Editing River Liffey

{{Short description|River in Dublin in Ireland}}
{{Other uses|Liffey (disambiguation){{!}}Liffey}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=February 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox river
| name              = River Liffey
| image             = River-liffey.jpg
| image_caption     = [[Liffey Boardwalk|Boardwalks on the Liffey]] from [[O'Connell Bridge]], in Dublin
| map               = Liffey.png
| source1           = [[Kippure]]
| source1_location  = Sally Gap, County Wicklow
| source1_coordinates= {{Coord|53.156|-6.288|format=dms|display=i}}
| source1_elevation = {{convert|500|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| mouth             = [[Dublin Bay]], [[Irish Sea]]
| mouth_location    = [[Dublin]]
|mouth_coordinates  = {{coord|53.343316|-6.181303|source:Doncram|display=inline,title}}
| mouth_elevation   = {{Convert|0|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| subdivision_type1 = Country
| subdivision_name1 = Ireland
| subdivision_type2 = Counties
| subdivision_name2 = [[County Wicklow|Wicklow]], [[County Kildare|Kildare]], [[County Dublin|Dublin]]
| length            = {{convert|132|km|abbr=on}}
| discharge1_avg    = Annual: {{convert|13.8|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}<br />Aug: {{convert|3.7|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}<br />Dec: {{convert|29.8|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on}}
| basin_size        = {{convert|1256|km2|abbr=on}}
| tributaries_left  = Ballylow Brook, King's River, Lemonstown Stream, Kilcullen Stream, Pinkeen Stream, [[River Rye (Ireland)|Rye Water]], Silleachain Stream, Furry Glen Stream, Magazine Stream, Finisk Stream, [[Bradogue River]]
| tributaries_right = Sraghoe, Cransillagh, Athdown Brook, Shankill River, Brittas River, [[Morell River]], Griffeen River, Glenaulin Stream, [[Irish National War Memorial Gardens#Creosote stream|Creosote Stream]], [[River Camac|Camac River]], [[River Poddle]], [[Steine of Dublin|Stein River]], [[River Dodder]]
}}

The '''River Liffey''' ([[Irish language|Irish]]: ''An Life'', historically ''An Ruirthe(a)ch'') is a river in eastern Ireland that ultimately flows through the centre of [[Dublin]] to its mouth within [[Dublin Bay]]. Its major [[Tributary|tributaries]] include the [[River Dodder]], the [[River Poddle]] and the [[River Camac]]. The river supplies much of Dublin's water and supports a range of recreational activities.<ref name="River Liffey Information">{{cite web| url = http://www.irelandbyways.com/top-irish-peninsulas/irelands-east/cashel-co-tipperary/the-river-liffey| title = River Liffey Information| access-date = 25 January 2013| publisher = Irelandbyways.com| archive-date = 15 April 2019| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190415234626/http://irelandbyways.com/top-irish-peninsulas/irelands-east/cashel-co-tipperary/the-river-liffey/| url-status = live}}</ref>

==Name==
[[Ptolemy]]'s ''[[Geography (Ptolemy)|Geography]]'' (2nd century AD) described a river, perhaps the Liffey, which he labelled Οβοκα (''Oboka''). Ultimately this led to the name of the [[River Avoca]] in [[County Wicklow]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.romaneranames.uk/essays/ireland.pdf | title = Ireland | publisher = Roman Era Names | website = Romaneranames.uk | access-date = 1 January 2018 | archive-date = 2 April 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190402180652/http://www.romaneranames.uk/essays/ireland.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

According to "Place Names from our Older Literature - IV."  by Boswell, C. S. (1904 Connradh na Gaedhilge) the river takes its name from Magh Life, i.e. the plain of Kildare through which the Life flows. This in turn takes its name from Life, daughter of Canann Curthach, who eloped with and married Deltbanna mac Druchta, cup-bearer to [[Conaire Mór]] High King of Ireland. Life took a liking to this plain, and demanded that it should bear her name, and Deltbanna refused to serve any more drink to the men of Éire till the request was granted.{{fact|date=August 2024}}

