Kerry

Kerry county (1991 pop. 121,894), 1,815 sq mi (4,701 sq km), SW Republic of Ireland. The county town is Tralee . Kerry consists of a series of mountainous peninsulas that extend into the Atlantic. The shoreline is deeply indented by Dingle Bay, Tralee Bay, and the Kenmare River. Carrantuohill (3,414 ft/1,041 m), in the mountains known as Macgillycuddy's Reeks, is the highest point in Ireland. The streams are short and precipitous, and many bogs exist. The Lakes of Killarney are a popular tourist attraction. Farming (oats and potatoes), fishing, sheep and cattle raising, and dairying are the chief occupations. Peat is sold commercially. Footwear is made in Tralee and Killarney. Many well-preserved dolmens, stone forts, round towers, castles, and abbeys still stand. Irish Gaelic is spoken by inhabitants of the Dingle peninsula and the Blasket Islands.

Kerry [Ir. Ciarraighe Ciarraí]. South-westernmost county of Ireland, western Munster, occupying, 1,815 square miles deeply indented by Dingle, Kenmare, and other bays. Kerry has rich associations in Irish mythology and folklore, is the reputed home of Ana (or Danu), for whom the Tuatha Dé Danann are named, and is also the realm of the Cailleach Bhéirre. The county takes its name from Ciar, a love-child of Queen Medb and Fergus mac Róich; his descendants settled west of the Abbeyfeale River. Kerry is a common invasion route in the Lebor Gabála [Book of Invasions], and it is here that the Milesians meet the three goddesses Ériu, Fódla, and Banba, who give their names to Ireland. Part of Kerry is coextensive with Corcu Duibne of early Christian centuries.

Bibliography

See T. Crofton Croker and and Sigerson Clifford , Legends of Kerry (Tralee, 1972);
T. J. Barrington , Discovering Kerry (Dublin, 1976).

Kerry County in Munster province, sw Republic of Ireland; the county town is Tralee. It is a mountainous region with an indented coastline and many lakes. Oats and potatoes are grown, and sheep and cattle raised. Industries: tourism, fishing, woollen goods. Area: 4701sq km (1815sq mi). Pop. (1996) 126,130.