"SHOULD SCOTLAND BE AN INDEPENDENT COUNTRY?"

Scotland will remain part of the United Kingdom -- along with England, Wales and Northern Ireland -- following a historic referendum vote. A majority of voters rejected the possibility of Scotland breaking away and becoming an independent nation.

A turnout of 86% is one of the highest in the democratic world for any such vote.

More than 4.2 million people registered to vote

1.6 million votes for Scottish independence;

THE MOST IMPORTANT CITIES THAT HAVE GONE TO VOTE

• Edinburgh voted to stay in the union with 123,927 for "Yes" and 194,628 "No" votes.
• Glasgow delivered a solid win for the independence camp with 194,779 votes for "Yes," and 169,347 for "No,"
• Dundee was the first big gain for the independence campaign, voting "Yes" with 53,620 votes for, 39,880 against.
• The oil-rich city of Aberdeen also strongly voted for the unionist camp.

EDIMBURGH

Edinburgh is the second largest Scottish city after Glasgow

The economy of Edinburgh is largely based around the service sector, with finance, business and legal services, tourism and retail, health as well as education and high tech research as main employers.

Edinburgh is the second largest financial centre (with a large banking and insurance sector) in the United Kingdom after the City of London and the fifth largest in Europe.

Tourism is another important mainstay of the economy of Edinburgh,

The city is one of Europe's major tourist destinations, attracting around 13 million visitors a year (with a growing tendency) and is the second most visited tourist destination in the United Kingdom, after London. The tourism sector is also based on annual festivals attracting record numbers of visitors as well as on business and conference tourism.

GLASGOW

Glasgow is famosi for its breweries and distilleries. People can even take a tour to taste the famous Scottish whisky or the genuine products in farmers' markets.

ABERDEEN
It is the third largest city in Scotland. The petroleum industry in Aberdeen began with the discovery of significant oil deposits in the North Sea during the mid-20th century. Aberdeen is often called the "Oil Capital of Europe".

Aberdeen is one of the most prosperous cities in Scotland owing to the variety and importance of its chief industries.

Traditionally Aberdeen was home to fishing, textile mills, ship building and paper but today they have been replaced with high technology developments in the electronics design and development industry, research in agriculture and fishing and of course the oil industry which has been largely responsible for Aberdeen's economic boom in the last three decades.

DUNDEE

The fourth largest city in Scotland is Dundee. Its economy is today based on biomedical and biotechnology sectors. In the past it was famous for its jute mills were the majority of the population was employed.

Voters in the referendum did not have to be British citizens; Commonwealth, Irish and EU citizens who live in Scotland and are registered to vote there can cast a ballot. However, Scots living outside Scotland do not have a say.

For the first time, the vote was extended to 16- and 17-year olds living in Scotland. Nearly 110,000 people younger than 18 have registered to vote.



Nearly 790,000 people applied for a postal vote -