There are seven “original” kingdoms in Game of Thrones lore, but by the time of the show’s main timeline, Westeros is actually divided into nine administrative regions that still keep the old nickname “the Seven Kingdoms.”

How Many Kingdoms in Game of Thrones?

The Original Seven Kingdoms

Historically, “the Seven Kingdoms” refers to the seven independent realms that existed in Westeros before Aegon the Conqueror united them under one crown.

Those seven are:

  1. The North – ruled by House Stark.
  1. The Vale – ruled by House Arryn.
  1. The Iron Islands – ruled by House Greyjoy.
  1. The Westerlands – ruled by House Lannister.
  1. The Reach – ruled by House Tyrell.
  1. The Stormlands – ruled by House Baratheon.
  1. Dorne – ruled by House Martell.

These are what the phrase “Seven Kingdoms” originally meant, even though the Iron Islands and Riverlands were at one point a combined realm under House Hoare in the deeper history.

Why People Say Seven but There Are Nine

By the time of Game of Thrones , the political map has shifted, and the realm under the Iron Throne is usually described as nine regions, even though everyone still calls it the “Seven Kingdoms” out of tradition.

The nine regions are:

  • The North – House Stark.
  • The Vale – House Arryn.
  • The Iron Islands – House Greyjoy.
  • The Riverlands – House Tully.
  • The Westerlands – House Lannister.
  • The Reach – House Tyrell.
  • The Stormlands – House Baratheon.
  • Dorne – House Martell.
  • The Crownlands – the area around King’s Landing, directly under the king’s authority.

So in simple terms:

  • Lore phrase: “Seven Kingdoms” (old name)
  • Political reality in the show era: Nine regions under the Iron Throne.

Quick Mini-Sections

1. Simple Answer for Fans

If you’re just chatting with friends or on a forum:

  • Historically: Seven kingdoms.
  • In practice during the show: Nine regions , but they still use the old name.

“It’s called the Seven Kingdoms because of the old seven independent realms, even though more territories were added later.”

2. Forum/Reddit Style Explanation

Fans often break it down like this:

  • The Riverlands were once part of the same realm as the Iron Islands under the Hoares, so they didn’t count as a separate kingdom in the original seven.
  • Later, the Targaryens rewarded loyal houses: the Riverlands went to House Tully, the Iron Islands to House Greyjoy, effectively creating an extra distinct region.
  • Aegon then carved out the Crownlands (around King’s Landing) as its own royal-held territory, which is how you end up with nine.

Fans love pointing out this “7 vs 9” detail as a classic bit of Westeros trivia.

3. Trending / Ongoing Discussion Angle

Even years after the show ended and with House of the Dragon expanding the lore, discussions about “how many kingdoms there really are” still pop up in fan spaces, especially when people map out the world or compare the show to the books.

People also debate:

  • Whether “kingdoms” should mean only the original sovereign realms.
  • Or whether we should update the language and call them nine realms or regions instead.

Quick HTML Table of the Seven vs Nine

Here’s a compact view in HTML, as requested:

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Era / Term</th>
      <th>Count</th>
      <th>Included Regions</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Original "Seven Kingdoms"</td>
      <td>7</td>
      <td>North, Vale, Iron Islands, Westerlands, Reach, Stormlands, Dorne</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Show-era political regions</td>
      <td>9</td>
      <td>North, Vale, Iron Islands, Riverlands, Westerlands, Reach, Stormlands, Dorne, Crownlands</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

TL;DR

There are seven original kingdoms in name and history, but by the time of Game of Thrones , the realm usually called the “Seven Kingdoms” is split into nine regions under the Iron Throne.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.