Category: Maps

Esri Ireland accelerates national soil survey across 23,000km2 for Aurum Exploration

Esri Ireland, the market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), today announces that its digital mapping system enabled Aurum Exploration Services to accelerate the survey of soil samples across almost 23,000km2 in Ireland.

The extensive survey was carried out as part of the Tellus Programme. Led by Geological Survey Ireland and funded by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, the Tellus Programme aims to improve the future management of the environment by building a deeper knowledge of Ireland’s soil, rocks, and water.

Esri’s ArcGIS technology streamlined workflows for Aurum Exploration, enabling it to deliver the ambitious project in just over one year. The technology replaced the traditional paper-based survey process with innovative digital data capture. The paper-based process was time-consuming with a complex data collection method, taking the Tellus Programme team nine years to reach the halfway milestone on the project.

Using the technology, Aurum Exploration’s sampling teams were able to collect, record, and share real-time data on soil samples – ranging from location to land usage and soil characteristics – wherever they were working in the field. Apps could be used even when offline, which was vital for those working in remote locations. Team leaders were able to speedily assign tasks, manage daily workloads, and monitor the project’s progress, while programme managers could oversee the data collection process and share project metrics.

Health and safety were boosted for employees as each team’s location was visible in near real-time. The platform also facilitated rigorous quality control checks, greatly enhancing the accuracy and integrity of soil sample data. Moreover, reports could be generated on-demand, saving time for teams internally.

In turn, these efficiencies contributed to an estimated saving of 120 days per year, and a reduction in overall operational costs of around €40,000 annually for the project.

Judith Mather, Project Manager, Tellus Programme, Aurum Exploration said: “Having a robust and efficient digital system greatly assisted us to cover more ground in a shorter time, and oversight of the national programme really improved. ArcGIS Dashboards gave our directors and client an accurate and visual real-time overview of what was going on, on a national scale, which is what they needed. In addition, the improvement in data quality was a real testament to the success of ArcGIS applications.”

Schalk van Lill, Customer Success Manager, Esri Ireland said: “Our ArcGIS platform has been transformative for the Tellus Programme, and we were delighted to work closely with Aurum Exploration as the team delivered on this vital nationwide project. Reliable data was captured electronically out in the field, reducing the risk of human error and other data collection inconsistencies, even while working remotely. This also boosted productivity, streamlined operations, and improved collaboration among teams for Aurum Exploration. This important project is benefitting our environment now and into the future.”

20 years of discovery with Google Maps

Twenty years ago, Google Maps started helping us explore the world, navigate unfamiliar roads and discover hidden gems. As Google Maps turns 20 they wanted to share some of the best features and hacks along with some of the most-reviewed places from the past two decades in Ireland.

Ireland’s crowd-pleasers: The most-reviewed destinations

Visitor attractions

  1. Cliffs of Moher

  2. The Books of Kells Experience 

  3. Rock of Cashel

  4. Hook Lighthouse

  5. Torc Waterfall

  6. Powerscourt Waterfall

  7. Dublinia

  8. Spanish Arch

  9. Glencar Waterfall

  10. Blarney Stone

 

Parks

  1. Phoenix Park

  2. St. Stephen’s Green

  3. Eyre Square

  4. Fota Wildlife Park

  5. Kilkenny Castle Park

  6. Killarney National Park

  7. Marley Park

  8. Wicklow Mountains National Park

  9. Merrion Square Park

  10. Connemara National Park

 

Museums

  1. National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street

  2. Muckross House

  3. EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum

  4. Irish Whiskey Museum

  5. National Museum of Ireland, Merrion Street

  6. National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks

  7. The Little Museum of Dublin

  8. Titanic Experience Cobh

  9. Irish Museum of Modern Art

  10. Chester Beatty

 

Here are just a few mind-blowing stats about Maps:

 

  • 1 trillion: how many kilometers of directions they provided in 2024. This is the distance of Earth orbiting the sun over one thousand times!

 

  • 250 million: the number of businesses and places on the map. If you were to visit one of these places every hour without sleeping, it would take you more than 28,500 years to get through this list!

 

  • 500 million: the number of users who contribute information like reviews, photos, ratings and driving disruptions to the map per year. A vertical stack of 500 million pieces of paper would be 50km high!

