Balta

Balta, a town on the Kodema, an affluent of the Bug, in the government of Podolia, Russian Poland. Pop. 24,440.

Baltic Provinces

Baltic Provinces, the five Russian governments bordering on the Baltic - viz. Courland, Livonia, Esthonia, Petersburg, and Finland; or in a restricted sense often the first three. The Baltic provinces once belonged to Sweden, except Courland, which was a dependency of Poland. They came into the possession of Russia partly in the beginning of the 18th century, through the conquests of Peter the Great, partly under Alexander in 1809. No pains have been spared to Russianise them, and since 1876-77 they have lost their remaining privileges, and been thoroughly incorporated in the Russian empire. The inhabitants are mainly Esths and Letts, with many Germans.

Baltinglass

Baltinglass, a Wicklow market-town, on the Slaney, 10 miles E. of Mageney. Pop. 1007.

Baltistan

Baltistan, or Little Tibet, an alpine region of Kashmir, through which the Upper Indus flows. It contains Mount Godwin-Austen, 28,250 feet high, next to Everest the highest on the globe.

Baltjik

Baltjik', a Bulgarian seaport, on the Black Sea, 20 miles NE. of Varna. Near it is ruined Tomi, whither Ovid was exiled. Pop. 4000.

Baluchistan

Baluchistan. See Beluchistan.