River Slaney

River Slaney
River Slaney at Stratford-on-Slaney
Map of the rivers of southeast Ireland
EtymologyOld Irish sláine, "health"[1][2]
Native name
  • An tSláine (Irish)
  • Abhainn na Sláine (Irish)
Location
CountryIreland
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationLugnaquilla, County Wicklow
 • elevation549 metres (1,801 ft)
MouthIrish Sea
 • location
Wexford Harbour, County Wexford
Length117.5 kilometres (73.0 mi)
Basin size1,762 square kilometres (680 sq mi)
Discharge 
 • average37 m3/s (1,300 cu ft/s)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftRiver Derreen, River Derry, River Bann, River Ballyedmond, River Sow
 • rightBrowns Beck Brook, River Clody, River Urrin, River Boro

The River Slaney (/ˈsln/; Irish: An tSláine)[3] is a large river in the southeast of Ireland. It rises on Lugnaquilla Mountain in the western Wicklow Mountains and flows west and then south through counties Wicklow, Carlow and Wexford for 117.5 km (73 mi),[4] before entering St George's Channel in the Irish Sea at Wexford town. The estuary of the Slaney is wide and shallow and is known as Wexford Harbour. The catchment area of the River Slaney is 1,762 km2.[5] The long-term average flow rate of the River Slaney is 37.4m3/s[5]

Towns that the Slaney runs through include Stratford-on-Slaney, Baltinglass, Tullow, Bunclody, Enniscorthy and Wexford. The river is crossed by 32 road bridges and one railway bridge.[6]

  1. ^ "The Slaney – IWAI".
  2. ^ "sláine". eDIL (An Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language). 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  3. ^ "An tSláine/River Slaney". logainm.ie. Retrieved 24 November 2022.
  4. ^ Ordnance Survey of Ireland: Rivers and their Catchment Basins 1958 (Table of Reference)
  5. ^ a b South Eastern River Basin District Management System. Page 38 Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ Duffy, John. River Slaney, from source to sea, 2006, ISBN 978-0-9554184-0-2, p.30