 

  • 100 million: the number of updates made to the map each day. That means that in the time it took to read this sentence, the map was updated 10,000 times!

 

Today Google Maps is sharing some of the most popular and all-time favorite features — along with helpful hidden gems that might have been missed over the years.

1. Drive in style (new!)

Now when driving with Google Maps, the navigation icon is customisable with new car types and colors. Depending on your mood, choose a powerful pickup truck, a stylish SUV, a roaring racecar and more in eight vibrant colors. Just start navigating, tap on the blue arrow and let your creativity lead the way.

2. Get menu highlights

When checking out a new restaurant, use Maps to quickly understand its most popular dishes in advance. Search for a restaurant and scroll down to “menu highlights” — photos and reviews of top dishes from the Maps community will be visible to help people tap into their inner foodie and order with confidence.

3. Understand an area at a glance with AR

It can be tough to get your bearings if you’re in a new neighborhood. With Lens in Maps, tap the camera icon in the search bar and lift your phone to let augmented reality instantly overlay helpful information, like the name of a place, how busy it is and if it’s highly rated.

4. See HOV lanes along your route

Headed somewhere new and want to save time? Just get directions to your destination and quickly see if there are HOV lanes along your route so you can get there as efficiently as possible.

5. Time travel with Street View

Go back in time with Street View! See loved ones and even check out a childhood home: Open Google Maps and turn on the Street View layer. Search a home address, tap “See more dates” and scroll through the images to watch your neighborhood evolve over time!

6. Make reservations right from Maps

Forget frantic phone calls or scrambling for last-minute reservations: Google Maps can help you snag a table at your favorite restaurant. Search for the restaurant, and if it works with a booking partner, tap on “Reserve” to book your reservation.

7. Plan group hangouts with lists

Lists in Google Maps make it a breeze to save and share places you want to visit – and they also make it easy for groups to pick a spot. The next time you have an outing planned, create a collaborative list where everyone can save places and vote on them with emoji so you can make a quick decision on where to go.

8. Arrive with confidence

It can be tough to find the right entrance at a large apartment complex or unfamiliar building. With arrival guidance, Maps will highlight the entrance, show nearby parking lots and remind you to save your parking spot. Once parked, you can get walking directions from the  car to the entrance — and even enter Street View or AR walking navigation to orient yourself quickly.

9. Know before you go

With Immersive View, you can experience what stadiums, parks and routes look like and even check the weather and traffic so you can be ready in advance. When driving, see where the nearest parking is and if there are any tight turns on your route.

10. Send your trip from your phone to your car

If you’re in a rush, you can plan your trip from your phone and send it straight to your car if it has Google built-in. No need to waste time re-entering the address.

11. Find the hottest restaurants in town

Whether you’re exploring a new city or rediscovering your neighborhood, Google Maps’ restaurant lists can help you find the perfect spot. Check out our trending list to find places that have recently surged in popularity, the top list  for tried-and-true favorites and the gems list  to find the next hot spot before everyone else does.

12. Avoid the crowds

It’s helpful to know how busy a place will be before you get there so you can save time and avoid long lines. Search for a place and scroll down to “Popular times” — you’ll see a graph of how busy it typically is, and even how busy it is at that moment. New efficiency hack unlocked!

13. Don’t get lost — even when you’re off the grid

When exploring a new city or when in an area with bad signal, you can use Google Maps offline to access essential navigation information. Search for an area, tap the name or address and select “Download” to give yourself access to navigation and key details without a connection. Perfect for travel and adventures off the beaten path.

14. Get accessibility information anywhere

For those with accessibility needs, turn on “Accessible Places” in settings and a wheelchair icon will show if a place has accessible entrances, seating, restrooms and parking. Those with visual impairments can get detailed voice guidance while walking, with helpful alerts about routes, upcoming turns and nearby intersections.

15. Save money and petrol

Lots of people want ways to get around more sustainably. Fuel-efficient routing in Google Maps can help — it uses AI to show the most fuel- or energy-efficient route to your destination, if it’s not already the fastest one. Just pull up directions and tap on the route with the green leaf.

16. Have fun with Pegman!

Pegman is the beloved Street View mascot, and depending on where in the world you’re browsing, he might transform into someone new! Hint: Check out Loch Ness, Scotland for a fun surprise!

