Kinvara
Kinvara
Irish:Cinn Mhara | |
---|---|
Village | |
![]() Dunguaire Castle | |
Coordinates:53°08′20″N8°56′17″W/ 53.139°N 8.938°W | |
Country | Ireland |
Province | Connacht |
County | County Galway |
Elevation | 10 m (30 ft) |
Population | 721 |
Dialing code | 091 |
Irish Grid Reference | M369103 |
KinvaraorKinvarra(Irish:Cinn Mhara,meaning 'head of the sea')[2]is a sea port village in the southwest ofCounty Galway,Ireland.[3]It is located in thecivil parishof Kinvarradoorus in the north of thebaronyof Kiltartan.[4]Kinvarra is also anelectoral division.[5]
Geography
[edit]The village lies at the head of Kinvara Bay, known in Irish asCinn Mhara(or more recentlyCuan Cinn Mhara), an inlet in the south-eastern corner ofGalway Bay,from which the village took its name. It lies in the north of the barony ofKiltartan,close to the border withThe BurreninCounty Clare,in the province ofMunster.
Thetownlandof Kinvarra lies in thecivil parishof Kinvarradoorus.[6]This civil parish is bounded on the north byGalway Bay,on the east by the parishes ofBallinderreen(Killeenavarra) andArdrahan,on the south by the parishes ofGort(Kilmacduagh) andBoston(Kilkeedy) and on the west by the parishes ofCarronandNew Quay(AbbeyandOughtmama). It is roughly coextensive with the Ó hEidhin territory ofCoill Ua bhFiachrach(wood of the Uí Fhiachrach),[citation needed]and this name was still in use in the mid-19th century as recorded byJohn O'Donovanin his Ordnance Survey letters.[citation needed]
History
[edit]Early history
[edit]Evidence of ancient settlement in the area include a number ofpromontory fortandring fortsites in the surroundingtownlandsof Dungory West, Ballybranagan and Loughcurra North.[7][8]There are similar sites, as well as the ruins oflime kilnand 18th centurywindmill,within Kinvarra townland itself.[7][9]
Dunguaire Castle
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Dunloe_Castle.jpg/220px-Dunloe_Castle.jpg)
Dunguaire Castle (Irish:Dún Guaire[lit,the Castle of Guaire]), a 16th-century towerhouse of theÓ hEidhin(O'Hynes) clan, is located to the east of the village.[10]A Fearadhach Ó hEidhin (Faragh O'Hynes) is recorded as the owner of the castle in a 1574 list of castles and their owners coveringCounty Galway.This list was thought to have been compiled for the use of theLord DeputySir Henry Sidneywho planned the composition of Connacht.[citation needed]
Mass rock
[edit]The Poulnegan Altar, aMass rocklocated near Kinvara, is known inConnaught IrishasPoll na gCeann( "chasm of the heads" ) and is said to have been the location of a massacre by the soldiers ofOliver Cromwell'sNew Model Army.Historian Tony Nugent states that, "According to local tradition, there was a college nearby and some of the student monks were killed there by Cromwellian soldiers while attendingMassand their heads were thrown into a nearby chasm ".[11]
Terry Alts
[edit]TheTerry Alts,an Irish agrarian secret society of the early 19th century, was active in the Kinvara area.[citation needed]In 1831, a large group of Terry Alts gathered between Kinvara and New Quay on Abbey Hill in County Clare, and challenged government troops to battle. The group dispersed before the troops arrived. They also unsuccessfully attempted to ambush a detachment of soldiers at Corranroo in the west of the parish, which led to the death of one of their members.[citation needed]
Population
[edit]TheGreat Faminein the 1840s, and a series of emigrations that continued until the 1960s, reduced the population of the village – once a thriving port and exporter of corn and seaweed – to no more than a few hundred people.[citation needed]
In the 25 years between the 1991 and2016 census,the population of Kinvara increased by 170%, from 425 to 734 people.[12][13]
Religion
[edit]In the Catholic Church, theecclesiastical parishof Kinvara is part of theRoman Catholic Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora.[14]Churches within Kinvara parish include Saint Colman's Church (built 1819) and Saint Joseph's Church (built 1877).[15][16]Saint Joseph's Presbytery, formerly a convent, dates toc. 1875.[17]
Kinvara lies within theChurch of IrelandunitedDiocese of Limerick and Killaloe.
Festivals
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Kinvara_Cinn_Mhara.jpg/220px-Kinvara_Cinn_Mhara.jpg)
Kinvara is home every year to two festivals,Fleadh na gCuach( "cuckoo festival" ) anIrish traditional musicfestival at the start of May and theCruinniú na mBád( "gathering of the boats" ) in mid August.[18][19]
Sports
[edit]Kinvara is home toKinvara GAA,aGaelic Athletic Associationclub. The club is almost exclusively concerned withhurlingbut also playsGaelic footballat Junior level.
