County Meath (Irish: Contae na Mí) is a county in the Republic of Ireland, often informally called The Royal County. The county town is Navan, where the county hall and government is located, although Trim, the former county town, has historical significance, and remains a sitting place of the circuit court, along with Ireland's largest castle (Norman) and was the setting for an Anglo-Norman parliament. Meath is also home to Kells, with its round tower and monastic past, and Slane, known for its castle and annual rock concert and the Ledwidge Cottage Museum. map File links The following pages link to this file: County Meath Categories: GFDL images ... During late Gaelic and early historic times Ireland was divided into provinces to replace the earlier system of the tuatha. ... Statistics Area: 19,774. ... A county town is the capital of a county in the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... A number plate for a car registered in 2001 in County Dublin Index marks on Number plates in the Republic of Ireland issued since 1987 have the format YY-CC-SSSSSS where the components are: YY — a 2-digit year (e. ... Area is a physical quantity expressing the size of a part of a surface. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Irish Grid Reference N800567 Statistics Province: Leinster County: Elevation: 61 m (200 ft) Population (2006) 6,870  Trim Castle (de Lacys Castle) Trim (Irish: ) is the traditional county town of County Meath in Ireland, although the county town is now Navan. ... The courts system in the Republic of Ireland consists of the Supreme Court, the High Court and a number of lower courts. ... An old mill at Kells Folio 34r of the Book of Kells contains the Chi Rho monogram. ... The round tower at Glendalough, Ireland, is approximately thirty metres tall A round tower was primarily a bell tower, or belfry, as the Irish form of the name cloictheach clearly indicates, and as was proved by George Petrie as long ago as 1845 and never seriously challenged since. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ...

Meath (the "middle") was formed from the eastern part of the province of Midhe - see Kings of Mide - but now forms part of Leinster. Historically this province of Meath included all of the current county as well as all of Westmeath and parts of Cavan, Longford, Louth and Offaly, and possibly Dublin and Kildare. The High King of Ireland sat at Tara in Meath. The archaeological complex of Brú na Bóinne, including the 5,000-year-old Bru na Boinne complex, including the burial sites of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth, in the northeast of the county, is a UNESCO designated World Heritage Site. In medieval Ireland, the Kings of Mide were of the Clann Cholmáin, a branch of the Uí Néill. ... Statistics Area: 19,774. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Mullingar Code: WH Area: 1,764 km² Population (2006) 79,403 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Ulster County Town: Cavan Code: CN Area: 1,931 km² Population (2006) 63,961 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Longford Code: LD Area: 1,091 km² Population (2006) 34,361 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Dundalk Code: LH Area: 820 km² Population (2006) 110,894 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Tullamore Code: OY Area: 1,999 km² Population (2006) 70,604 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Dublin Code: D Area: 921 km² Population (2006) 1,186,821 County Dublin (Irish: Contae Bhaile Átha Cliath), or more correctly today the Dublin Region[1] (Réigiúin Átha Cliath), is the area that contains the city of Dublin, the capital and largest city... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Naas Code: KE Area: 1,693 km² Population (2006) 186,075 Website: www. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ... The Hill of Tara, located near the River Boyne, is today a mound in County Meath, Leinster, Ireland, on which the grass has veiled the rich heritage of the country. ... Aerial view of valley Brú na Bóinne (English: Palace on the Boyne) is an internationally important complex of Neolithic chamber tombs, standing stones, henges and other prehistoric enclosures located in a wide meander of the River Boyne in Ireland. ... Newgrange, which is located at , is one of the passage tombs of the Brú na Bóinne complex in County Meath, and the most famous of all Irish prehistoric sites. ... Knowth is the site of a neolithic passage grave, one of the ancient monuments of the Brú na Bóinne complex in the valley of the River Boyne in Ireland. ... Dowth (Irish: Dubhadh) is a Neolithic passage tomb which stands in the Boyne Valley, Co Meath, Ireland. ... UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established in 1945. ... A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a specific site (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that has been nominated and confirmed for inclusion on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 State...

The seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath, is located in Mullingar, County Westmeath - outside the county but within the historic diocese of Meath. The (Roman Catholic) Diocese of Meath was erected in A.D. 552. ... For the place in Canada, see Mullingar, Saskatchewan. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Mullingar Code: WH Area: 1,764 km² Population (2006) 79,403 Website: www. ...

