Kildare

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Kildare (disambiguation).

Kildare
Cill Dara

Location

WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates:
53°09′25″N 6°54′33″W / 53.156859, -6.909027

Irish grid reference
N726124

Statistics

116 m (380 ft)

Population (2006)

7,538

Kildare Cathedral

Kildare (Cill Dara in modern Irish, originally derived from Cell Dara in Old Irish, meaning "Church of the Oak") is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. Its population of 7,538 (2006 Census^[1]) makes it the seventh largest town in Kildare and the 55th largest in the Republic of Ireland, with a growth rate of 32.4pc since the 2002 census. Although Kildare gives its name to the county, Naas is the county town. The town lies some 50 km west of Dublin, near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional centre in its own right, a commuter town for the capital.

1 History
2 Places of Interest
3 People
4 Sports Clubs
5 See also
6 External links
7 References

[edit] History

See also History of County Kildare

In pre-Christian times Kildare was the site of a shrine to the Celtic goddess Brigid. Following the introduction of Christianity in the 5th and 6th centuries it became the foundation of the Christian Saint Brigid who founded a unique monastery of monks and nuns on the site of the present cathedral.

[edit] Places of Interest

Kildare is home to the Irish National Stud, the Japanese Gardens and St. Fiachra's Garden. Much of the surrounding countryside in County Kildare is used for horse breeding. The Curragh racecourse is not far from Kildare town. The picturesque Woodstock Estate is located 15km southeast of Kildare.