Notable people
[edit]- Ailbhe of Ceann Mhara,9th century cleric.[citation needed]
- Coman of Kinvara,early medieval saint.[citation needed]
- Francis Fahy,composer and poet, wrote the song "Galway Bay."[20]
- Celia Lynch,politician.[21]
- P. J. Mara,public affairs consultant and senator, was buried in Kinvara.[22]
- Peter Martyn,judge.[23]
- Eoghan Ó hEidhin,died 1340, King of Uí Fiachrach Aidhne.[citation needed]
- John Prine,American country folk singer-songwriter, had a home in Kinvara.[24]
- Mathilda Twomey,Chief Justice of the Seychelles, first female holder of that office.[25]
- Conor Whelan,hurler.[26]
- Máire Whelan,judge and 30thAttorney General of Irelandfrom 2011 to 2017; first woman to hold this position.[27]
See also
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
References
[edit]- ^"Profile 1 - Population Distribution and Movement F1015 - Population: Kinvara, Co. Galway".Central Statistics Office (Ireland).Retrieved21 July2023.
- ^"Cinn Mhara / Kinvarra (town)".logainm.ie.Placenames Database of Ireland.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Kinvarra, 1:50,000".osiemaps.ie.Ordnance Survey Ireland.Archived fromthe originalon 29 May 2010.
- ^"Kinvarradoorus civil parish".logainm.ie.Placenames Database of Ireland.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Cinn Mhara / Kinvarra (electoral division)".logainm.ie.Placenames Database of Ireland.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Kinvarra Townland, Co. Galway".townlands.ie.Retrieved13 March2022.
- ^abRecorded Monuments Protected under Section 12 of the National Monuments (Amendment) Act, 1994 - County Galway.Dublin: Archaeological Survey of Ireland. 1997.
- ^Westropp, T.J.(1919). "Notes on several forts in Dunkellin and other parts of southern Co. Galway".Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland(49): 167–86.
- ^"Windmill, Kinvarra (Kiltartan By), Kinvara, Galway".buildingsofireland.ie.National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Dunguaire Castle".Galway Tourism.2019.Retrieved15 December2019.
- ^Nugent, Tony (2013).Were You at the Rock? The History of Mass Rocks in Ireland.Liffey Press. p. 149.
- ^"Kinvara (Ireland) Census Town".City Population.Retrieved13 March2022.
- ^"Sapmap Area - Settlements - Kinvara".Census 2016.Central Statistics Office. April 2016.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Diocese of Galway & Kilmacduagh - Parishes - Kinvara".galwaydiocese.ie.Retrieved13 March2022.
- ^"Saint Colman's Church, Ballybranagan, Kinvara, Galway".buildingsofireland.ie.National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Saint Joseph's Church, Kinvarra (Kiltartan By), Kinvara, Galway".buildingsofireland.ie.National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Saint Joseph's Presbytery, Convent Road, Kinvarra (Kiltartan By), Kinvara, Galway".buildingsofireland.ie.National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^"Fleadh na gCuach – Kinvara".kinvara.com.Archived fromthe originalon 5 May 2003.Retrieved8 March2016.
- ^"Cruinniú na mBád – Kinvara".cruinniunambad.com.Retrieved8 March2016.
- ^Rouse, Paul (October 2009)."Fahy, Francis Arthur".dib.ie.Dictionary of Irish Biography.Retrieved13 March2022.
- ^"Path Breaking Women"(PDF).nuigalway.ie.NUI Galway. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 21 November 2017.Retrieved13 March2022.
- ^Siggins, Lorna."Former taoisigh among mourners at PJ Mara's burial".www.irishtimes.com.Retrieved6 November2020.
- ^Ball, F. Elrington (1926).The Judges in Ireland 1221-1921 (Volume 1).London: John Murray. p. 364.
- ^Breen, Joe (14 August 2017)."John Prine: 'The country music they play now is just bad pop'".irishtimes.com.Irish Times.Retrieved27 April2021.
[Prine] likes to spend time in this country and not just because he met his wife, Fiona, here. They have a cottage in Kinvara, Co Galway
- ^Corless, Nicholas."Kinvara woman new Chief Justice in Seychelles".The Clare Champion.Retrieved4 August2016.
- ^Farrell, Sinead (3 April 2020)."'They were proactive to stop the spread' - Galway star praises locals at home after spate of Covid-19 cases ".the42.ie.Retrieved27 April2021.
- ^Cullen, Paul (10 March 2011)."First female Attorney General a 'smart and able advocate'".The Irish Times.Retrieved27 April2021.