Featured themes

Date: 13/09/2025

Continuing on the theme of harvest in the month of September, or Meán Fómhair in Irish, literally “the middle of harvest(-time)”, one of the best known placenames referring to coirce “oats” is surely Gort an Choirce “the field of oats”, where so many spent time in the Donegal Gaeltacht during their youth (see logainm.ie: #14446). Exactly the same name is behind anglicised Gortahork and Gortacorka in Leitrim as well as translated Oatfield in Clare. Aghincurk/Achadh an Choirce in Antrim also means “the field of the oats”. Oatfield in Galway is a mistranslation of Corr an Choirce “the round hill of the oats”, which also happens to be the original Irish form of Corrycorka in Longford. Both Knockhurka in Sligo and Knockaquirk in Wicklow are from Cnoc an Choirce “the hill of the oats”, while Taobh an Choirce/Tiveachorky “the hillside of the oats” in Donegal also refers to the frequent cultivation of oats on elevated ground as, apparently, does Tomacork/Tom an Choirce “the bush, hillock of the oats” in Wicklow. However, this is not always the case, as we also have Inchincurka/Inse an Choirce “the holm of the oats” in Cork. In Wicklow we have Coolacork/Cúil an Choirce “the nook, recess of the oats”, and there is also Tirchorka/Tír an Choirce “the land of the oats” in Meath.

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• Gort an Choirce/Gortahork

Date: 06/09/2025

As we enter the month of September, or Meán Fómhair in Irish, literally “the middle of harvest(-time)”, it’s interesting to note that there are much fewer townland names in Ireland which contain cruithneacht “wheat”, than those containing coirce “oats”, eorna “barley” or seagal “rye”. This clearly implies that the other varieties of grain were more important than cruithneacht/wheat in the native Irish diet.

One placename containing a reference to cruithneacht/wheat is Córrán na Cruithneachta “the rounded-hill, edge, projecting point of the wheat” near Camolin in County Wexford, although it is hidden behind the unrelated English name Whitewell which refers to a ‘holy well’ located in this townland (see logainm.ie #52805). One of the other townland names referring to cruithneacht/wheat is Tullanacrunat/Tulaigh na Cruithneachta “the hillock of the wheat” in Monaghan (#39761), and elsewhere in Ulster we find Tullycreenaght/Tulaigh Chruithneachta “(the) mound of wheat” as well as Wheathill/Gort na Cruithneachta “the field of the wheat” (see logainm.ie: #63034; #59256). The English name Wheathill in Fermanagh is a partial translation of Gort na Cruithneachta “the field of the wheat” (see here). It is quite noticeable that most townland names containing cruithneacht/wheat refer to elevated locations, which may come from the need for wheat to be grown better drained and airy locations.

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• Corrán na Cruithneachta/Whitewell
• Gort na Cruithneachta/Wheathill
• Tulaigh Chruithneachta/Tullycreenaght

Date: 01/09/2025

Since its inception in the 1930s, the National Ploughing Championships has grown exponentially to become rural Ireland’s largest annual event, attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors over the course of the week. This year ‘The Ploughing’ is being held in the townland of An Screagán / Screggan (logainm.ie #1166663) in the civil parish of Lainn Eala / Lynally in Co. Offaly. Unlike the latter placename – more of which below – An Screagán simply describes the quality of the land. Formed on the word screag, using what we might call the ‘toponymic’ suffix -án, it denotes an area or patch of rough, rocky or stony ground. The ending -án normally operates as a diminutive – essentially X + -án means ‘little X’ – but in placenames it tends to indicate an area characterized by the word to which the suffix is attached. Therefore, screagán, although it could mean ‘little screag’, more likely conveys the meaning ‘screag-place’. (Compare bogán – a word of frequent occurrence in placenames – which means ‘(area of) soft ground’, formed from the adjective bog.) The word screagán is a variant of creagán – itself a diminutive of creag ‘rock’ (eDIL s.v. crec) – and is explained in dictionaries as a ‘rocky eminence’ or ‘(patch of) stony, barren, ground’ (FGB s.v. screagán; cf. eDIL s.v. screc). The most well-known example is probably the parish of An Creagán / Creggan (logainm.ie #2734; cf. PNNI) in Co. Armagh, subject of a famous Irish poem by Art Mac Cumhaidh (sung here by a local native speaker in the same year as the first Ploughing Championship).

