[17][18] The name Dublin comes from the Middle Irish word Du(i)blind (literally "Blackpool"),[19] from dubh [d̪ˠuβˠ] "black, dark" and linn [l̠ʲin̠ʲ(dʲ)] "pool".

[22] Variations on the name are also found in traditionally Gaelic-speaking areas of Scotland (Gàidhealtachd, cognate with Irish Gaeltacht), such as An Linne Dhubh ("the black pool"), which is part of Loch Linnhe.

Further traps were discovered closer to the old settlement of the city of Dublin on the south quays near St. James's Gate which also indicate mesolithic human activity.

[32] The town grew into a substantial commercial center under Olaf Guthfrithson in the mid-to-late 10th century[33] and, despite a number of attacks by the native Irish, it remained largely under Viking control until the Norman invasion of Ireland was launched from Wales in 1169.

[38] Prisoners from slave raids and kidnappings, which captured men, women and children, brought revenue to the Gaelic Irish Sea raiders, as well as to the Vikings who had initiated the practice.

[53] Dublin suffered a period of political and economic decline during the 19th century following the Acts of Union 1800, under which the seat of government was transferred to the Westminster Parliament in London.

The city was at the forefront of Ireland's economic expansion during the Celtic Tiger period, with private sector and state development of housing, transport and business.

Following an economic decline during the Great Recession, Dublin has rebounded and as of 2017[update] has close to full employment,[57] but has a significant problem with housing supply in both the city and surrounds.

[63] Dublin is situated at the mouth of the River Liffey and its urban area encompasses approximately 345 square kilometres (133 sq mi) in east-central Ireland.

The Liffey bends at Leixlip from a northeasterly route to a predominantly eastward direction, and this point also marks the transition to urban development from more agricultural land usage.

Similar to much of the rest of northwestern Europe, Dublin experiences a maritime climate (Cfb) with mild-warm summers, cool winters, and a lack of temperature extremes.

Based on satellite observations, Met Éireann estimates that Dublin's coastal areas typically receive over 1,600 hours of sunshine per year,[72] with the climate getting progressively duller inland.

Starting in the late 2010s, there was a significant amount of high density residential developments in the suburbs of Dublin,[citation needed] with mid to high-rise apartments being built in Sandyford,[91] Ashtown,[92] and Tallaght.

[95] Largely complete by 1230, the castle was of typical Norman courtyard design, with a central square without a keep, bounded on all sides by tall defensive walls and protected at each corner by a circular tower.

Sited to the south-east of Norman Dublin, the castle formed one corner of the outer perimeter of the city, using the River Poddle as a natural means of defence.

The largest municipal park is adjacent (North) Bull Island, also shared between Clontarf and Raheny, featuring a 5 km beach, Dollymount Strand.

Economic improvements in the 1990s attracted a number of global pharmaceutical, information and communications technology companies to the city and Greater Dublin Area.

Companies such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, eBay, PayPal, Yahoo!, Facebook, X, Accenture, TikTok and Pfizer now have European headquarters or operational bases in the city with several located in enterprise clusters like the Digital Hub and Silicon Docks.

Dublin has been positioned as one of the main cities vying to host Financial Services companies hoping to retain access to the Eurozone after Brexit.

The M50 motorway, a semi-ring road which runs around the south, west and north of the city, connects important national primary routes to the rest of the country.

In 2015 and 2016, transatlantic traffic grew, with 158 summer flights a week to North America, making it the sixth largest European hub for that route over the year.

[141] Transatlantic traffic was also the fastest-growing segment of the market for the airport in 2016, in which a 16% increase from 2015 brought the yearly number of passengers travelling between Dublin and North America to 2.9 million.

Dublin is also served by Weston Airport and other small facilities, by a range of helicopter operators, and the military and some State services use Casement Aerodrome nearby.

The new university offers a wide range of courses in areas include engineering, architecture, the sciences, health, journalism, digital media, hospitality, business, art and design, music and the humanities programmes, and has three long-term campuses, at Grangegorman, Tallaght and Blanchardstown.

[171][172] Since the late 1990s, Dublin has experienced a significant level of net immigration, with the greatest numbers coming from the European Union, especially the United Kingdom, Poland and Lithuania.

There are several theatres within the city centre, and various well-known actors have emerged from the Dublin theatrical scene, including Noel Purcell, Michael Gambon, Brendan Gleeson, Stephen Rea, Colin Farrell, Colm Meaney and Gabriel Byrne.

[214] Since the beginning of the 21st century, with the growth of apartment living in the city, Dublin's cafés attracted younger patrons looking for an informal gathering place and an ad hoc office.

[171][216] A number of South-East Asians immigrated from places such as Hong Kong, Malaysia and Mainland China to Dublin during the 1960s and opened restaurants featuring their cuisines.

[217] Modern Irish adaptions of Chinese cuisine include the Spice bag, a takeaway dish consisting of mainly chicken, chips and vegetables.

The Irish of County Dublin represented the easternmost extension of a broad central dialect area which stretched between Leinster and Connacht, but had its own local characteristics.