The Liffey was previously named ''An Ruirthech'', meaning "fast (or strong) runner".<ref>{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.dublincastle.ie/history1.html |date=* }}</ref> The word ''Liphe'' (or ''Life'') referred originally to the name of the plain through which the river ran, but eventually came to refer to the river itself.<ref>Byrne, F. J. 1973. Irish Kings and High-Kings. Dublin. p.150</ref> The word may derive from the same root as [[Welsh language|Welsh]] ''llif'' (flood, flow, stream), namely [[Proto-Indo-European]] ''lē̆i-4'',<ref>{{citation| author = Julius Pokorny| title = Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (Francke, 1959) word 1136| url = https://www.win.tue.nl/~aeb/natlang/ie/pokorny.html| access-date = 6 November 2019| archive-date = 6 August 2020| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200806212825/https://www.win.tue.nl/~aeb/natlang/ie/pokorny.html| url-status = live}}</ref> referring to the historic propensity of areas such as Phoenix Park and Waterstown Park to be inundated,{{fact|date=September 2024}} but [[Gearóid Mac Eoin]] has more recently proposed that it may derive from a non-Indo-European word [[Paleo-European languages|borrowed from the original language spoken in Ireland]] before the arrival of the Celts.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Celtic Languages in Contact|date=26–27 July 2007|url=http://opus.kobv.de/ubp/volltexte/2007/1568/pdf/celtic_languages_in_contact.pdf|access-date=10 December 2012|editor1-first=Hildegard L.C.|editor1-last=Tristram|publisher=Potsdam University Press|archive-date=14 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121214184547/http://opus.kobv.de/ubp/volltexte/2007/1568/pdf/celtic_languages_in_contact.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> It was also known as the ''Anna Liffey'',<ref>As indicated by [[:Image:Sara'sBridge, Dublin.jpg|the caption of an engraving]] published in 1831</ref> possibly from an [[anglicisation]] of ''Abhainn na Life,'' the Irish phrase that translates into English as "River Liffey".<ref>{{cite web | url = http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/S/0159/S.0159.199905260005.html | title = Seanad Éireann – Vol 159, May, 1999 – Motion on National Archives – David Norris (senator and Trinity lecturer) referencing Georgian Society records | publisher = Oireachtas Debates (Hansard) | date = 1999 | access-date = 16 December 2007 | archive-date = 23 September 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120923070504/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/S/0159/S.0159.199905260005.html | url-status = dead }}</ref> [[James Joyce]] embodies the river in ''[[Finnegans Wake]]'' as "Anna Livia Plurabelle".

== Course and system ==
[[File:Newbridge College.jpg|thumbnail|The River Liffey flowing through [[Newbridge College]] in County Kildare]]
The Liffey rises in the [[Liffey Head Bog]] between the mountains of [[Kippure]] {{convert|742|m|ft}} and [[Tonduff]] {{convert|642|m|ft}} in the northern section of the [[Wicklow Mountains]], forming from many streamlets near the Sally Gap. It flows for {{convert|132|km|mi|abbr=on}}<ref>{{cite book|publisher = [[Ordnance Survey of Ireland]] | title = Rivers and their Catchment Basins | date = 1958 | chapter = Table of Reference}}</ref> through counties [[County Wicklow|Wicklow]], [[County Kildare|Kildare]] and [[County Dublin|Dublin]] before entering the [[Irish Sea]] at its mouth at the midpoint of [[Dublin Bay]], on a line extending from the [[Baily lighthouse]] to the Muglin Rocks.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}} It crosses from County Wicklow into County Kildare at [[Poulaphouca]] and from County Kildare into County Dublin at [[Leixlip]], with the greatest part of its length being in Kildare.

The [[Drainage basin|catchment area]] of the Liffey is {{convert|1256|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}.<ref name="serbd.com">{{cite report | url = http://www.serbd.com/MultiDownloads/Creport/Chapters/Physical%20Description%20Ch3.pdf | publisher = South Eastern River Basin District Management System | title = SERBD Report – Physical Description (Chapter) | page = 38 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160303222354/http://www.serbd.com/MultiDownloads/Creport/Chapters/Physical%20Description%20Ch3.pdf | archive-date = 3 March 2016 }}</ref> The long term average flow rate of the river is {{convert|18.0|m3/s|cuft/s|abbr=on|lk=in}}.<ref name="serbd.com"/>

===Tributaries===
The Liffey system includes dozens of smaller rivers and more than 100 named streams. Early tributaries include the Athdown Brook, Shankill River, Ballylow Brook, Brittas River and Woodend Brook.  The substantial King's River, which formerly joined the Liffey near Blessington, and may in fact have held the larger flow, now merges in within Poulaphouca Reservoir.<ref>{{cite book| title = The Rivers and Streams of the Dublin Region | date = 2018 | isbn = 9780956636386 | pages = 33–35}}</ref>