A place called An Screagán / Screggan ‘(patch of) stony, barren, ground’ does not, on the face of it, seem like the best location for a ploughing competition (although we have a ready-made theme tune in another fine song, ‘The Rocks of Bawn’). Doing a little digging of our own, we find that the name An Screagán did not necessarily originally refer to the whole of the modern townland of Screggan. In fact, the wonderfully useful subsoil maps provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPAMaps) show that the southwestern half of Screggan consists of limestone gravel with limestone till in the northeastern half. It is just over the townland boundary to the east that we find two patches of surface bedrock, the feature to which An Screagán most likely originally referred. The townland in which this rocky area is located is called Mucklagh / An Muclach ‘the place of pigs; piggery’, a name which refers to how the land was used rather than its topography. The development of placenames from their original literal meaning is a fascinating topic in itself, but is a discussion for another day.

Deriving straightforwardly from a description of the land, Screggan in Co. Offaly is not the only townland name containing screagán, although examples are not very numerous. Anyone who has visited the Rock of Cashel in Co. Tipperary, located in the townland officially called Saint Patricksrock / Carraig Phádraig (#47551), will have been struck by the surface bedrock in and around the ecclesiastical site. It will come as no surprise to learn that the name of the rocky ground just below the church to the north is Scraggaun / An Screagán (#47524). Scriggan in Co. Derry – another example of An Screagán – seems to refer to a similar rocky feature (see placenamesni.org). However, it is the synonymous creagán (and its other variants) that prevails in townland names, to the extent that we could not possibly list all the examples here.

Our Screggan, the site of this year’s Ploughing Championship, is located in the civil parish of Lynally, the name of which is an anglicization of Lainn Eala ‘church of (the) swan’. The first element of that name is very interesting: it is related to the word llann which features so prominently in the toponymy of Wales. As to the second element, it derives from the name of the founding saint of the parish, Colmán Eala. This saint was very famous in the native Irish ecclesiastical tradition (see P. Ó Riain, A Dictionary of Irish Saints), to the extent that there exist a number of different Irish accounts of his life. Some of these attempt to explain the origin of the epithet Eala (see in Bethada Náem nÉrenn: ‘Betha Cholmain Eala annso’). A version of the genealogical background of this Colmán is provided, along with an account of his arrival in the territory in which he founded Lainn Eala. We are told that there was a lake here called Loch Eala ‘lake of (the) swan’, which neither man nor animal would dare approach because it was guarded by a wicked beast, conveniently called Lainn. [Peist urcoidech do bí i lLoch Eala … ni lamhadh duine na ainmide dol a n-gaire don loch ar a h-ecla … dob e comhainm na peiste-sin .i. Lainn]. Colmán summoned the aid of various saints and clerics, who decapitated the beast named Lainn and buried its remains in the newly consecrated graveyard. The lake in which Lainn lived was already called Loch Eala, let us not forget, but to drive the point home more swans arrived at the new church to sing soothing songs for the saints. Thus the placename Lainn Eala is explained. (For further references to this place in Irish sources see E-Onomasticon s.n. lann elo.)

As often happens in early Irish literature, we are left wondering whether Loch Eala was a real place or whether it was merely a literary creation. A sceptic would look at the present-day townland of Lynally Glebe / Lainn Eala (#42263) – where there is no lake – and scoff at the Irish story. But we will return to the scientific analysis of the EPA maps: this townland contains a very large area of alluvial soil stretching into the surrounding townlands, between the modern courses of the Tullamore River and the river Clodiagh. Indeed, the land just north of the ruins in Lynally are described as Flooded Bottoms on the first edition of the Ordnance Survey 6ʺ map. It is plausible that this is the site of the historical Loch Eala, and that the lake was gradually drained over the years. (Note that the EPA maps show that the little lake beside Mucklagh was also far larger once upon a time.)