Geography

• Rivers Boyne and Blackwater
• 16 km of coastline with the Irish Sea
• Bordered by Irish Sea and counties Cavan, Kildare, Louth, Monaghan, Offaly and Westmeath, as well as Fingal, one of the four parts of the historic County Dublin.

The Boyne is a river in Leinster, Ireland, which course is about 70 mi (112 km) long. ... Blackwater can refer to: Blackwater River, the name of numerous rivers. ... Relief map of the Irish Sea. ... Statistics Province: Ulster County Town: Cavan Code: CN Area: 1,931 km² Population (2006) 63,961 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Naas Code: KE Area: 1,693 km² Population (2006) 186,075 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Dundalk Code: LH Area: 820 km² Population (2006) 110,894 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Ulster County Town: Monaghan Code: MN Area: 1,294 km² Population (2006) 55,816 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Tullamore Code: OY Area: 1,999 km² Population (2006) 70,604 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Mullingar Code: WH Area: 1,764 km² Population (2006) 79,403 Website: www. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Swords Code: D (FL proposed) Area: 448. ...

Sights

• Castles at Trim, Slane (private), Dunsany (limited opening), Killeen (being converted to a hotel)
• Religious ruins at Trim (two), Bective, Slane (two), Dunsany, Skryne (Skreen)
• 2500-year-old mound structures of disputed origin at Telltown.

Telltown or Taillten is an outdated place name in County Meath, Ireland. ...

Economy

• Good land, with a strong farming tradition has been prominent historically, producing (cattle, dairying, potatoes, grain). Recently production volumes have decreased due to competition for labour from other sectors of the economy. Migrant labour from Eastern Europe has helped however. Meath is Ireland's leading county producer of potatoes, and a significant producer of beef, barley, milk, wheat, and root vegetables.
• Quarrying and Mining. Europe's largest underground Lead-Zinc mine, has operated since 1970, at a location to the West of Navan. Glacial deposits of gravel exist in a band stretching from the Offaly border at Edenderry, to the sea at Laytown. This is the basis of a long running quarrying tradition. A large cement plant near Duleek is situated in this territory.
• An increasing proportion of Meath residents commute into Dublin, with a resulting shift to a services based economy in the developing dormitory towns.
• Meat processing in Clonee, and Navan.
• Historically Navan was a manufacturing town,involved in the household goods sector. Navan was the centre of the Irish Furniture industry. Gradually this has declined as a source of employment, though it has acted as a source of inspiration for other ventures producing finished products for the construction industry.
• Navan was the centre of the Irish Carpet making industry, before this was lost to overseas competition
• Horse breeding and training
• Localized tourism in Trim, Kells, Tara and the Boyne Valley.
• In common with other counties with thriving agricultural and traditional local industrial sectors, like Westmeath, Wexford, Kilkenny and Monaghan, Meath has few multinational investment facilities. Drogheda, Blanchardstown, Swords, and Leixlip are neighbouring towns that provide employment in this regard, however.

cow and ox, see Cow (disambiguation) and Ox (disambiguation). ... Dairy farming is a class of agricultural enterprise, raising female cattle for long-term production of milk, which may be either processed on-site or transported to a dairy for processing and eventual retail sale. ... Binomial name Solanum tuberosum L. The potato (Solanum tuberosum) is a perennial plant of the Solanaceae, or nightshade, family, commonly grown for its starchy tuber. ... This article is about cereals in general. ... Duleek (Irish: ) is a village in County Meath, Ireland. ... Dublin city centre at night WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Statistics Province: Leinster County: Dáil Éireann: Dublin Central, Dublin North Central, Dublin North East, Dublin North West, Dublin South Central, Dublin South East European Parliament: Dublin Dialling Code: 01, +353 1 Postal District(s): D1-24, D6W Area: 114. ... Service economy can refer to one or both of two recent economic developments. ... This article or section should be merged with Bedroom community A dormitory town is generally a rural town where a large proportion of its population commute to nearby cities. ...

Population Change

The population in Co. Meath has been characterised since 1861 as a period of significant decline in population between 1861 and 1901 when the population was almost halved (110,373 to 67,497), stablisation from 1901 to 1971(67,497 to 71,729), an substantial increase between 1971 and 1981 to 95,419. This increase was mainly due to a baby-boom locally. The population continued to increase at a constant rate, before increasing at an explosive rate between 1996 and 2002, from 109,732 to 134,005. This is due primarily to economic factors, with the return of residents to live in the county, and also an echo effect of the 70s baby boom. The census of 2006 gives a statistic of 162,621 to include a dramatic increase in inward migration in the county, much of it from neighbouring Dublin, and Drogheda.

