Irish Counties - Louth

County Louth (Contae An Lú in Irish) is a county on the east coast of Ireland. The name is from the Irish, An Lú, meaning "least" - for so it is - the county is the smallest in Ireland. Known as the "wee county", County Louth covers an area of only 317 square miles. It runs northwards from the River Boyne to the dramatic scenery around Carlingford Lough. In north Louth, beside Dundalk Bay, lies the mountainous Cooley Peninsula. The capital of Louth is Dundalk.

Dundalk (Irish: Dún Dealgan) is a town in County Louth in the Republic of Ireland, close to the border with Northern Ireland. It takes its name from Dun Dealgan, Dalga's fort home closely associated with the famous mythical warrior Cúchulainn and was granted its charter in 1189. It is sited on the lowest bridging point of the Castletown River.

Around 3500 BC a group of people known as Neolithic people came to Ireland. One of the lasting features they left behind is the Proleek Dolmen at Ballymascanlon, on the northern side of Dundalk. The Celts arrived in Ireland around 500 BC having colonized most of Europe. The group that settled in North Louth were known as the Conaille Muirtheimhne and took their name from Conaill Carnagh, legendary chief of the Red Branch Knights of Ulster. Their land now forms upper and lower Dundalk. The poets in Celtic society were known as the fili and were responsible for mythological tales and legends. The most famous of these being the tales of The Red Branch Knights, The Táin Bó Cauilgne and Cuchullain.

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• Louth People
• Louth History
• Louth Travel

Writers associated with Co. Louth include:

• *Alioth, Gabrielle novelist & short story writer
• Connolly, Susan poet
• Duffy, Katherine poet
• Groarke, Vona poet
• O'Callaghan, Conor poet
• Somers, Dermot Short story writer, non-fiction writer & script-writer
• Woods, Joseph poet

Towns and Villages:
Ardee, Ballymascanlon, Blackrock, Carlingford, Castlebellingham, Clogherhead, Collon, Drogheda, Dromiskin, Dundalk, Dunleer, Greenore, Jenkinstown, Louth, Mansfieldtown, Omeath, Termonfeckin