Phoenix Park (Páirc an Fhionnuisce)

One of the largest enclosed city parks in Europe, home to a wild deer herd.

At over 700 hectares, the Phoenix Park holds Áras an Uachtaráin (the President's residence), Dublin Zoo and a herd of fallow deer roaming freely since the 1660s. Its name is an anglicisation of 'fionn uisce', meaning clear water.

At a glance

• Over 700 hectares, a huge urban park
• Free-roaming fallow deer since the 1660s
• 'Fionn uisce': clear water

In County Dublin

Phoenix Park is in County Dublin, Baile Átha Cliath in Irish, which means “town of the hurdled ford (“Dublin” is from Dubh Linn, “black pool”)”.

More in Dublin

• The River Liffey (An Life): The river that flows through the heart of Dublin, spanned by the city's famous bridges.
• Howth Head (Binn Éadair): A rugged peninsula and fishing village guarding the north of Dublin Bay.
• Dublin Castle (Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath): For 700 years the seat of British rule, now a ceremonial heart of the State.

Other places of this kind

• The Cliffs of Moher (Aillte an Mhothair): Sea cliffs located at the southwestern edge of the Burren region.
• Newgrange (Sí an Bhrú): A prehistoric monument in County Meath, older than Stonehenge and the Pyramids.
• The Giant's Causeway (Clochán an Aifir): Around 40,000 interlocking basalt columns on the Antrim coast, a UNESCO site wrapped in the legend of Finn McCool.
• Glendalough (Gleann Dá Loch): A beautiful glacial valley of two lakes, home to one of Ireland's most important early monastic settlements.
• The Rock of Cashel (Carraig Phádraig): A dramatic outcrop crowned with medieval buildings, once the seat of the kings of Munster.
• Clonmacnoise (Cluain Mhic Nóis): A great early monastery on the banks of the Shannon, once a renowned centre of learning.

The Irish name

The Irish form of Phoenix Park is Páirc an Fhionnuisce. You can hear it spoken, and take apart names like it, in the Placename Explorer. The authoritative record for any Irish place-name is logainm.ie.