Cockermouth ˈkɒkɚməθ is a market town and civil parish in Cumbria, England, so named because it is at the confluence of the River Cocker as it flows into the River Derwent. The mid-2010 census estimates state that Cockermouth has a population of 8,204, increasing to 8,761 at the 2011 Census.
Historically a part of Cumberland, Cockermouth is situated outside the English Lake District on its northwest fringe. Much of the architectural core of the town remains unchanged since the basic medieval layout was filled in the 18th and 19th centuries. The regenerated market place is now a central historical focus within the town and reflects events from its 800-year history. The town is prone to flooding and experienced severe floods in 2005, 2009, and 2015.
Cockermouth is "the mouth of the River Cocker"; the river takes its name from the Brythonic Celtic word kukrā, meaning 'the crooked one'. It has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.
Cockermouth owes its existence to the confluence of the rivers Cocker and Derwent, being the lowest point, historically, at which the resultant fast flowing river powered by the Lake District could be bridged. Cockermouth is situated a few minutes' travelling distance from lakes such as Buttermere, Crummock Water, Loweswater, and Bassenthwaite.
The town is part of the parliamentary constituency of Workington. In the December 2019 general election, the Tory candidate for Workington, Mark Jenkinson, was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP), overturning a 9.4 per cent Labour majority from the 2017 election to eject shadow environment secretary Sue Hayman by a margin of 4,136 votes. Until the December 2019 general election, Labour had won the seat in every general election since 1979; the Conservatives have only been elected in Workington one other time since World War II, at the 1976 by-election, after three decades of service by Fred Peart. The town historically has been a Labour-supporting area.
Prior to Brexit for the European Parliament its residents voted to elect MEPs for the North West England constituency.