text: Newbridge, officially known by its Irish name Droichead Nua (), is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. While the nearby Great Connell Priory was founded in the 13th century, the town itself formed from the 18th century onwards, and grew rapidly alongside a military barracks which opened in the early 19th century. Taking on the name Newbridge (An Droichead Nua) in the 20th century, the town expanded to support the local catchment, and also as a commuter town for Dublin. Doubling in population during the 20 years between 1991 and 2011, its population of 24,366 in 2022 makes it the second largest town in Kildare and the sixteenth-largest in Ireland.
  Name
  The Irish language name of the town is the official name, "An Droichead Nua", meaning simply "The New Bridge" and was introduced in the 1930s. Noble and Keenan's map of Kildare 1752, drawn before the town was started, marks 'The New Bridge' in the vicinity of 'Old Connel'. A number of other places marked on this map, including Ballymany and Morristown Biller, are represented in the names of modern housing estates and streets.
  History