Cobh, Ireland

Cobh

an Cóbh

Town

Coat of arms

Motto: Statio Fidissima Classi (Latin)

Cobh

Location in Ireland

Coordinates: 51°51′04″N 8°17′48″W / 51.851°N 8.2967°WCoordinates: 51°51′04″N 8°17′48″W / 51.851°N 8.2967°W

Dáil Éireann

Elevation

47 m (154 ft)

Population (2011)

12,347

Irish Grid Reference

W793666

Website

www.cobh.ie

Cobh (/ˈkoʊv/ KOHV, Irish: an Cóbh), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a tourist seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour and is home to Ireland's only dedicated cruise terminal. Tourism in the area draws on the maritime and emigration legacy of the town - including its association with the RMS Titanic.

Facing the town are Spike Island and Haulbowline Island, and on a high point in the town stands St Colman's Cathedral, one of the tallest buildings in Ireland and seat of the diocese of Cloyne.

The port, which has had several Irish-language names, was first called "Cove" ("The Cove of Cork") in 1750. It was renamed "Queenstown" in 1849 to commemorate a visit by Queen Victoria. This remained the town's name until 1920, when it was renamed Cobh by the new authorities of the Irish Free State. Cobh is a Gaelicisation of the English name Cove and it shares the same pronunciation but has no meaning in the Irish language.

According to legend, one of the first colonists of Ireland was Neimheidh, who landed in Cork Harbour over 1000 years BC. He and his followers were said to have been wiped out in a plague, but the Great Island was known in Irish as Oilean Ard Neimheadh because of its association with him. Later it became known as Crich Liathain because of the powerful Uí Liatháin kingdom who ruled in the area from Late Antiquity into the early 13th century. The island subsequently became known as Oilean Mor An Barra, (the Great Island of Barry & Barrymore) after the Barry family who inherited it.

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Wikipedia