See our Google Reviews

New road reporting features coming to Waze

Waze has one of the most passionate mapping communities in the world, with drivers who actively report road incidents and editors who add critical local information to the map, like new roads and sharp curves. Over the years, they’ve launched updates to help drivers get around more safely and confidently — and today, they are adding two new features to keep drivers up to date on their journeys.

Read more

Speak naturally to report road incidents
On Waze, you can already report a range of incidents, including traffic, potholes, construction and more. Now we’re introducing a new Conversational Reporting feature to make this safer and easier. Say you’re cruising down the highway and spot a sudden slowdown. All you need to do is tap the reporting button and speak naturally, as if you’re chatting with a friend: “Looks like there are cars jammed up ahead!” With the help of Gemini capabilities, Waze will understand what you’re saying and quickly add a real-time report to the map for you — no need to use a specific voice command or tap extra buttons.
Waze will even ask you a follow-up question when it needs more information or details. If you let Waze know there’s something up ahead, it may ask “Can you describe what you see?” After sharing more information – like that you see a trash can on the road – Waze can categorize the report, helping other drivers be aware and avoid the hazard.
Conversational Reporting launches in beta to Waze trusted testers globally this week in English on Android and iOS, with plans to expand to more users and languages in the coming months.

See school zones on the map
To help keep students, pedestrians and drivers safer when they’re near these busy areas, we’re making it easy for Waze map editors to add school zones to the map. This means that when you’re driving near a school when it’s open and we have information for that school zone available, you’ll receive an alert that reminds you to be extra cautious.
School Zones start rolling out on Android and iOS globally later this year.
Waze combines the power of community and technology to bring you features that keep you informed

GSI to provide talk on seabed mapping project at Geopark Academy

Geological Survey Ireland (GSI) will be providing an update on its groundbreaking seabed mapping project at a major two-day event announced for the Burren in County Clare on May 25th and 26th.

The geology, history, ecology and future tourism development of the Burren are the focus of the Geopark Academy 2024, a two-day conference organised by the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark as part of European Geoparks Network Week

The Academy is being held at the Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan, the world-famous independent college specialising in undergraduate and graduate Fine Art education, which is this year marking the 30th anniversary of its foundation.

Topics being covered include how the Burren has changed over 330 million years, the impact of the last Ice Age on the landscape, the history of human settlement in the region, and how visitor studies are guiding efforts to establish Clare as the first county-wide certified sustainable tourism destination in Ireland.

Felim O’Toole, a Hydrographic Surveyor with GSI will be one of the keynote speakers and will be providing an update on the Integrated Mapping for the Sustainable Development of Ireland’s Marine Resource (INFOMAR) project, which has been mapping Ireland’s coastal seabed in comprehensive detail. The INFOMAR programme team, which includes The Marine Institute, aims to complete Ireland’s seabed mapping by end 2026, potentially being the first country globally to do so.  Mr. O’Toole’s talk will focus on mapping of the seabed off the Burren and Cliffs of Moher.

Other speakers include representatives from University of Galway, ATU Sligo, Trinty College Dublin and Mary Immaculate College / University of Limerick.

“One of the primary objectives of The Geopark Academy is to further increase engagement between the public, researchers, geologists and members of academia on how the Burren was formed and has evolved over millions of years, and how this unique landscape presents future opportunities for the communities that live there,” explained Carol Gleeson, Manager of the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark.

She continued, “The Burren is a remarkable limestone area. Its geology, flora, caves, archaeology, history and farming traditions set it apart as a place of great mystery and beauty. Arctic and Alpine flowers grow alongside Mediterranean species and there are over 2,700 recorded monuments, some dating back over 6,000 years.”

“By hosting the Geopark Academy, we hope to create a greater sense of awareness and appreciation of the geology and history of one of Ireland’s most unique landscapes and how it is generating opportunities for tourism development in the region,” added Ms. Gleeson.

 Dr. Eamon Doyle, Geologist with the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark described the Geopark Academy as a multi-disciplinary event connecting research and the local community.

He continued, “This event will examine and promote the ancient geological history of the Geopark, and its evolution through time from its formation through the retreat of the ice sheets some 12,000 years ago to the vibrant region we know of today.”

Dr. Doyle said the underlying geology of the Burren holds many fascinating clues to conditions on Earth more than 300 million years ago.

