Geography of ireland

Ireland is also called the Emerald Isle because of its green landscape - " Emerald Island"

Ireland is an island in the Atlantic Ocean in northwestern Europe . The ocean formed the rough coastline, as well as many islands, peninsulas and bays . The central plains enclosed by mountains are a special feature of Irish geography .

The island of Ireland (total area 84,079 km²) is politically divided into the Republic of Ireland and British Northern Ireland . The Irish Sea and the Northern Channel separate Ireland from Great Britain , the Celtic Sea lies between Ireland and mainland Europe.

physical geography

Geological formations

Slieve League in Donegal is a typical Irish rock formation

The oldest rock formation in Ireland is about 1.7 billion years old and can be found on Inishtrahull Island on the coast of County Donegal . In other parts of Donegal, scientists discovered boulders that tell of the last ice age . However, due to subsequent geological faults, it is impossible to clearly assign these rock layers.

About 600 million years ago, at the end of the Precambrian , the Irish landmass was divided into two parts. One half lay in the eastern part of the primeval ocean Iapetus , the other in its western half. At the time, both parts were at roughly the same latitude as today's South Africa. Based on fossil finds in Bray , we know that the later island must have been below sea level at this time .

Over the next 50 million years, the two halves drifted towards each other again until they finally reunited about 440 million years ago. Again, this has been confirmed by fossil fauna discovered in County Louth . The mountains of northwest Ireland and the granite from Donegal and Wicklow were a result of this reunification.

The Irish landmass was now above sea level near the equator. From this period, fossilized trees in Kiltorcan, County Kilkenny , fossilized freshwater mussels on Valentia Island, and the footprints of a four-legged amphibian in slate have been preserved. The Old Red Sandstone rock formation also dates from this period.

About 400 million and 300 million years ago, north-western Europe - including Ireland - sank into a warm, calcium-rich ocean. Magnificent coral reefs formed the limestone that today still makes up about 65 percent of Ireland's stone mantle. As the water receded, tropical forests and swamps formed. In the carbon , these turned into coal, which, however, largely fell victim to erosion . During this time Ireland continued to move north. The pressure created in this way formed the chain of hills, which today extend from the northeast to the southwest.

Karst landscape in Burren

About 250 million years ago Ireland was at the height of today's North Africa and had a desert climate. At that time, large parts of the coal and sandstone were eroding . The result was today's karst landscape in Burren in County Clare .

A little later, the organic deposits formed, which today represent important pillars of the Irish economy as natural gas and oil . 150 million years ago the island sank again in the ocean, so that extensive limestone deposits could form. Traces of it can still be found under basalt rock in Northern Ireland .

A period of volcanic activity began 65 million years ago . The Morne Mountains and other mountain ranges are the result of this era. Favorable climatic conditions gave rise to lush vegetation that still exists today, unused in County Antrim , as lignite . However, the warm climate also caused heavy rains, which further accelerated erosion.

Ireland was close to where it is today 25 million years ago. As a result of erosion processes, a thick layer of earth had already developed that covered most of the stone mantle. Layers of clay were created where the water could not drain away. As the climate began to cool, soil formation slowed and the flora and fauna began to develop as the first human settlers were supposed to find. The landscape that exists today was formed about 3 million years ago.

For about 1.7 million years, the earth has been exposed to alternating cold and warm periods. The earliest evidence of Ireland is from the Ballylinian warm period , which began around 500,000 years ago. However, the ice ages left the strongest impression .

Most obvious are the glacial valleys that can still be admired today , such as the one in Glendalough , glacial lakes, Kare , Drumlins and Oser (Irish: eiscir ). The most impressive Os is in Esker Riada. It divides the island into a north and a south part and was once used as an expressway.

Rock and soil formations

To the Cliffs of Moher near Doolin in County Clare can be layers of siltstone , shale and sandstone admire

Strata of rock on the Cliffs of Moher

The vast central plains of Ireland are made up of limestone covered by layers of glacial material, clay and sand, as well as lakes and moorlands . The largest rain bog is the Bog of Allen . The coastal mountains differ greatly in terms of their geological structure. To the south, the mountains are made of old red sandstone with limestone river beds. In Galway , County Mayo , Donegal, County Down , and Wicklow the mountains are made of granite , while the plateau in the north-east of the country is made of basalt . The most notable basalt formation is Giant's Causeway in County Antrim.

In the north and west of Ireland, water that could not run off formed peat and gley landscapes . In contrast, the soil in the south and east consists of brown and gray podsol . This also reflects the distribution of rainfalls on the island, as most of the rain falls in the northwest.