As happens every now and again with these placename notes, there is a serious point to be made here. Rewetting is often considered as a measure to alleviate the risk of flooding; areas like this – where the former existence of natural lakes and wetlands are revealed by a combination of placename research and modern-day soil maps – might be prime candidates. However, if you have ever been to the Ploughing Championship down the years, you will know that it can be wet enough in September. Maybe it is just as well that the ploughing match will take place on the hard ground of An Screagán after all, and not the area once covered by Loch Eala and its horrible monster.

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• An Screagán/Screggan

Date: 30/08/2025

The name of the townlands Ballyboggan North and Ballyboggan South in the old civil parish of Finglas – situated between modern Cabra, Glasnevin and Finglas – have been in the news recently. Earlier this year, a planned urban regeneration development in the area was described in an Irish Times editorial as having been given ‘the unlovely working title of Ballyboggan after a little-known local road’ (Irish Times (24-04-2025), our emphasis). Predictably, this comment sparked a discussion about the name of the development. A submission was forwarded to the local authority (Dublin City Council) suggesting that the name be changed from Ballyboggan to Hamilton, ‘after Ireland’s greatest mathematician, William Rowan Hamilton’ (see Submission: William Rowan-Hamilton). This submission noted that the bridge at Broombridge had been renamed Hamilton Bridge in 1958, and that in 2014 the then Minister of Transport announced that the name of the new Luas Depot would be Broombridge-Hamilton Depot. It could have gone further and mentioned the six streetnames in the vicinity of Broombridge that also commemorate the same eminent figure: Rowan Hamilton Court and Hamilton Square in Cabra; Hamilton Rise, Hamilton Way, Hamilton Walk and Hamilton View in Ashtown. It is safe to say that the official urban toponymy of the area has not been neglecting William Rowan Hamilton. Nevertheless, as the Irish Times now reports, the council seems to have changed the name of the new development to ‘Broombridge-Hamilton’ (Irish Times (23-08-2025), to go along with the six streets, the bridge and the Luas depot already bearing his name, giving us a scarcely imaginable number of nine (9) features named in his memory locally.

So why, exactly, would the placename Ballyboggan be considered so ‘unlovely’? Let us look at its underlying Irish form. The Irish versions of the administrative townland names Ballyboggan South and Ballyboggan North were declared as Baile Bogáin Theas and Baile Bogáin Thuaidh, respectively, in the Placenames (Co. Dublin) Order 2011, made by the then Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht under Part 5 of the Official Languages Act 2003. This order was based on research carried out by An Brainse Logainmneacha / The Placenames Branch (nowadays a section of the Department of Community and Rural Development and the Gaeltacht). Before the Minister signed the draft order, it was scrutinized by An Coimsiún Logainmneacha / The Placenames Commission and then submitted to the public for a three-month consultation period. (Note that no submissions were received in respect of Baile Bogáin Thuaidh and Baile Bogáin Theas during the public consultation period.)

As to the placename itself, the elements North and South represent a late administrative subdivision made by the Ordnance Survey in the 1840s, and of course the underlying placename we need to look at is simply Baile Bogáin / Ballybogan. The evidence is not entirely straightforward, but the Placenames Commission ultimately concluded that it was best reconciled with the Irish form Baile Bogáin ‘town(land) of/at (the) soft ground’. This is not the only interpretation possible. For instance, the groundbreaking Irish scholar John O’Donovan – who, at the current count, has only one (1) single street named in his honour in Dublin – suggested ‘baile an bhogáin’ [Baile an Bhogáin] ‘the town(land) of the soft ground’ when he analysed the name for the Ordnance Survey in 1840. This differs only slightly from the modern official form Baile Bogáin, which interprets the overall historical evidence – including references unavailable to O’Donovan in 1840 – as lacking support for the Irish genitive article an with required lenition of the initial consonant of gen. bogáin. As the members of the Placenames Commission were well aware, both of the features just mentioned are often omitted in anglicization, and as is so often the case they had to make a judgement call on which form to recommend in the draft placenames order presented for public consultation. Another derivation that had to be taken into account was Baile Uí Bhogáin ‘the town(land) of Ó Bogáin’, containing the Irish surname usually anglicized Boggan, but in that case again lenition of the initial of the final element would be anticipated.