“The oldest rocks visible on the Burren’s surface were formed during the Carboniferous period, approximately 330 million years ago,” he added. “These limestone rocks formed in shallow, warm, tropical seas 10 degrees south of the equator. More recently, the last ice Age has sculpted those rocks and largely given the Burren its current shape. Research is active and scientists and students come from all over the world to see what we have here. The Academy will hear from some of those who have invested significant time and resources examining this intriguing landscape.”

The Geopark Academy 2024 will be opened on Saturday May 25th by Dr. Doyle who will speak about his fossil discoveries including an extraordinary new species of fossil sponge and abandoned fossil burrows dating back 330 million years which he found in limestone rock at Doolin.

Colin Bunce (Researcher, School of Geography, University of Galway) will host a talk on the impacts of the last Glacial Maximum on the Burren landscape, Fiona McKenna (PhD student, ATU Sligo) will speak about how measuring and monitoring tourism activity in Clare is helping to  inform sustainable destination planning, Dr. Catherine Dalton (Mary Immaculate College / UL) will reflect on “Ireland’s Lakes: Past, Present, and Future”, archaeologist Michael Lynch will provide an update on the ongoing Excavation of the Mesolithic Stone Axe Manufacturing Site at Doolin, and Felim O’Toole (Geological Survey Ireland) will discuss INFOMAR 2023, a groundbreaking mapping project of the seabed off the Burren and Cliffs of Moher.

 Other speakers include Tejasvi Shah, Maia Shelby Hay and Matilda Krulder (MA students, Burren College of Art) on “Postgraduate Research in Art & Ecology/ Reading Ecology in The Burren,” Dr. Lara Cassidy (Trinity College Dublin) on “Tales from a Small Island: Ancient Genomics on the Atlantic Edge”, Enda Gallery (artist developer/artist/producer) on “Layers of sound; behind the scenes of modern music production”, and Dr. John Murray (University of Galway) on “An unusual and enigmatic discoidal fossil from the Cliffs of Moher.”

On Sunday, May 26th, there will be a guided mini-bus history tour of Kilfenora Church, Leamaneh Castle, Kilnaboy Church, Corofin and Dysert O’Dea Castle with local experts Edel Barry, Frank O’Grady, Tom Keating and Risteárd Ua Cróinín.

Due to limited spaces, booking is essential for The Geopark Academy 2024. Visit www.burrengeopark.ie or email info@burrengeopark.ie for more information.

Public invited to have say on Draft Noise Action Plan

The public are being invited to have their say on the ‘Dublin Agglomeration Noise Action Plan 2024-2028.’

The draft plan has been put together by the local authorities of the Dublin Agglomeration (Dublin City Council, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, Fingal County Council, South Dublin County Council, Wicklow County Council and Kildare County Council).

The plan has been informed by and is based on the Strategic Noise Maps which were prepared for the agglomeration of Dublin in 2022 and which cover transport (road and rail) and industry related environmental noise sources.

By EU law, Strategic Noise Maps and Noise Action Plans are required to be made or revised every five years.

The final ‘Dublin Agglomeration Noise Action Plan 2024-2028’ must be completed and issued to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by 18th July 2024 and subsequently issued by the EPA to the EU Commission by the end of January 2025.

There will be a period of formal public consultation from Friday 12th April 2024 to Friday 24th May 2024 and members of the public are welcome to submit their views on this draft ‘Dublin Agglomeration Noise Action Plan.’

In addition, the draft Noise Action Plan may be viewed on the Dublin City Council website or the Dublin City Council Consultation Hub at the following links;

•         https://www.dublincity.ie/residential/environment/air-quality-monitoring-and-noise-control-unit/dublin-city-noise-maps/noise-action-plan

•         https://consultation.dublincity.ie

Submissions on the draft Noise Action Plan may be made through the Consultation Hub or alternatively by email airquality@dublincity.ie or in writing to, Air Quality Monitoring and Noise Control Unit, Environment & Transportation Department, Block 3 Floor 1, Civic Offices, Wood Quay, Dublin 8.

National award for innovative Galway Graveyards Mapping Project

Galway County Council has received national recognition for an innovative digital project that mapped over 40,000 graveyard memorial records across County Galway and made them publicly available online.

