River Liffey

Dublin's name comes from the Gaelic for "dark pool," a reference to the tidal pond that lay at the confluence of the River Poddle and the Liffey (thanks, Wikipedia), not far from the Harding Hotel, where we were staying. From my very limited research, and a little estuarine intuition, the lower Liffey was probably wider and muddier at that time, but the city agradually closed in on it, filling out over tidelands until what was left was the fairly straight channel that now flows past Temple Bar. Until the 19th century, boats could apparently tie up along the quay well into this area.

Most cities are located along rivers and the rivers, and their bridges, often define them and add character. They also often divide cities into districts - in Dublin there are definitely history and stereotypes that divide those portions of the city north and south of the Liffey, though we heard that maybe some of those distinctions were getting a little fuzzy.