In Ancient Times
Wicklow in the Ice Age
This is a map of what Wicklow would have been like during the Ice Age, 10,000 years ago. At their greatest extent the ice sheets covered most of the Wicklow area. As the melt began, they seperated into mountain glaciers and lowland ice sheets.
Courtesy of Wicklow County LibrariesWicklow in the Ice Age
Courtesy of Wicklow County Libraries
Courtesy of Wicklow County Libraries
Wicklow in the Ice Age
This is a map of what Wicklow would have been like during the Ice Age, 10,000 years ago. At their greatest extent the ice sheets covered most of the Wicklow area. As the melt began, they seperated into mountain glaciers and lowland ice sheets.
Courtesy of Wicklow County LibrariesThe earliest recorded mention of Wicklow is in the writings of the Greek cartographer Ptolemy in around 130 AD. The site of today's town of Wicklow is thought to be Manapia on his charts.
Long-distance travel was very dangerous and expensive at this time. As a result, Ptolemy could not travel to Wicklow to make a map of the area.
Instead, he used sources in the library of Alexandria in Egypt, which came from ancient Greek astronomers, mathematicians and geographical writers.
The Origin of the Name Wicklow
The name Wicklow probably comes from the old Viking word 'Vykyngelo', which means 'meadow of the Vikings'.
The Irish name for Wicklow is Cill Mhantáin. The story goes that when St. Patrick tried to land his ships in the area, his party was attacked by locals. One of St. Patrick's party had a tooth knocked out in the fight. Then, when he returned later to set up a church there, he was given the name Manntach (toothless one). After that, the area was called 'Cill Mhantáin', meaning 'church of the toothless one'.
The Normans, who came to dominate the area more than 600 years later, preferred the non-Gaelic placename. They used the name Wicklow, which survives to this day.