The ‘Digitising Galway’s Graveyard Heritage’ project was last night (Thursday) named overall winner of the ‘Community Engagement’ category of Esri Ireland’s annual ‘Customer Success Awards’ held in Dublin’s Anantara The Marker Hotel.

Working with and supported by Galway Rural Development, Forum Connemara, The Heritage Council, The National Monuments Service and Galway County Community Archaeology Service, Galway County Council provided funding to local groups to employ experts to train local communities to use mobile technology and to undertake drone mapping of graveyards resulting in a public release of 40,000 records from across the county via the Local Authority’s Open Data Portal.

This is the second national award to be picked up by the project after it was named winner at the Public Sector Digital Transformation Awards last October.

Welcoming the award win, Cllr. Liam Carroll, Cathaoirleach of Galway County Council commented, “The success of the Digital Mapping of Graveyards Project is the result of forensic research and cutting-edge surveying work by the Local Authority’s Heritage department and local communities across Galway. This award win is testament to the innovative nature of the project and its benefit to the diaspora and academia at home and abroad.”

Outlining the background to the project, Barry Doyle, Geographic Information System (GIS) project lead for Galway County Council said, “We have been working with various community groups and organisations to collect and collating valuable data relating to those who are buried in various graveyards for several years.”

“Galway County Council, with funding from the Heritage Council, the Open Data Engagement Fund and its own resources developed and made available a mobile app specifically for use by surveyors at the local level for memorial surveys, along with associated data management and validation processes,” he added. “This technology, along with drone technology, was made available to local community groups to expand the number of graveyards in the project resulting in the 40,000 records that are now publicly available.”

Esri Ireland is the global market leader in GIS and their software is used widely in Ireland in both public and private sector organisations, including most local authorities.

The Galway County Digital Mapping of Graveyards Project may be viewed at galwaycoco.maps.arcgis.com and data.gov.ie.

Esri Ireland map tells the story of Irish dance

Esri Ireland, the market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), has created a digital map showcasing the rich history, diverse styles, and vibrant music of Irish dancing to celebrate International Irish Dance Day which falls this Sunday, 17th September.

Using Esri’s ArcGIS digital mapping system, the interactive map charts a captivating journey through the history of Irish dancing, tracing its roots all the way back to 400 AD. Explore pivotal milestones, learn about varying dance styles, hear some lively traditional music, and search for schools to hone your Irish dancing skills across the entire island. From beginners to championship contenders, opportunities to learn and perfect Irish dancing are abound around Ireland.

International Irish Dance Day was launched on 17th September 2020 and is midway to St. Patrick’s Day. It has since grown to unite people worldwide through their shared passion for Irish dance. Each year, individuals and dance schools across the globe showcase their incredible dancing skills by sharing engaging videos online.

This map also comes as preparations are underway to embrace the spirit of Culture Night on Friday, 22nd September. It will bring the timeless allure of Ireland’s traditional dance to life as the country comes together to celebrate culture, creativity and the arts.

Link to maps

Esri Ireland map celebrates history of Pride in Ireland

Esri Ireland, the market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), has created an LGBTQ+ Pride Month digital StoryMap. The map highlights ‘The History of Pride in Ireland’ and features a full schedule of Pride celebrations across the country that will last all summer long.

Using the interactive map, developed with Esri’s ArcGIS digital mapping system, embark on a captivating journey that follows the story of the LGBTQ+ community in Ireland. Discover pivotal historical moments, significant locations, and transformative events that sparked a profound societal shift towards a more diverse and inclusive Ireland. The map also features LGBTQ+ Resource Centres that offer support, guidance, and meetups across the island of Ireland.

As citizens from every corner of the country prepare to unite in a radiant display of rainbow hues, the Summer of Pride Map is your guide to the vibrant tapestry of Pride festivals and parades that are happening around Ireland. This year, the iconic Dublin Pride Festival (19th – 25th June) celebrates the 40th anniversary of the first Dublin Pride Parade. From Belfast to Galway to Cork there will be theatre, live music, quiz nights, rock & roll bingo, parades, and more. To top it all off, this year Laois is making history with its first-ever Pride Festival on September 14-17th.

Gamma maps out Census data to show property patterns across Ireland

Gamma, a leading location intelligence technology company in Ireland and the UK, has mapped out the 2022 Census data which shows an increase in the number of households – this has gone up by almost 140,000 – and reveals a shift regarding the number of homes being owned outright. 

