Carrigtwohill
| Carrigtohill Irish: Carraig Thuathail | |
| County Cork | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Main Street, Carrigtohill | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | W819728 |
| Location: | 51°54’34"N, 8°15’26"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 5,080 (2016) |
| Local Government | |
| Dáil constituency: |
Cork East |
| Website: | carrigtwohillcommunity.ie |
Carrigtwohill, officially Carrigtohill is a town in County Cork: the 2016 census recorded a population of 5,080.
The town is seven and a half miles east of Cork city. It is connected to Cork Suburban Rail and is bypassed by the N25 road. Carrigtwohill is one of the fastest-growing towns in the region,[1] and a hub for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.[2]
Name
It is generally believed that the town's name is from the Irish Carraig Thuathail meaning 'Tuathal's rock'. However, in his book Church and Parish Records (1903), the Rev. J.H. Cole of the Church of Ireland said that tuathail is used in the sense of "left-handed", or "North". Cole says it is so called because, whereas most of the rocks in that part of the country run east-west, the rocks at Carrigtwohill run north-south.
The town's anglicised name first appeared in written documents in 1234 as Karrectochell. Later spellings include Carrigtuoghill, Carrigtoghill, Carrigtowhill and Carrigtowill.
Places of interest
The huge rock from which Carrigtwohill derives its name is about half a mile north-eastwards of the town itself, and is in the townland of Carrigane. The rock is honeycombed with caves; some are large and extend for miles underground where stalactites are to be found. Tradition has it that a goat once entered one of these caves, emerging in the townland of Ballintubrid, a few miles southwards. The cave where the goat emerged is called Poll an Ghabhair, meaning The Goat's Hole.
By the town stands Barryscourt Castle. The castle was originally built in the 12th century and rebuilt in the 16th century. The castle grounds house a cafe and a gift shop. It was extensively refurbished between 1991 and 2006. Tours are held daily during the summer months.
Fota Island is also located close to Carrigtwohill. This island is home to Ireland's only Wildlife Park, and also the restored Fota House and Arboretum. Fota Island Resort includes the 5 star Fota Island Hotel, as well as two championship golf course, on which the Irish Open was played in 2001, 2002 and 2014.
Ireland's only permanent drive-in cinema, "Movie Junction", is located in Fota Retail Park to the west of the town. It opened in November 2010, expanding to a second screen in 2013.[3]
The biggest agricultural show in Ireland, the National Ploughing Championships took place to the east of the village in 1992. Over the three days it was on, the event attracted almost 180,000 people.
Development
A number of multinational corporations have premises in the IDA Business Park to the west of the town.
A number of housing developments have been built in Carrigtwohill, including Castlelake to the west, Cluain Cairn and Cul Ard to the north. Supermarket chain Aldi has a presence in the Castlesquare retail development, part of the Castlelake development.
Sport
- Football: Carrigtwohill United AFC,[4]
- Gaelic Athletics: Carrigtwohill GAA
- Others:
- Glenmary Basketball Club
- Carrigtwohill Badminton Club
- Athletics club
- Tennis club.
- Jae Hun Kim Taekwon-do Institute Ireland
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Carrigtwohill) |
References
- ↑ "Census 2011 reveals Ireland's fastest-growing towns and counties". The Journal. 26 April 2012. http://www.thejournal.ie/census-2011-reveals-irelands-fastest-growing-towns-and-counties-430278-Apr2012/. "Carrigtwohill is [..] the fastest-growing town in Munster [..] its population spike from 2,782 to 4,551 in five years, a boost of 64 per cent"
- ↑ "Ikea picks Cork location for second Irish store". Irish Examiner. 25 November 2017. https://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/ikea-picks-cork-location-for-second-irish-store-463473.html. "The area around Carrigtwohill [..] has a strong employment base, with IT and pharmaceutical plants"
- ↑ O’Riordan, Sean (23 July 2010). "Plans for first drive-in cinema get go ahead". Irish Examiner. http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/plans-for-first-drive-in-cinema-get-go-ahead-125897.html.
- ↑ "Carrigtwohill United A.F.C.". http://www.carrigtwohillunited.com/. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- Coleman, J. C.; Stelfox, A.W. (Sep 1945). "Excavation at Carrigtwohill Caves, Co. Cork". Irish Naturalists' Journal 8 (8): 299–302.