An unusual landscape is in County Clare in the north: The Burren . This karst area consists of weathered limestone cliffs that are barely covered by the earth. There are several karst funnels into which surface water penetrates, creating an extensive cave system.

Mountain ranges

Map with the mountains, lakes, rivers and other geological features of Ireland ( larger version )

rivers and lakes

Inlets

Starting in the west, in County Donegal , Lough Swilly divides the Malin Peninsula. Lough Foyle, on the other hand, is one of the largest estuaries, lying between County Donegal and County Londonderry . Next you can still find the Belfast Lough between the County Antrim and County Down . In County Down there is Strangford Lough , which separates the Arbs from Ireland, further along the coast you get to Carlingford Lough between Down and Louth. The next major inlet is Dublin Bay .

The east coast is mostly uniform, only Wexford Harbor , the mouth of the Slaney is an exception. On the southern coast lies Waterford Harbor , the mouth of the Suir , into which the other two of the three sisters , Nore and Barrow, flow. The next largest inlet is Cork Harbor , the mouth of the Lee, in which Great Island lies.

Dunmanus Bay , Bantry Bay , the mouth of the Kenmare and Dingle Bay are inlets and bays of the peninsulas in County Kerry and County Cork .

Clew Bay is on the coast of County Mayo , south of Achill , while Blacksod Bay is to the north of the island. Killala Bay is north of Mayo. Donegal Bay is a major estuary between Donegal and Sligo counties.

Headlands

Malin Head in County Donegal is the northernmost point of the Irish island, while Mizen Head is one of the southernmost points, hence the expression "Malin head to Mizen head" comes from when one means something concerning the whole island. The real southernmost point of the main island is Brow Head about 3 km east of Mizen Head. Fastnet Rock is even further south . Carnsore Point in County Wexford is considered the most southeastern point . Burr Point in Northern Ireland is the most easterly point on the island of Ireland, Dunmore Head on the Dingle Peninsula the most westerly.

Islands and peninsulas

The Dingle Peninsula, photographed on Banna Beach

Achill Island in County Mayo in the northwest is the largest of Ireland's islands. The island is inhabited and connected to the main island by a bridge. The next largest are the Aran Islands off the coast of County Galway , which are Gaeltachts , regions where Irish Gaelic is still predominant. Valentia Island off the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry is also one of the larger islands. It is sparsely populated and connected to the main island by a bridge. Omey Island, off the coast of Connemara in County Galway, is a smaller tidal island . The Cooley Peninsula on the Irish Sea is one of the few peninsulas of the Republic of Ireland in the east.

Some of the most famous peninsulas are in County Kerry: the Dingle Peninsula , the aforementioned Iveragh, and the Beara . The Ards in County Down is one of the larger peninsulas outside of Kerry. On Inishowen in County Donegal are the northernmost point of Malin Head of the main island and important cities like Buncrana on Lough Swilly , Carndonagh and Moville on Lough Foyle .

Ireland's most northerly island is Inishtrahull Island , although Ireland claims Rockall , even further north , which Great Britain, Denmark (as part of the Faroe Islands ) and Iceland also claim.

climate

The climate of Ireland is temperate , although it is considerably warmer than other regions of the same latitude due to the North Atlantic Current . The prevailing wind usually blows from southwest to northeast. Rain is therefore particularly characteristic of the western Irish climate, on Valentia Island on the west coast twice as much rain falls annually as in Dublin (1400 mm compared to 762 mm). About 60% of the annual rainfall falls between August and January.

With an average of five to seven hours of sunshine, May and June are the sunniest months. January and February are the two coldest with an average temperature of 4 to 7 ° C, July and August are the two warmest months of the year with 14 to 16 ° C.

Although extreme weather conditions are relatively rare compared to mainland Europe, they do occur. Atlantic low pressure areas repeatedly lead to storms with wind speeds of up to 160 km / h in December, January and February; Sudden thunderstorms occur during the summer months, especially in July and August, especially, but not exclusively, inland and western Ireland.

Climate data from the weather station at Dublin Airport, from 1961 to 1990

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Max. Temperature ( ° C )	7.6	7.5	9.5	11.4	14.2	17.2	18.9	18.6	16.6	13.7	9.8	8.4	O	12.8
Min. Temperature (° C)	2.5	2.5	3.1	4.4	6.8	9.6	11.4	11.1	9.6	7.6	4.2	3.4	O	6.4

Precipitation ( mm )	69.4	50.4	53.8	50.7	55.1	56.0	49.9	70.5	66.7	69.7	64.7	75.6	Σ	732.5

Hours of sunshine ( h / d )	1.8	2.5	3.6	5.2	6.1	6.0	5.4	5.1	4.3	3.1	2.4	1.7	O	3.9

