Athy

Athy is a market town situated at the convergence of the River Barrow and the Grand Canal in County Kildare, Ireland, 72 kilometers southwest of Dublin. A population of 10,490 (2011 Census (preliminary results) makes it the sixth largest town in Kildare and the 50th largest in the Republic of Ireland, with a growth rate of 58% since the 2002 census. The town is named after a 2nd century chieftain Ae, who is said to have been killed on the river crossing, thus giving the town its name "the town by Ae's ford".