Downstream of Poulaphouca are the Lemonstown Stream, Kilcullen Stream and Pinkeen Stream, followed by the [[Painestown River]] (with tributaries including the [[Morell River]]), the Rye Water (with tributaries including the Lyreen) at [[Leixlip]], and the Griffeen River and Silleachain Stream in [[Lucan]].<ref>{{cite book| title = The Rivers and Streams of the Dublin Region | date = 2018 | isbn = 9780956636386 | pages = 35–42}}</ref>

Within Dublin are the various [[Phoenix Park]] streams on the left bank, interspersed with right bank tributaries such as the Glenaulin Stream and [[Irish National War Memorial Gardens#Creosote stream|Creosote Stream]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.fishinginireland.info/trout/east/dublin/liffey.htm| title = River Liffey| access-date = 25 January 2013| publisher = fishinginireland.info| archive-date = 19 July 2019| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190719060058/http://fishinginireland.info/trout/east/dublin/liffey.htm| url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| title = The Rivers and Streams of the Dublin Region | date = 2018 | isbn = 9780956636386 | pages = 44–46}}</ref>

Within the quays area tributaries include the [[River Camac]], possibly Colman's Brook, the [[Bradogue River]], [[River Poddle]], [[Stein River (Dublin)|Stein River]] and the [[River Dodder]], some of which have numerous tributaries of their own.<ref>{{cite book| title = The Rivers and Streams of the Dublin Region | date = 2018 | isbn = 9780956636386 | pages = 48–57}}</ref>

In earlier times, the [[River Tolka]] was also arguably a tributary of the Liffey or at least shared its mouth, but it now enters [[Dublin Bay]] distinctly, some distance to the north.<ref>{{cite book| title = The Rivers and Streams of the Dublin Region | date = 2018 | isbn = 9780956636386 | pages = 25, 31}}</ref>

===Dams, reservoirs and falls===
There are [[dam]]s for three [[Electricity Supply Board|ESB]] [[hydroelectricity|hydroelectric]] power stations along the river, at [[Poulaphouca]], [[Golden Falls hydroelectric power station|Golden Falls]] and [[Leixlip]]. Major reservoir facilities also exist at Poulaphouca. The Liffey does not feature natural lakes and has few islands.

Significant falls at Poulaphouca and at Golden Falls were flooded by [[reservoir]] construction. There remain areas of [[rapids]], including as the river approaches Dublin city.

===Settlements===
[[File:Dublin 1714 (Moll).jpg|thumb|right|The Liffey separating Dublin from [[Oxmantown]] on a 1714 map by [[Herman Moll]]]]
Towns along the river include [[Blessington]], [[Ballymore Eustace]], [[Kilcullen]], [[Athgarvan]], [[Newbridge, County Kildare|Newbridge]], [[Caragh]], [[Clane]], [[Celbridge]], [[Leixlip]] and [[Lucan, County Dublin|Lucan]] before the river passes the suburb of [[Chapelizod]] and then runs through the city of [[Dublin]] all the way to its mouth.

[[Image:Liffeyeast.jpg|thumb|The [[Ha'penny Bridge]].]]

==Navigation and uses==
{{Further|History of Dublin|Dublin Port}}
The River Liffey in Dublin city has been used for many centuries for trade, from the [[Viking]] beginnings of the city up to recent times. It is connected to the [[River Shannon]] via the [[Grand Canal of Ireland|Grand Canal]] and the [[Royal Canal]]. There is no major navigation on the river itself above the [[East-Link (Dublin)|East-Link bridge]] in modern times, but shipping used to enter Dublin city centre, with major docking points up to the St James' Gate area.

Since its construction in 1978, the [[Talbot Memorial Bridge]] marks the furthest point up to the Liffey to which tall ships may travel, as all bridges downriver of it are either [[swingbridge]]s or [[Bascule bridge|bascule]].

