County Dublin

I

Introduction

County Dublin, county in Leinster province, eastern Republic of Ireland, bounded to the east by the Irish Sea, to the south by Wicklow, and to the west by Kildare and Meath. With a land area of 922 sq km (356 sq mi), Dublin is the third smallest county in Ireland; it is also the most densely populated—the county is home to one-third of the country's population.

II

Land and Resources

The terrain is generally flat, except in the extreme southern portion, which contains the northern extremities of the Wicklow Mountains. The county coastline, about 113 km (70 mi) long, is indented by a number of creeks and bays, notably Dublin Bay, formed by the Howth Peninsula on the north, which receives the waters of the River Liffey. Several islands, including Lambay and Ireland's Eye, are attached to the county for administrative purposes.

III

Population and Administration

Dublin city is the capital of the Republic of Ireland; among the other principal towns are Balbriggan, Dún Laoghaire, Lucan, Skerries, and Swords. The county has a population of 1,024,400 (1991 estimate).

The county is administered by the Dublin Corporation (the County Borough authority), and there are county councils at Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal, and South Dublin. There is a town council (formerly urban district council) at Balbriggan. Ireland's judiciary is based at the Four Courts building on the River Liffey.

IV

Education and Culture

Dublin is home to four major higher education institutions, as well as a number of colleges that offer specialized training in art and design, medicine, theology, music, and law. University College Dublin (originally founded in 1851 as the Catholic University of Ireland) is part of the National University of Ireland (NUI). The University of Dublin (also known as Trinity College) was founded in 1591 by Elizabeth I and is the oldest university in Ireland. Dublin City University, located in the northern suburbs of Dublin, was opened in 1980 as a national institute for higher education and was awarded university status in 1989. Dublin Institute of Technology offers higher education courses in a number of disciplines related to science and technology. The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and the National College of Art and Design, both constituent colleges of the NUI, are also based in the city.

Among Dublin’s excellent libraries are the library of the University of Dublin (home to the famous Book of Kells illuminated manuscript dating from c. AD 800), the Royal Dublin Society Library, the National Library, the Chester Beatty Library, and Marsh's Library (which is the oldest public library in the country).

Dublin has a strong literary and cultural heritage and many renowned writers, poets, and dramatists are associated with the area. These include Jonathan Swift, Oliver Goldsmith, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Thomas Moore, Bram Stoker, James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, Sean O'Casey, John Millington Synge, George Bernard Shaw, William Butler Yeats, Samuel Beckett, and Seamus Heaney (the last four of whom have been awarded Nobel Prizes for Literature). Composers John Field and Charles Villiers Stanford, painters Francis Bacon and Sir Martin Archer Shee, film director Jim Sheridan, and actor Gabriel Byrne also have connections with the county.