The town of An Daingean Uí Cúis, County Kerry
Notes on Irish Placenames
Placenames in Ireland are both fascinating and controversial. As in most places in the world, the names of geographical features and communities in Ireland are descriptive in some manner. The controversial aspect concerns the degree to which English linguistic colonialism has corrupted the original names, in some instances making then not only meaningless but ridiculous as well.
Over the long run of its complex history, Ireland has been the home of many peoples and languages. Although Irish Gaelic (called simply "Irish" within Ireland) clearly dominates, other languages occasionally turn up. Dublin is an excellent example. The name of Ireland's capitol city is derived from dubh linn, meaning "black pool" and apparently referring to a favorite Norse anchorage on the River Liffey. But the Irish for the city is Baile Átha Cliath, meaning "town of the ford of the hurdles." Vikings also figure in the probable root for the name of the Blasket Islands, though to be derived from another Norse word referring to a reef or big rock.
But it is Irish and English that contend for the majority of Irish placenames. The conversion of the original Irish names into approximations that were easily pronounced by English speakers is illustrated by what is perhaps the most common transformation: the Irish baile (townland, village, home) into the English nonsense word bally. It is almost as if the original settlers of Massapequa, New York, had decided that it should hereafter be called Mossy Peaky. Bally-thises and Bally-thats now cover the Irish countryside.
English transliterations also often produce meaningless names. Abbeyfeale is an example. The English "abbey" sets the tone, but in the end takes us nowhere. The Irish, however, does a fine job: Mainister na Feale, "the monastery of the River Feale."
Dingle, in County Kerry, is also a victim of a linguistic mugging. The original and correct name of the town is An Daingean Uí Cúis, "the fortress of O'Cush." Dingle was apparently the closest the English could come to An Daingean. The situation is further complicated by the conjecture that "Cush" is a corruption of Hussey, the name of a Flemish family prominent in the area in late medieval times. The full and correct original is charmingly garbled in a once popular children's verse about a journey to "Dingly Cushy."
In most of Ireland, modern road signs will offer both the English and the Irish forms of placenames. In the west, in Gaeltacht areas, the signs may provide only the Irish. Early versions of the Ordnance Survey maps (Ireland's equivalent of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey) continued and even exacerbated the controversy, as even for Gaeltacht areas they were extremely stingy with the original, Irish-langauge placenames. Ironically, the Michelin map of Ireland, a French publication, was more generous with the correct Irish names.
The very limited glossary included below is intended to assist the visitor to begin to understand and appreciate Irish placenames. It is alphabetized according to the original Irish word, followed by the meaning of the word in italics, and in turn followed by examples in which the Irish appears first and the English is always enclosed in parentheses. Sometimes one or the other will appear alone. For reasons of compaction the counties of the examples have been omitted.
Concise Glossary...
abhainn, abha river, Abhainn an Scáil (Annascaul), Abhainn Mór (Owenmore)
ard, aird high, Aird Mhór (Ardmore)
átha ford, Béal Atha
bán white, fair, Trá Bán
baile town, home, Baile Bhuirne (Ballyvourney)
barr top, Barr na Trá (Barnatra)
béal mouth, Béal na Átha Mhóir (Ballinamore), Béal Insc (Valentia Island)
bearna gap, Bearna (Barna)
beg, beag small, Na Cealla Beaga (Killybegs), Dún Beg (Dunbeg)
bin peak, mountain, Benbulben
bun end, bottom, An Bun Beg (Bunbeg), Bunn na hAbhna (Bunnahowen)
carraig stone, Carraig Airt (Carrigart), (Carrickfergus)
cathair stone fort, city, Cathair Mairtín, Caherdaniel
ceann head, headland, Cean Sleibhe (Slea Head), Cean Trá
cill church, Cill Airne (Killarney), Cill Dare (Kildare)
clar large field, Baile na Clare (Ballyclare)
cloch stone, An Cloch Mór (Cloghmore)
clochán stone, stepping stone, hut (Cloghane)
cluain meadow, Cluian Meala (Clonmel), Cluian Eois (Clones)
cnoc hill, Cnoc (Knock), Cnoc na Tobar (Kocknadobar)
coill wood, forest (Collooney)
com corrie, (Corrandulla)
coum hollow, (Coumeenole)
cruach peak, mountaintop, (Croagh), Cruach Mhartain
dearg red, Loch Dearg
doire oak woodland, (Derry), Doire Beag (Derrybeg)
droichead bridge, Droichead Nua, Droichead Átha (Drogheda)
droim ridge, (Dundrum, Drumfree)
dún fort, Dún Chaoin (Dunquin), Dún Mór (Dunmore)
dubh black, Dubh Linn (Dublin), An Rath Dubh (Rathduff)
eas waterfall, (Easky)
eisc bog, hollow, (Eask Tower)
fada long, (Carrigfadda)
fionn white, Fionnaithe (Finny)
gal foreigner, Baile na nGal (Ballynagall)
gaoth wind, Gaoth Dobhair (Gweedore)
glas green, Cill Glas (Killglass), (Glaslough)
gleann valley, Gleann na Gealt, Gleann Fahan
gort field, An Gort Mór (Gortmore)
inis island, peninsula, Inis Oirr (Inisheer, Ennis, Inch)
lios ringfort, Lios Póil (Lispole), Lios Mór
loch lake, Loch Nafooey, Loch a' Dúin (Lough Adoon)
lug, lag hollow, (Lugnaquillia Mt.)
mám pass, Mám Clasach
mín smooth, level, An Mhinaird (Minard)
mór large, big, An Blascaod Mór (Great Blasket), Trá Mhór (Tramore)
mullach summit, Mullach Mór (Mullaghmore)
nua new, An Caisleán Nua (Newcastle)
oileán island, Oileán Ciarraí (Castleisland)
rath large ringfort, Rath Droma (Rathdrum), (Rathmullen)
rinn point, promontory, An Rinn Bheag
rua red, An Ceathrú Rua (Carraroe)
sceilig rock, Sceilig Mhícheál (Skelling Michael)
sean ancient, old, An Seanchaisleán (Oldcastle)
sliabh mountain, hill, Sliabh an Iolair (Mount Eagle)
sráid street, Sráid Baile (Stradbally)
tir land, Tir na nÓg
tobar well, Tobar an Choire (Tobercurry)
tor high place, rock, Tor Mór (Toormore)
trá strand, beach Trá Clochair, Trá Bán
tulach low hill, Tulach Mór (Tullamore)