===Water supply===
Around 60% of the Liffey's flow is abstracted for drinking water and to supply industry. Much of this makes its way back into the river after purification in wastewater treatment plants. Despite a misconception that the Guinness brewery is one such commercial user,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/is-it-made-with-liffey-water-philip-enquires-of-guinness-26733840.html | work = Irish Independent | title = 'Is it made with Liffey water?' Philip enquires of Guinness | date = 18 May 2011 | access-date = 21 August 2017 | archive-date = 21 August 2017 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170821050401/http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/is-it-made-with-liffey-water-philip-enquires-of-guinness-26733840.html | url-status = live }}</ref> the facility uses water piped from the [[Wicklow Mountains]].<ref name="urlThe Beer">{{cite web |url=https://www.guinness.com/en-ie/frequently-asked-questions/ |title=Frequently Asked Questions |publisher = Guinness.com |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170611011934/https://www.guinness.com/en-ie/frequently-asked-questions/ |archive-date=11 June 2017 | quote = "''[I]s Guinness made with water from the River Liffey? [..] No. While [..] situated on the banks of the River Liffey [..] the water used [..] comes from the Wicklow mountains''" }}</ref>

===Electricity generation===
[[Electricity Supply Board|ESB]] [[hydroelectricity|hydroelectric]] power stations exist along the river, at [[Poulaphouca]], [[Golden Falls hydroelectric power station|Golden Falls]] and [[Leixlip]], in addition to a number of minor private installations.

===Traffic===
[[File:DUBLIN(1837) p131 SARAH'S BRIDGE, ON THE RIVER ANNA LIFFEY.jpg|thumb|"Sarah's Bridge on the River Anna Liffey" (1831) Sarah's Bridge is today called [[Island Bridge]]. The then-new [[Wellington Monument, Dublin|Wellington Monument]] is seen on the left]]
A well-known sight on the Liffey up to the 1990s, the ''Lady Patricia''<ref name="guinnessboats">{{cite web | url = http://www.irishships.com/guinness_boats.htm | publisher = IrishShips.com | title = Background on the Guinness boats on the Liffey | archive-url = https://archive.today/20060319215736/http://www.irishships.com/guinness_boats.htm | archive-date = 19 March 2006 | url-status = dead }}</ref> and ''Miranda Guinness''<ref name="guinnessboats"/> [[cargo ship]]s were used to export [[Guinness]] from the [[St. James's Gate Brewery]].

As of the early 21st century, the only regular traffic on the river within the city is the ''Liffey Voyage'' water tour bus service, which runs guided tours along the River Liffey through Dublin City centre. Departing from the boardwalk downstream of the [[Ha'penny Bridge]], the ''Spirit of the Docklands'' was built by ''Westers Mekaniska'' in [[Sweden]] as a 50-passenger [[water taxi]]. Its variable [[ballast tanks]] (not unlike a [[submarine]]) and low [[air draft (nautical)|air draught]] mean that at [[low tide]] it can float high, but at [[high tide]] it can ride low and still pass below the Liffey's bridges.

Downstream of the East-Link bridge, the river is still mainly used for commercial and ferry traffic, with some recreational use also. High speed trips out the mouth of the Liffey were also previously available from Sea Safari.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.seasafari.ie | publisher = Sesafari.ie | title = Sea Safari | access-date = 20 August 2017 | quote = "''Tours Suspended for 2016''" | archive-date = 13 June 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060613184924/http://seasafari.ie/ | url-status = live }}</ref>

===Recreational use===
[[Image:LiffeySwim.jpg|thumb|right|The 2007 Liffey Swim passes the [[Liffey Boardwalk]] ]]
Upstream from the city, at [[Chapelizod]], the river is used by private, university and [[Garda Síochána|Garda]] [[Sport rowing|rowing]] clubs.

The [[Liffey Descent Canoe Race]], held each year since 1960, covers a {{convert|27|km|mi|abbr=on}} course from [[Straffan]] to Islandbridge. The Normal Tidal Limit (NTL) of the river is Islandbridge (weir). [[The Liffey Swim]] takes place every year in late August or early September between Watling Bridge and [[The Custom House]]. The Islandbridge stretch of river accommodates a number of rowing clubs including Trinity College, UCD, [[Commercial Rowing Club Dublin|Commercial]], Neptune, and the Garda rowing club.

The Liffey is widely used for recreational activities – such as canoeing, rafting,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.iww.ie/river_guide/river.php?id=246 | publisher = IrishWhitewater | website = IWW.ie | title = Liffey River – River Guide | access-date = 21 August 2017 | archive-date = 19 March 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190319205738/https://www.iww.ie/river_guide/river.php?id=246 | url-status = live }}</ref> fishing, swimming, significant facilities are at [[Poulaphouca]], [[Kilcullen]], [[Newbridge, County Kildare|Newbridge]], where a seven-acre Liffey Linear Park has been developed, and other facilities are located further downriver at [[Leixlip]] and other towns.