This population growth has seen divergent trends emerge in recent years, with mild depopulation in the north and west of the county being more than offset by large increases in the population of the eastern part of the county, principally due to inward migration to districts which have good proximity via road, to the business parks on the Western outskirts of Dublin. The section of the county that is south of the Boyne is considered part of the "Greater Dublin Area". The accession of Poland and Lithuania to the European Union in 2004, has resulted in a significant influx of workers from these countries to work in low wage sectors including agriculture, quarrying, construction and catering. Dublin city centre at night WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Statistics Province: Leinster County: Dáil Éireann: Dublin Central, Dublin North Central, Dublin North East, Dublin North West, Dublin South Central, Dublin South East European Parliament: Dublin Dialling Code: 01, +353 1 Postal District(s): D1-24, D6W Area: 114. ... Greater Dublin Area (GDA) is a loosely defined term which is used to describe the city of Dublin and the counties of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal, Kildare, Meath, South Dublin and Wicklow of the Republic of Ireland. ...

Population by census in Co. Meath since 1861: 1870 US Census for New York City A census is the process of obtaining information about every member of a population (not necessarily a human population). ...

Evolution of the population in Co. Meath from 1861 to 2002.

• 1861: 110,373
• 1871: 95,558
• 1881: 87,469
• 1891: 76,987
• 1901: 67,497
• 1911: 65,091
• 1926: 62,969
• 1936: 61,405
• 1946: 66,232
• 1961: 65,122
• 1971: 71,729
• 1981: 95,419
• 1991: 105,370
• 1996: 109,732
• 2002: 134,005
• 2006: 162,621

Image File history File links Population_of_County_Meath_(graph). ... Image File history File links Population_of_County_Meath_(graph). ...

Towns and villages

Towns

• Navan
• Ashbourne
• Trim
• Kells

WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Irish Grid Reference N800567 Statistics Province: Leinster County: Elevation: 61 m (200 ft) Population (2006) 6,870  Trim Castle (de Lacys Castle) Trim (Irish: ) is the traditional county town of County Meath in Ireland, although the county town is now Navan. ... An old mill at Kells Folio 34r of the Book of Kells contains the Chi Rho monogram. ...

Villages

• Athboy
• Ballivor, Bellewstown, Bettystown
• Clonard, Clonee
• Duleek, Dunboyne, Dunderry, Drumconrath, Dunshaughlin
• Enfield
• Gormanston
• Julianstown, Kildalkey, Kilmessan
• Laytown, Longwood
• Mornington, Moynalty
• Nobber
• Oldcastle
• Rathmolyon, Ratoath, Robinstown
• Slane, Skryne, Summerhill

Athboy is a small agricultural town in County Meath in the Republic of Ireland. ... Bellewstown is a village on the Hill of Crockafotha in County Meath in the Republic of Ireland, is beautifully situated in a rural setting with magnificent views of the Mountains of Mourne to the north and the Irish sea to the east. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Statistics Province: Leinster County: Population () Clonard (Irish: ) is a small village in County Meath, Ireland. ... Duleek (Irish: ) is a village in County Meath, Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Irish Grid Reference N965526 Statistics Province: Leinster County: Population (2006) 3,384  Dunshaughlin (Irish: ) [1] is a town in County Meath in Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... Gormanston (Irish: ) is a village in County Meath, Republic of Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Irish Grid Reference O162714 Statistics Province: Leinster County: Elevation: Sea level Population (2002)  - Town:  - Rural: 2,007 Laytown (Irish: ) is a village in County Meath, Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... Mornington is the name of many places in Australia. ... Moynalty is a small rural village in the north-west of County Meath, Ireland. ... Nobber (An Obair in Irish) is a village in north County Meath in the Republic of Ireland. ... Oldcastle (An Seanchaisleán an Fhásaigh in Irish) is a town in County Meath, Ireland. ... // Ratoath - Ráth Tó Ratoath (Ráth Tó in Irish) is a rapidly expanding town in south east County Meath, Ireland. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ... Skryne (Irish: Scrín Cholm Cille) is a small village with a population of 1400 (Census 2002), situated on and around a hill between the N2 and N3 national primary roads in County Meath, Ireland. ...

