Contae an Dúin

County Down


County Down contains the easternmost point of Ireland, Burr Point. One could think it was lowlands, because of the name "down", but actually there are the granite Mourne Mountains, with the highest peak Slieve Donard (849 m asl). The name is derived from dún, the Irish word for dun or fort, which is a common root in Gaelic place names. The fort after which it was named was located in the historic town of Downpatrick, originally known as Dún Lethglaise which means "fort of the green side" or "fort of the two broken fetters".