T
e
m
p
e
r
a
t
u
r

7.6

2.5

7.5

2.5

9.5

3.1

11.4

4.4

14.2

6.8

17.2

9.6

18.9

11.4

18.6

11.1

16.6

9.6

13.7

7.6

9.8

4.2

8.4

3.4

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

N i e d e r s c h l a g	69.4	50.4	53.8	50.7	55.1	56.0	49.9	70.5	66.7	69.7	64.7	75.6
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec

Source: missing

Human geography

Ireland was formerly made up the four provinces of Connacht , Leinster , Munster and Ulster , resulting in 32 counties (counties) divided up. The provinces are no longer important for the administration of the state, but are present in the consciousness of the population and are still relevant, for example in sports. The counties still form the framework of the administrative division in the Republic of Ireland . Six of the nine historical counties of the Province of Ulsters belong to Northern Ireland and thus to the United Kingdom , the remaining 26 to the Republic of Ireland (see map).

Map of Ireland with numbered counties. Republic of Ireland in green and Northern Ireland in pink.

Republic of Ireland

Northern Ireland

During a reform in 2014, some local administrations were merged. Since then, 23 counties in the Republic of Ireland have been administered, the other three are administered by more than one, adding up to 31 local governments. Dublin , Cork , and Galway have their own independent City Councils and are administered separately from the counties of the same name. The remainder of County Dublin is divided into Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown , Fingal and South Dublin .

The boundaries of the constituencies largely follow the boundaries of the counties.

In Northern Ireland, as part of a reform in 1973, the six traditionally existing and the two county boroughs ( Belfast and Derry ) were replaced by 26 “Districts”. Since then, the old boundaries have only applied to the ceremonial counties . On April 1, 2015, the number of districts was reduced to eleven.

The population of the island of Ireland of around 5.6 million people is largely concentrated on the east coast, specifically Dublin, Belfast and the surrounding area. In Northern Ireland, 1,710,300 people live in an area of 13,843 km² (as of 2004). There is only half as much population density in the 70,280 km² Republic of Ireland. 4,234,925 people live there (as of April 2006)

Natural treasures

Moors

Ireland has around 12,000 km² of marshland , largely consisting of overhead bogs and raised bogs . The overhead bogs developed especially where the farmers of the Neolithic fell trees and thus unwantedly created ideal living conditions for plants such as common heather and rushes . Due to the humid climate of Ireland and the increasing acidification, thick layers of peat grew from the remains of these plants .

Raised moors are particularly common in the Shannon basin. They were formed at the end of the last ice age when the valleys there filled with water.

Since the 17th century, the peat has been cut as heating material for domestic use. This was compounded when peat mining became commercialized. Machines for cutting peat were developed in the 1940s. The most famous company from this period is the semi-public Bord na Móna . In addition to its use as heating material in households, the peat was and is still used in industry, especially in electricity generation.

In recent times the increasing destruction of the moors has attracted more and more criticism. The mining mainly affects the raised bogs, as this peat has a higher calorific value. Precautions are now being taken in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland to maintain these stocks.

Natural resources

The search for natural gas deposits off the Irish coast began in 1970. The first major field discovered was the "Kinsale Gas Field" (1971), later the "Ballycotton Gas Field" (1989) and the "Corrib Gas Field" (1996) were discovered. smaller natural gas deposits. Development of the Corrib Field is ongoing as it is still not certain whether refining will take place on land or still at sea. The gas is pumped ashore and used there both in households and in industry. The Helvick Oil Field, with an estimated capacity of five million barrels of oil , was only recently discovered.

Ireland is also Europe's largest producer of zinc , with three zinc and lead mines in Navan , Galmoy and Lisheen . Other mineral resources are gold , silver , gypsum , talc , calcite , dolomite , slate , limestone , brick, sand and gravel .

natural gas

literature

Frank Mitchell, Michael Ryan: Reading the Irish landscape . 1998, ISBN 1-86059-055-1
JB Whittow: Geography and Scenery in Ireland . Penguin Books 1974

Web links

Commons : Ireland - Éire - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

Irish Foreign Office
Ireland - CIA World Factbook
Ireland's moors
OSI FAQ - Lists of the longest, highest and other statistics

cards

irelandstory.com

Individual evidence

↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original dated March 2, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2
↑ http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2014/act/1/section/10/enacted/en/html#sec10 Merging of administrations. Retrieved February 1, 2018

[1] Archive link ( Memento of the original dated March 2, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2

[2] ttp://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2014/act/1/section/10/enacted/en/html#sec10 Merging of administrations. Retrieved February 1, 2018