Politics

Fianna Fáil has held three seats out of five in the Meath constituency since 1987. Fine Gael has won the other two seats at each in four of the five general elections in that period, with the exception of 1992, when it lost a seat to Labour (which was regained in 1997). Due to the increase in the county's population Meath will return six deputies to the Dáil from the next general election (due 2007), and has been divided into two constituencies: Meath East and Meath West (which incorporates some parts of County Westmeath). Fianna Fáil - The Republican Party (Irish: ), commonly referred to as Fianna Fáil (IPA ; traditionally translated by the party into English as Soldiers of Destiny, though the actual meaning is Soldiers [Fianna] of Ireland[1]), is currently the largest political party in Ireland with 55,000 members. ... Fine Gael (IPA: , though often anglicised to ) (approximate English translation: Family or Tribe of the Irish) and officially, Fine Gael - The United Ireland Party, is the second largest political party in the Republic of Ireland, presently forming the largest opposition party in the Dail (Irish Parliament), and claims a membership... County Westmeath (Irish: An Iarmhí) is a county situated in the Irish Midlands, in the western part of the province of Leinster. ...

Currently (January 2006) the five Dáil deputies (TD's) for the Meath constitency are:

• Johnny Brady (Fianna Fáil),
• Noel Dempsey (Fianna Fáil),
• Damien English (Fine Gael),
• Shane McEntee (Fine Gael),
• Mary Wallace (Fianna Fáil).

McEntee won a by-election in 2005 caused by the resignation of the former Taoiseach, John Bruton (Fine Gael) on his appointment as the European Union Ambassador to the USA. Johnny Brady (born January 1948) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician. ... Noel Dempsey (Irish: ; born 6 January 1953) is a senior Irish Fianna Fáil politician. ... Damien English (born February 21, 1978) is an Irish Fine Gael politician and Teachta Dála (TD) for the constituency of Meath. ... Shane McEntee (born 1957) is an Irish Fine Gael politician. ... Mary Wallace (born 13 June 1959) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician. ... The Taoiseach (IPA: or ) — plural: Taoisigh ( or ), also referred to as An Taoiseach[1], is the head of government of Ireland or prime minister. ... John Gerard Bruton (Irish: ; born 18 May 1947) was the ninth Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland. ...

Fianna Fáil controlled Meath County Council from 1985 until 1991 and again from 1999 to 2004. The current composition of Meath County Council (elected 2004) is as follows:

• Fianna Fáil 12,
• Fine Gael 9,
• Sinn Féin 2,
• Labour 1,
• Green Party 1,
• Independents 4.

For pre-Arthur Griffith use of the political name, see Sinn Féin (19th century). ... The Labour Party (Irish: Páirtí an Lucht Oibre) is a social democratic political party in the Republic of Ireland. ... The Green Party (Irish: ) is a green political party in Ireland. ...

Infrastructure

Road

• The main road through Meath is the Dublin-Derry road, the N3, the supplementing of parts of which with a tolled motorway, the M3, has caused major controversy.

• The N4 road serving the South fringe of the county has been replaced, by the tolled M4 motorway, which is mostly now in County Kildare.

• The N1 road served East Meath, but is now replaced by the M1 motorway.

• The N2 road goes through the second largest town in the County, Ashbourne. This road will not be replaced by a motorway, as it is located in proximity to the new M1 motorway.

The N3 road is a National Primary Route in the Republic of Ireland, running between Dublin, Cavan Town and the border with County Fermanagh. ... Statistics Province: Leinster County Town: Naas Code: KE Area: 1,693 km² Population (2006) 186,075 Website: www. ...

Rail

• There is a frequent commuter train service to the coastal villages of East Meath, serving Laytown.

• Navan is currently served by a spur railway line from the Dublin-Belfast main line, for freight traffic, and occasional passenger services only, connecting at Drogheda. The direct rail line to Dublin directly remains abandoned, though its path is reasonably intact, and considerable thought is (2004-2007) going into the possibility of restoring it.

• There is a commuter train service from Enfield. This gives the village of Enfield the distinction of having a regular train service, though most towns in the county do not have this facility.

WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Irish Grid Reference O088754 Statistics Province: Leinster County: Elevation: 1 m Population (2006)  - Proper  - Environs    28,973[1]  6,117[1] Website: www. ...

Source

• Meath County Council
• CSO Website
• County Meath History Geography map guide