Cork city was once fully walled, and the remnants of the old medieval town centre can be found around South and North Main streets.

[15] The ecclesiastical settlement continued alongside the Viking longphort, with the two developing a type of symbiotic relationship; the Norsemen providing otherwise unobtainable trade goods for the monastery, and perhaps also military aid.

The city's municipal government was dominated by about 12–15 merchant families, whose wealth came from overseas trade with continental Europe – in particular the export of wool and hides and the import of salt, iron and wine.

During the Irish Civil War, Cork was for a time held by anti-Treaty forces, until it was retaken by the pro-Treaty National Army in an attack from the sea.

[24][25] Legislation to expand the boundary of the city, which would increase its area to 187 km2 (72 sq mi) and the population within its bounds from 125,000 to 210,000,[26] was debated and approved in Dáil Éireann in June 2018.

Met Éireann maintains a climatological weather station at Cork Airport,[31] a few kilometres south of the city centre.

Important elements in the cultural life of the city include: Corcadorca Theatre Company, of which Cillian Murphy was a troupe member[41] prior to Hollywood fame; the Institute for Choreography and Dance, a national contemporary dance resource;[42] the Triskel Arts Centre (capacity c.90), which includes the Triskel Christchurch independent cinema; dance venue the Firkin Crane (capacity c.240); the Cork Academy of Dramatic Art (CADA), Montfort College of Performing Arts, and Graffiti Theatre Company;[43] and the Cork Jazz Festival, Cork Film Festival[44] and Live at the Marquee events.

Cork is home to the RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartet, and popular rock musicians and bands including John Spillane, Rory Gallagher, Five Go Down to the Sea?, Microdisney, The Frank and Walters, Sultans of Ping, Simple Kid, Fred and Mick Flannery.

The opera singers Cara O'Sullivan, Mary Hegarty, Brendan Collins, and Sam McElroy are also Cork born.

[48] The Lewis Glucksman Gallery opened in the Autumn of 2004 at UCC, was nominated for the Stirling Prize in the United Kingdom, and the building of a new €60 million School of Music was completed in September 2007.

This view sometimes manifests itself in humorous references to the Real Capital[52] and the propagation of t-shirts and street art celebrating the fictional The People's Republic of Cork[54][55] The city has many local traditions in food, including crubeens, tripe and drisheen, which were historically served in eating houses like those run by Katty Barry in the mid-20th century.

[56] The English Market sells locally produced foods, including fresh fish, meats, fruit and vegetables, eggs and artisan cheeses and breads.

[67] The General Post Office, with its limestone façade, is on Oliver Plunkett Street, on the site of the Theatre Royal which was built in 1760 and burned down in 1840.

The English circus proprietor Pablo Fanque rebuilt an amphitheatre on the spot in 1850, which was subsequently transformed into a theatre and then into the present General Post Office in 1877.

Other popular tourist attractions include the grounds of University College Cork, through which the River Lee flows, the Women's Gaol at Sunday's Well (now a heritage centre) and the English Market.

While the local government in Ireland has limited powers in comparison with other countries, the council has responsibility for planning, roads, sanitation, libraries, street lighting, parks, and several other important functions.

The area was impacted by the post-2008 downturn, though retail growth has increased since, with Penneys announcing expansion plans in 2015,[90] redesigning of some facades on the street,[91] and opening of newer outlets, including Superdry in 2015.

[99] For many years, Cork was the home to Ford Motor Company, which manufactured cars in the docklands area before the plant was closed in 1984.

[107] One year after 24-hour service commenced, Bus Éireann announced they had witnessed a 70% growth in passenger numbers on the route, resulting in 1.3 million customer journeys.

[106][108][109] Following the initial rollout of the BusConnects project in Dublin, as of October 2022 the National Transport Authority (NTA) were in a consultation process for similar changes in Cork.

[citation needed] While the NTA said that they were applying lessons learned from the Dublin scheme, some Cork homeowners voiced concerns over proposed bus corridors and the possibility of losing parts of their gardens and on-street parking, the risk of devaluation of their homes, worries about the impact of construction on the structural integrity of their homes, the loss of hundreds of trees along roads, and the impact on trade which may arise from reduced on-street parking.

[110] In an Irish Examiner article from October 2022, it was noted that at least one of the draft proposals, to build a road bridge over Ballybrack Woods in Douglas, had already been dropped.

Work continued extending the N25 South Ring Road through the 1990s, culminating in the opening of the Jack Lynch Tunnel under the River Lee.

The N22 Ballincollig dual carriageway bypass, which links to the Western end of the Cork Southern Ring road was opened in September 2004.

The scheme is operated by An Rothar Nua on behalf of the National Transport Authority, with funding supplemented by an advertising sponsor.

West Cork trains terminated at Albert Quay, across the river from Kent Station (though an on-street rail system connected the two for rolling stock and cargo movement).

A proposal to develop a horse-drawn tram (linking the city's railway termini) was made by American George Francis Train in the 1860s and implemented in 1872 by the Cork Tramway Company.

[133] The provincial representative side, the Munster Reds, plays its home matches in the Twenty20 Inter-Provincial Trophy at the Mardyke Cricket Ground.

[citation needed] The city contains clubs active in national competitions in basketball (Neptune and UCC Demons),[134] American football (Cork Admirals)[135] and inline hockey.

[citation needed] There are boxing and martial arts clubs (including Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Karate, Muay Thai and Taekwondo) within the city.