==Crossings==

===History===
The earliest stone bridge over the Liffey in Dublin of which there is solid evidence was the Bridge of Dublin, which replaced a wooden bridge, Dubhghall's Bridge, dating to the 11th century, and was in turn replaced – the site is now occupied by [[Fr. Mathew Bridge]]).  The Bridge of Dublin was built by the Dominicans in [[1428 in Ireland|1428]], and survived well into the 18th century.<ref name="PhillipsHamilton">{{cite report | url= http://www.berthamilton.com/13329.pdf | title= Project history of Dublin's River Liffey bridges | work= Bridge Engineering 156 Issue BE4 | publisher= Phillips & Hamilton | date= December 2003 | pages= 161–179 | access-date= 20 August 2017 | archive-date= 12 August 2017 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170812060126/http://www.berthamilton.com/13329.pdf | url-status= dead }}</ref> This four-arch bridge included various buildings such as a chapel, bakehouse and possibly an inn.<ref>{{cite book|author=Liffey Bridges Survey team|title=The Liffey bridges from Islandbridge to Eastlink: A historical and technical report|page=4|year=1987|publisher=Liberties Association}}</ref> [[Island Bridge]] (a predecessor of the current bridge) was added in 1577 at the upper tidal extremities of the river between Islandbridge and western Chapelizod.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}

With the development of commercial Dublin in the 17th century, four new bridges were added in Dublin between 1670 and 1684: Barrack, or Bloody Bridge, (the forerunner of the current [[Rory O'More Bridge]]), Essex Bridge ([[Grattan Bridge]]), Ormond Bridge ([[O'Donovan Rossa Bridge]]) and Arran Bridge. Flooding in December 1801 following 36 hours of rain destroyed the oldest bridge which connected [[Church Street, Dublin|Church Street]] and [[Bridge Street, Dublin|Bridge Street]]. It was replaced with Whitworth Bridge in 1816.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Maxwell |first=Constantia |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1244738727 |title=Dublin under the Georges : 1714-1830 |date=1997 |publisher=Lambay Books |isbn=0708944973 |location=Dublin |pages=144 |oclc=1244738727}}</ref>

The oldest bridge still standing is [[Mellows Bridge]], (originally Queens Bridge) constructed in 1764 on the site of Arran Bridge, which was destroyed by floods in 1763. The first iron bridge was the [[Ha'penny Bridge]] built in 1816. [[Farmleigh Bridge]], also iron, was built around 1872 at the end of a tunnel and connected [[Farmleigh|Farmleigh estate]] to [[Palmerstown]].<ref>{{cite web|title=IrishCycle.com Guinness Bridge/Silver Bridge|url=http://irishcycle.com/2015/09/30/call-for-guinness-bridge-over-liffey-to-be-reopened-as-part-of-greenway/|access-date=3 December 2016|archive-date=19 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019144734/http://irishcycle.com/2015/09/30/call-for-guinness-bridge-over-liffey-to-be-reopened-as-part-of-greenway/|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Millennium Bridge (Dublin)|Millennium Bridge]] was opened in December 1999, and 21st century additions include [[Seán O'Casey Bridge]] (2005), [[Samuel Beckett Bridge]] (2009),<ref name="open">{{cite web | url = http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2009/1211/breaking4.htm | work = The Irish Times | title = Samuel Beckett Bridge opens | date = 11 December 2009 | access-date = 27 January 2011 | archive-date = 25 December 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181225181542/https://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2009/1211/breaking4.htm%20 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="corpo">{{cite web|url = http://www.dublincity.ie/RoadsandTraffic/MajorTransportProjects/Pages/Samuel%20Beckett%20Bridge.aspx | publisher = Dublin City Council | title = Samuel Beckett Bridge| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110809022550/http://www.dublincity.ie/RoadsandTraffic/MajorTransportProjects/Pages/Samuel%20Beckett%20Bridge.aspx | archive-date = 9 August 2011 }}</ref> and [[Rosie Hackett Bridge]] (2014).<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/rosie-hackett-bridge-to-open-at-6am-tomorrow-1.1802827|title=Rosie Hackett Bridge to open at 6am tomorrow|work=The Irish Times|date=20 May 2014|access-date=20 August 2017|archive-date=16 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116085145/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/rosie-hackett-bridge-to-open-at-6am-tomorrow-1.1802827|url-status=live}}</ref>