In fact, the number of homes owned outright now stands at 37% – which equates to 679,718 in total and is 112,949 properties more than in 2011. In comparison, in 2011, there were more households that were owned with a mortgage than owned outright. This has been reversed over the last decade with the number of households being owned with a mortgage falling by 51,941.  

Looking at the rental sector, there are an additional 48,457 households recorded as rentals in the 2022 Census compared to 2016. Meanwhile, there are an additional 63,373 households which are owner occupied.  

Rented properties are slowly increasing their share of the overall property market in every county in Ireland, with the exception of Kildare and Wicklow. This is particularly evident in Dublin City, where 9 of every 10 additional households in the area are rentals.  

The number of households who rented their accommodation from a private landlord rose by 7%, or 20,904 properties, to 330,632 between 2016 and 2022. There were an additional 10,014 households renting from a Local Authority, which is fewer than the 13,115 additional households renting from a voluntary body. 

In terms of the biggest increase in the number of households at a county level, Meath saw the largest percentage increase (13.6%). The other counties which saw increases of over 10% are all in and around Dublin, with Kildare showing a 12.5% increase, followed by Fingal at 11.4% and Wicklow with 10.3% more households in 2022 compared to 2016. 

Richard Cantwell, Lead Consultant for Gamma Location Labs, commented: “It’s positive to see such a large proportion owning their properties outright. With the current housing situation, it is perhaps unsurprising that fewer households are owned with a mortgage and highlights the need for more supply. It could also explain why people’s behaviours are changing in terms of property type and size.”  

In almost every county, detached houses are the most common property type. The exceptions are Galway City and most of Dublin where semi-detached houses dominate, as well as Dublin City and Cork City where terraces are most common. In that vein, the number of permanent private households has increased from 1,697,665 in 2016 to 1,836,728, an increase of 8.2%, which is slightly higher than overall population growth.

Last year’s Census also highlighted a jump in households in purpose-built apartments, having grown from 5.5% of all household types to 10.4% between 2002 and 2022. Despite this doubling, the proportion of Irish households that live in flats or apartments is far below the European average of 46%. Meanwhile, the bedsit as an accommodation type is falling out of favour. Compared to 2016 when there were 3,266 private households living in bedsits, the total now stands at 1,659.  

The 2022 Census was the first time people were asked about the number of bedrooms in their home, with the results finding that three bedrooms is the most common (35.7%), followed by four bedrooms (25.7%) and then two bedrooms (15.9%). One-bedroom households accounted for just 5.5% of households, while 7.8% have five or more bedrooms. The Census also showed that there are 565 palatial mansions with 10 or more bedrooms across the country – somewhat surprisingly, there are more of these in Galway City (57) than in Dublin City (55). 

Understandably, the Dublin City Council area has the highest proportion of one and two-bedroom houses in the country, with 43% of properties falling into this category. In rural counties in the west, this figure is much smaller, with Galway County having the smallest proportion of one and two-bedroom properties (13.1%).

This trend is also reflected in the figures relating to properties with five or more bedrooms, with the same two areas (Dublin City and Galway County) at the opposite end of the scale. Just 2.7% of properties in Dublin City have five or more bedrooms. In Cork City that figure is 5.7%. Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown tops the list of urban counties with 9.1% of properties there having five or more bedrooms – significantly more than South Dublin (4.1%) and Fingal (5.6%).

As well as changing property trends, the Census also showed significant shifts in the age profile of the populace, which has been tracking upwards for some time. Some 15% of the population are now aged over 65, compared to 13.4% in 2016 and 11.7% in 2011. These shifts are further reflected in the 1.4-year increase to the average age across the country, which now stands at 38.8 (up from 37.4 in 2016).  

Since the last Census in 2016, the population of Ireland has increased by 387,274 (or 7.5%) to 5,149,139. This is the highest population in the 26 counties of Ireland since 1841, when it was 6,528,799.  

Commenting on this, Richard Cantwell said: “We can see from the Census results that Ireland’s population is continuing to mature and grow, and it’s very interesting to see the variations in housing types and ownership across the country in the context of these demographics. For example, the maturing population could be the driver of more outright home ownership in certain areas, while increasing population is impacting on the rental market in others”.