Cobh

Cobh (ˈkoʊv , ), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. With a population of around 13,000 inhabitants, Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour and home to Ireland's only dedicated cruise terminal. Tourism in the area draws on the maritime and emigration legacy of the town. Facing the town are Spike and Haulbowline islands. On a high point in the town stands St Colman's, the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cloyne. It is one of the tallest buildings in Ireland, standing at 91.4 metres (300 ft). The village on Great Island was known as "Ballyvoloon", a transliteration of the Irish Baile Ui-Mhaoileoin (English: "O'Malone's town"), while the Royal Navy port, established in the 1750s, became known as "The Cove of Cork" or "Cove". The combined conurbation was renamed to "Queenstown", in 1849, during a visit by Queen Victoria. The name was changed to Cobh, during the Irish War of Independence, following the passing of a motion by the local administrative council on 2 July 1920. Cobh is a Gaelicisation of the English name Cove, and it shares the same pronunciation. It has no meaning in the Irish language. In ancient times the area was known as Cuan an Neimheadh (the Harbour of Neimheidh), a figure in medieval Irish legend. Great Island was called Oileán Ard Neimheidh (the high or important island of Neimheidh). According to legend, one of the first colonists of Ireland was Neimheidh, who landed in Cork Harbour over 1,000 years BC. He and his followers were said to have been wiped out in a plague, but the Great Island was known in Irish as Oilean Ard Neimheadh because of its association with him. Later it became known as Crich Liathain because of the powerful Uí Liatháin kingdom, who ruled in the area from Late Antiquity into the early 13th century. The island subsequently became known as Oilean Mor An Barra (the Great Island of Barry & Barrymore), after the Barry family who inherited it.