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Throughout the world, Shire (Shire
, Sir
, 希雷
) is quite a common gender-neutral first name. The forename Shire is characteristic of Ethiopia, where it is quite a rare gender-neutral name, Somalia, where it is quite a rare masculine name, and Egypt, where it is a rare largely female, but infrequently masculine name. Not in comparison with a country's population, it is commonest in Ethiopia, China, and Egypt. More frequently, Shire is the last name as well as the forename.
Shire is also a prevalent name for the fictitious and mythical characters: Sir Ector , the fictional character from Disney's "The Sword in the Stone"; Sir Kay , the fictional character from Disney's The Sword in the Stone; Sir Hiss , the character from Disney's Robin Hood; Sir John Falstaff , the operatic character in the opera Falstaff by Giuseppe Verdi; a fat knight and Sir Handel , character in The Railway Series, and in many other works.