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Ceann Bhinn Éadair | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of Howth Head looking south. | |
  Howth Head  Howth Head | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Ireland |
| Adjacent to | |
| Area | 11 km2 (4.2 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 171 m (561 ft) |
| Highest point | Ben of Howth |
| Administration | |
Ireland | |
| County | Dublin |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 8,294 (2016) |
| Pop. density | 754/km2 (1953/sq mi) |
_Admiralty_Chart_of_1875_updated_to_1931%2c_copyright_expired_1981.jpg)
Howth Head (/ˈhoʊθ/HOHTH;Ceann Bhinn Éadair inIrish) is apeninsula northeast of the city ofDublin inIreland, within the governance ofFingal County Council. Entry to the headland is atSutton while the village ofHowth and theharbour are on the north-eastern face. Most of Howth Head is occupied by the Hill of Howth, though there are other regions, such as the tombolo at Sutton, extensive beaches on the northern shores, and small ones in other parts. TheBaily Lighthouse is on the southeastern part of Howth Head. Nearby are the districts ofBaldoyle andPortmarnock, and adjacent is the nature reserve ofNorth Bull Island.
The earliest mention of the peninsula may be on a map attributed toClaudius Ptolemy, where it was calledEdri Deserta or inGreekΕδρου ἐρῆμος (Edrou Heremos, Edar's isolated place). Here it was portrayed as an island, but it is not clear if this was due to actual separation from the headland or inaccurate information available to the cartographer. Other writers think thatEdrou was actuallyLambay Island, from Greekἑδρα (hedra) "sitting place [for ships]".[1]
The peninsula has been occupied since at least the 3rd millennium BC, with twomiddens found, and adolmen dating back to around 2200 BC. It features in several Irish legends. A fishing settlement developed at Howth, and the area developed under the Norman St. Lawrence family, who owned most of Howth Head from the late 1100s until the 20th century, with the residual main estate sold in 2019. In the 19th century, electric tramlines to and over Howth Head made the whole hill more accessible.
Originally an island,[2] Howth Head is connected to the mainland via a narrow strip of land, ortombolo, and forms the northerly bound of the great crescent ofDublin Bay, roughly corresponding toDalkey Hill andKilliney Hill in the south.
Most of the headland is hilly, with peaks such as the 171 m Black Linn, by theBen of Howth, on a side road beyond the Green Hill Quarries at the Loughereen Hills,Shielmartin Hill (163 m) overlooking Carrickbrack Road and Carrickbrack and Dun Hill. There are also craggy areas such as Muck Rock (Carrickmore), and Kilrock.
Howth has an extensive and varied coastline, and there are steep sea cliffs around parts, especially on the north coast. Key points on the coast, clockwise from Sutton, include Cush Point, Claremont Strand, the small headland at Howth village, Balscadden Bay, Kilrock, the Great and Little Baily, Lion's Head, Doldrum Bay, the Needles, Drumleck Point, Red Rock and Sutton Strand.
Due to the shape of the landform, and its rocky nature, with thin soil covering, Howth features multiple streams and several fast-running streams, due to hard rock under a thin soil layer. These include the Bloody Stream, Coulcour Brook, the Boggeen Stream, the Offington Stream, the Whitewater Brook, the Balsaggart Stream, and the Carrickbrack and Santa Sabina Streams.[3]
The cliffs support a large colony of seabirds, notablyrazorbills,common guillemots,fulmars,kittiwakes andcormorants. The scrubland above supports several heathland species includingskylarks,meadow pipits,common whitethroats,linnets,stonechats andwhinchats. The most commonly seen birds of prey arekestrels,peregrine falcons andcommon buzzards.[citation needed]
Gorse grows in many places on the headland. Fires are frequent during dry summers. Thirty-one non-native plants were recorded in 2018 from Howth Head.[4]
There are two railway stations on or near the head.Sutton station is on the northern edge of thetombolo between Sutton and Baldoyle, andHowth station is on the head in thevillage of Howth. Both are served byDublin Area Rapid Transit trains and have regular services to and from Dublin city centre. Historically theHill of Howth Tramway ran between the stations around the head between 1901 and 1959. AdditionallyDublin Bus routes serve the headland. A full road network accesses most parts, although some are only reachable by some of the many footpaths.
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Howth is a popular destination for day-trippers from the capital, accessible by car, bus and one of the northerntermini of theDublin Area Rapid Transit train system (DART). Hikers can choose from a wide range of routes, including the Cliff Walk, the Cliff Path Closed Loop, or making for the ancientcairn on one of Howth's several summits. On clear days, theWicklow Mountains can be seen, withDublin city below.Slieve Donard, an 852-metre peak inNorthern Ireland may also be visible - a distance of 90 km (56 mi). Quite frequently,Snowdon (1,085 m) inSnowdonia National Park in Wales can also be seen - a distance of 138 km (86 mi).
Howth Head is the location whereLeopold Bloom proposes to Molly inJames Joyce'sUlysses. In the short story 'Eveline', another work byJames Joyce from the collectionDubliners, it is mentioned that Eveline and her family once had a picnic on the Hill of Howth. Howth Head is also central to Joyce's final work,Finnegans Wake, in which one of the principal characters, HCE, is, among other things, representative of the mountain.[citation needed]
Howth Head is mentioned in the lyrics of the title track ofKate Bush's 1989 album,The Sensual World: '...took six big wheels and rolled our bodies / off of Howth Head and into the flesh, mmh, yes...'. The song is inspired byMolly Bloom's soliloquy in Joyce'sUlysses.[citation needed]
The peninsula also features in the backdrop of multiple paintings by Irish artistWilliam Orpen (1878-1931) and by American artistJames Whistler.[5]
Howth Head is the setting of two scenes from the Tony Award-winning musical "Once."[citation needed]
53°22′45″N6°04′19″W / 53.37923°N 6.07201°W /53.37923; -6.07201