The decisions that An Coiste Logainmneacha / Placenames Committee – the modern-day iteration of An Coimisiún Logainmneacha – have to make when considering the evidence and settling on the most appropriate form to recommend are sometimes very finely balanced indeed. When a specific Irish name is established as the legal version of a placename – and of course the State can only declare one legal Irish version for each of its official placenames – it is because the Placenames Committee considers, on the balance of the evidence, that this was the form most recently used by local Irish-speakers when Irish was still the community language of the place in question. Other derivations cannot always be ruled out, however, and one of the jobs of the Placenames Branch is to present the evidence underlying each placename and to provide the proper context of the officially recommended forms. (For example, we will see below that there is another Ballyboggan in Co. Meath for which none of the anglicized forms reflect lenited Bh-, but for which Irish attestations survive proving that the name was Baile Uí Bhogáin!)

In any case, for Ballyboggan (North, South) in Dublin, the overall evidence was deemed, on balance, to reflect an underlying Baile Bogáin. The bogán ‘soft ground’ (see FGB s.v. bogán, eDIL s.v. bocán) in question may well have been in the area of alluvial soil next to the Tolka River, prone to remaining soft long after the surrounding ground had dried out after flooding. It is also possible that the townland once contained other areas of soft ground obscured by the modern urban landscape. A number of other townland names across Ireland have been anglicized as Ballyboggan, but their original Irish precursors are not all the same. We mentioned that Ballyboggan (logainm.ie #38910) in Co. Meath derives from Baile Uí Bhogáin ‘the town(land) of Ó Bogáin (anglic. Boggan)’: the Annals of the Four Masters have ‘baile ui bogáin’ [gen.] (1447) and the corresponding Annals of Connacht have ‘a mBali .h. Bhogan’ (in which .h. represents Mod.Ir. Uí). The same surname also gave name to the townland of Ballybogan / Baile Uí Bhogáin (logainm.ie #16254) in Co. Donegal and the village of Clanabogan / Cluain Uí Bhogáin ‘the (wet) pasture of Ó Bogáin’ (logainm.ie #1167028; PNNI) in Co. Tyrone. In contrast, however, the townlands Ballyboggan and Bogganstown in Co. Wexford both appear to derive from Baile Uí Bheagáin ‘the town(land) of Ó Beagáin’, containing the unrelated surname Ó Beagáin, which also appears to have been anglicized Boggan in the southeast (see Logainmneacha na hÉireann IV: Townland names of Co. Wexford).

Of far more frequent occurrence than the surname Ó Bogáin in placenames is the common noun bogán ‘(area of) soft ground’. Ballyboggan (logainm.ie #20382) in the parish of Ahascragh in Co. Galway is from Baile an Bhogáin ‘the town(land) of the soft ground’, doubtless in reference to the bog in the western half of that townland. Evidence for a second Ballyboggan (logainm.ie #19834) in the parish of Monivea in the same county is more difficult to analyse, but its location as an island completely surrounded by cutover peat (see EPA soil maps) ultimately favours derivation from Baile an Bhogáin ‘the town(land) of (at) the soft ground’. Examples in which bogán occurs with generic elements other than baile ‘town(land)’ include Tawnawoggaun / Tamhnaigh an Bhogáin ‘the grassy (up)land of (in) the soft ground’ (logainm.ie #37443) in Co. Mayo and Turavoggaun / Tor an Bhogáin ‘the tall rock of (at) the soft ground’ (logainm.ie #46101) in Co. Tipperary. The latter name must refer to one of the rocky outcrops next to Moanavoggaun (< ?Móin an Bhogáin ‘the bog of the soft ground’), where there is a large peat bog.

