County Dossier
Waterford
A south-coast county of estuary, mountain and seaborne history.
Waterford lies on the south coast where the Suir estuary, rich agricultural lowlands and the rising Comeragh Mountains come together.
At a glance
Waterford at a glance
A south-coast county of estuary, mountain and seaborne history.
- Viking and maritime inheritance
- County by the 13th century
- Suir estuary, Comeraghs and Copper Coast
- Area: 717 sq miles / 1,857 sq km
- Population: 113,795
- County Top: Knockmealdown (2,605ft / 794m)
County Geography
Waterford meets Kilkenny to the north, Tipperary to the north-west, Cork to the west, and Wexford across the estuary side to the east, while the Celtic Sea forms the county’s southern edge. The county is shaped by the Suir estuary, the Blackwater valley, the mountain barrier to the north-west, and the outer south-coast line.
Estuary, Blackwater valley, mountain rim, and south-coast frontage give Waterford a strong and readable county form.
Map Reference
View Waterford on the map
Waterford is the county. The map shows its boundary, places, and neighbouring counties.
The county.
The county boundary.
Nearby counties and places.
Places and routes
Waterford, Dungarvan, Lismore, Tramore, and Ardmore show the county from its estuarial core and inland valley to its southern and western coast.
Connections
The county’s routes have long centred on Waterford and the Suir crossing, followed the coast through Tramore, Dungarvan, and Ardmore, and run inland toward Lismore and the Blackwater side. Movement follows the same estuary, coast, valley, and mountain-rim pattern.
Names
- Waterford
- County Waterford
- County of Waterford
Port Láirge is the Irish form of Waterford. County Waterford is the formal historical style, the county name comes from the old Norse ram-fjord name of its harbour, and the older county background lies in the meeting of estuary settlement, maritime exchange, and inland Munster river country.
Waterford was a county by the thirteenth century, and its relationship between estuary, coast, valley, and mountain has kept the county’s identity distinct ever since. That south-coast and river-mouth geography still gives the historic county a clear shape.
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County Reference
Explore Waterford
Open the map to explore Waterford, or return to the county index to browse other counties.