There are records regarding several bridges in County Kildare. A bridge was built in Kilcullen in 1319.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kilcullen Bridge – Kildare Local History . ie |url=http://kildarelocalhistory.ie/kilcullen/history-of-kilcullen/kilcullen-bridge/ |publisher=Kildare Federation of Local History Groups |access-date=18 June 2021 |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624200816/http://kildarelocalhistory.ie/kilcullen/history-of-kilcullen/kilcullen-bridge/ |url-status=live }}</ref> There are also a number of historic private and disused bridges over the Liffey. One such stone bridge, at Harristown Estate in County Kildare, was built for John LaTouche in 1788.<ref>{{cite web|url =https://irishhistorichouses.com/2020/09/27/harristown-brannockstown-county-kildare|title =Harristown, Brannockstown, County Kildare – Irish Historic Houses|date =27 September 2020|access-date =18 June 2021|archive-date =27 June 2021|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20210627210611/https://irishhistorichouses.com/2020/09/27/harristown-brannockstown-county-kildare/|url-status =live}}</ref> This remains in private use and is near the disused Harristown viaduct (over the Liffey) which was on the Sallins Tullow rail line and was last used in 1959.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}

===Present day===
[[Image:Ship Jeanie Johnston at River Liffey.jpg|thumb|left|Ship [[Jeanie Johnston]] at River Liffey.]]
{{See also|List of Dublin bridges and tunnels}}
Dividing the [[Northside (Dublin)|Northside]] of Dublin from the [[Southside (Dublin)|Southside]], the Liffey is today spanned by numerous bridges, mostly open to vehicular traffic. These include the [[West-Link|West-Link Bridge]] on the [[M50 motorway (Ireland)|M50 motorway]], [[Seán Heuston Bridge]] and [[O'Connell Bridge]]. There are 3 pedestrian bridges in the city: the [[Millennium Bridge (Dublin)|Millennium Bridge]], [[Seán O'Casey Bridge]] and the [[Ha'penny Bridge]]. 21st century additions include the [[Samuel Beckett Bridge]] (2009) and [[James Joyce Bridge]] (2003), both designed by [[Santiago Calatrava]].

Crossings further upriver include the Liffey Bridge at [[Celbridge]], "The Bridge at 16" (a 19th-century pedestrian suspension bridge at what is now the [[K Club]]), and the Leinster Aqueduct – which carries the Grand Canal over the Liffey at [[Caragh]].<ref name="River Liffey Information"/>

Art works along the river and its quays include the Famine Memorial Statues (near the [[International Financial Services Centre, Dublin|IFSC]]) and the World Hunger Stone.<ref>{{cite book| author= Kaufman, R | date = 2014| title = Kaufman Green Guide Dublin| page = 132| asin = B00OR0W1QK}}</ref>

==Quays==
{{See also|Dublin quays}}
The song about ''Seamus Rafferty'' refers to the "bowsies on the quay"; However, from the late 20th-century there was some renewed development on the quays, with the addition of linear parks and overhanging [[boardwalk]]s.

There are quays on the north and south banks of the Liffey, extending from the weir at Islandbridge to Ringsend bridge over the river Dodder, just before the East-Link toll bridge.

From west to east, the quays on the north bank are:
:Bridgewater, Wolfe Tone, Sarsfield, Ellis, Arran, Inns, Ormond Upper, Ormond Lower, Bachelors Walk, [[Eden Quay|Eden]], Custom House, and North Wall.

From west to east, the quays on the south bank are:
:Victoria, Usher's Island, Usher's, Merchants, Wood, Essex, Wellington, Crampton, Aston, Burgh, George's, City, Sir John Rogerson's, and Great Britain.

{{wide image|Liffey 180° panorama from south key to north.jpg|2000px|align-cap=center|A panoramic view of Bachelors Walk taken from the opposite side, Aston Quay}}

==Annalistic references==
In the [[Annals of Inisfallen]] for the year 808, an entry reads:
:''AI808.2 A defeat [inflicted] by the [[Laigin]] on [[Áed Oirdnide|Áed, son of Niall]], at the river of Liphe.''

