Physical Region
The South-East region, although straddling the provincial boundary between Leinster and Munster, is a homogenous and compact geographical entity consisting essentially of the catchment areas of four rivers - the Slaney, the Barrow, the Nore and the Suir. The region comprises the five counties of Carlow, Kilkenny, South Tipperary, Waterford and Wexford. The region has an area of 9,406 sq. kms. which is about 13.5% of the area of the state. It has a population of 460,838 or about 10.9% of the national population.
The South-East is a region of unrivalled beauty, rich in historic and archaeological treasures and abounding in excellent natural amenities, recreation and leisure facilities. It is a visitor's paradise and it provides its people with a superb natural environment and rich quality of life. Because of the high average daily hours of sunshine that the region enjoys, it is universally known as "The Sunny South-East".
The South-East region is predominantly rural in character with the main urban centres being Waterford City, Kilkenny City and the towns of Carlow, Wexford and Clonmel. The region has a well balanced urban structure with the main urban centre in each of its five counties having a population exceeding 17,000. In addition, it has a range of smaller towns and villages evenly distributed across the region as well as a strong rural settlement pattern. Waterford Waterford
City/Town
County
Population (2006)
Kilkenny
Carlow
Wexford
Clonmel
Tramore
Enniscorthy
Dungarvan
New Ross
Gorey
Carrick-on-Suir
Tipperary
Cahir
Tullow
Cashel
Bagenalstown
Bunclody/Carrickduff
Thomastown
Callan
Castlebridge
Dunmore East
Castlecomer
Kilkenny
Carlow
Wexford
South Tipperary
Waterford
Wexford
Waterford
Wexford
Wexford
South Tipperary
South Tipperary
South Tipperary
Carlow
South Tipperary
Carlow
Wexford/Carlow
Kilkenny
Kilkenny
Wexford
Waterford
Kilkenny49,213
22,179
20,724
18,163
17,008
9,634
9,538
8,362
7,709
7,193
5,906
5,065
3,381
3,048
2,936
2,735
1,863
1,837
1,771
1,624
1,547
1,531
