Dublin

Dublin is the capital and biggest city of Ireland, and it is also the country's financial centre. A bay on Ireland's east coast, near the mouth of the River Liffey, it is located within the province of Leinster and is home to the city of Dublin. The Dublin Mountains, which are a component of the Wicklow Mountains range, form the southern boundary of the county. It has a population of 1,173,179 people in the urban area, although the population of the Dublin Region (traditional County Dublin) was 1,347,359 people in the same year. According to the 2016 census, the population of the Greater Dublin Area was 1,904,806 people.

There is archaeological controversy about the actual location and date of Dublin's founding, with one theory positing that it was founded by the Gaels during or before the 7th century CE, with a second, Viking-era settlement following shortly after. Dublin gained in importance as the Kingdom of Dublin expanded, and it eventually became Ireland's primary settlement after the Norman conquest. Following the Acts of Union in 1800, the city saw significant growth beginning in the 17th century and temporarily became the second biggest city in the British Empire. Following the declaration of independence by Ireland in 1922, Dublin was designated as the capital of the Irish Free State, which was eventually renamed Ireland.

Dublin is the modern and historical centre of Irish education, arts and culture, government, and industry. Dublin is also the capital of Ireland. As of 2018, the city has been designated as a global metropolis by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC), earning a score of "Alpha minus," which ranks it among the world's top thirty metropolitan areas in terms of population.