==Popular culture references==
[[Image:Duclin Liffey Dark 2008.jpg|thumb|right|Liffey quays at dusk]]
[[Image:LiffeySunset.jpg|thumb|upright|The River Liffey at sunset]]
From [[James Joyce|Joyce]] to [[Radiohead]], the Liffey is often referenced in literature and song:
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote="riverrun, past [[Adam and Eve's, Merchant Quay|Eve and Adam's]], from swerve of shore to bend of bay, brings us by a commodius vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle and Environs."
|source=[[James Joyce]], ''[[Finnegans Wake]]'' (1939) (first sentence of novel).
|}}
That is the first of a number of references to the Liffey in the [[Finnegans Wake|Wake]]: insofar as the book has characters, the female protagonist of the novel, [[Anna Livia Plurabelle]], is herself an allegory of the river.
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote=A skiff, a crumpled throwaway, Elijah is coming, rode lightly down the Liffey, under [[Loopline Bridge]], shooting the rapids where water chafed around the bridgepiers, sailing eastward past hulls and anchorchains, between [[the Custom House]] old dock and George's quay.
|source=[[James Joyce]], ''[[Ulysses (novel)|Ulysses]]'' (1922)
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote=She asked that it be named for her. – The river took its name from the land. – the land took its name from the woman.
|source=[[Eavan Boland]], ''Anna Liffey'' (1997)
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote=That there, that's not me – I go where I please – I walk through walls, I float down the Liffey – I'm not here, this isn't happening
|source=[[Radiohead]], ''"[[How to Disappear Completely]]" from album [[Kid A]]'' (2000)
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote=O'h I've seen her face and I touched a dream, And made love down by the Liffey. Flow Liffey waters, flow gently to the sea. Flow Liffey waters flow, and sing and dance for me.
|source=[[The Wolfe Tones]], ''"Flow Liffey Waters"''
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote="Somebody once said that 'Joyce has made of this river the Ganges of the literary world,' but sometimes the smell of the Ganges of the literary world is not all that literary."
|source=[[Brendan Behan]], ''[[Confessions of an Irish Rebel]]''
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote="No man who has faced the Liffey can be appalled by the dirt of another river."
|source=[[Iris Murdoch]], ''[[Under the Net]]'' (1954)
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote="But the Angelus Bell o'er the Liffey's swell rang out through the foggy dew."
|source=Canon Charles O'Neill, ''[[The Foggy Dew (Irish ballad)|The Foggy Dew]]''
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote="You can keep your Michael Flatley with his tattoos on his chest<br />
Fare thee well, Sweet Anna Liffey, it's the Ganges I love best<br />
I found a place in India so far across the foam<br />
You can call me Punjab Paddy, boys, I'm never comin' home!"
|source=[[Gaelic Storm]], ''"Punjab Paddy from album [[How Are We Getting Home?]]"'' (2004)
|}}
{{Quote_box|width=95%|style=margin:5px;|align=center
|quote=Fare thee well sweet Anna Liffey, I can no longer stay<br />
I watch the new glass cages, that spring up along the quay<br />
My mind's too full of memories, too old to hear new chimes<br />
I'm part of what was Dublin in the rare ould times
|source=[[Pete St. John]], ''[[Rare Ould Times]]'' (1970s)
|}}

[[Image:Dublin riverside composite 01.jpg|thumb|center|600px|A view upstream from [[Grattan Bridge]], towards the [[Four Courts]] (the domed building), with Essex Quay and [[Wood Quay]] on the [[Stream bed|right bank]] (left of picture) and Upper Ormond Quay on the [[Stream bed|left bank]] (right of picture).]]

==See also==
{{Portal|Rivers}}
{{Commons category|River Liffey, Ireland}}
* [[HMS Liffey]]
* [[List of rivers of Ireland]]
* [[Rivers of Ireland]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Rivers of County Dublin|state=collapsed}}
{{IrishRivers|state=collapsed}}
{{Dublin Liffey Bridges}}
{{County Kildare}}

{{AttachedKML|display=title,inline}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liffey}}
[[Category:River Liffey (system)]]
[[Category:Rivers of County Wicklow]]
[[Category:Rivers of County Kildare]]
[[Category:Rivers of South Dublin (county)]]
[[Category:Rivers of Dublin (city)]]