Bogán ‘(area of) soft ground’ is also found as a generic element in its own right. In simplex form – that is to say, without any qualifying element – An Bogán ‘the soft ground’ is anglicized as Boggan or Boggaun in the names of townlands in Cos. Carlow (logainm.ie #3353), Galway (logainm. #19912), Kilkenny (logainm.ie #26705), Leitrim (logainm.ie #29021), Meath (logainm.ie #38231) and Tipperary (logainm.ie #46791). Two townland names in Co. Galway show the plural form Boggauns / Na Bogáin ‘the areas of soft ground’ (logainm.ie #18961; #20404). Examples with qualifying adjectives include Bogganfin / An Bogán Fionn ‘the fair, white soft ground’ (logainm.ie #42321) in Co. Roscommon, Lowpark / An Bogán Mór ‘the big area of soft ground’ (logainm.ie #18023) in Co. Galway, and Boggaunreagh / An Bogán Riabhach ‘the greyish, striped soft ground’ (logainm.ie #41518) in Co. Offaly. There is no shortage of townland names containing the element bogán ‘soft land’ in Ireland, and Ballyboggan in Co. Dublin is no outlier. (Regrettably, although the Placenames Branch has been researching the abovementioned placenames since the 1960s we do not appear to have any data indicating whether the local people consider them lovely or unlovely.)

We would point out finally that even though the earliest attested forms of Ballyboggan in Co. Dublin date from 1613, the placename itself is certainly far older. Unfortunately, the majority of Irish placenames cannot be traced back further than the beginning of the 17th century, due to the loss of historical documents. That the placename Baile Bogáin was coined when Irish was still the vernacular in this area is self-evident; as such, it is surely of deep local significance, both culturally and linguistically. Moreover, it is noteworthy that many Irish placenames such as Baile Bogáin refer to wet land where none is now present. ‘Improvements’ made by landowners in the generations following the mass dispossessions of the 17th century have obliterated countless wetlands from our landscape and often it is only the Irish placenames that recall features of this type. The name Ballyboggan / Baile Bogáin ‘town(land) of (at the) soft land’ – on the banks of the Tolka River on the northside of Dublin – is one of hundreds of such examples.

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• An Bogán/Boggan
• Baile Uí Bhogáin/Ballybogan
• Baile Bogáin Thuaidh/Ballyboggan North
• An Bogán Mór/Lowpark
• Na Bogáin/Boggauns
• Baile an Bhogáin/Ballyboggan
• An Bogán/Boggaun
• Baile an Bhogáin/Ballyboggan
• Na Bogáin/Boggauns
• An Bogán/Boggan
• An Bogán/Boggaun
• Tamhnaigh an Bhogáin/Tawnawoggaun
• An Bogán/Boggan
• Baile Uí Bhogáin/Ballyboggan
• An Bogán Riabhach/Boggaunreagh
• An Bogán Fionn/Bogganfin
• Tor an Bhogáin/Turavoggaun
• An Bogán/Boggaun
• Cluain Uí Bhogáin/Clanabogan
• Bóthar Uí Dhonnabháin/O'Donovan Road

Date: 23/08/2025

Some months ago, the Placenames Branch was contacted by a native speaker of Scottish Gaelic from the Hebridean island of Lewis / Leòdhas enquiring about the Irish equivalent of the Gaelic placename element àirigh, which she explained as meaning “an area or pasture land for … summer milking of cattle”. She kindly followed up with the additional information that àirigh was often found in very remote locations. (For more discussion of Gaelic àirigh, which has a very interesting history in this part of Scotland, see Foster 2017; Fellow-Jensen, Nomina 1980.) In contrast, in Lewis / Leòdhas the word buaile was understood to refer to a cattle fold, enclosure, dairy, milking place, “usually on the periphery of the farmland or townland and used in commonage”. She went on to say, “The word [buaile] was not, as far as I can see, used for the distant grazing pastures for summer milking.”

This information is of particular interest to us, because in Irish placenames – contrary to what is often presumed – the generic element buaile was not restricted to ‘vertical’ transhumance, i.e., from lowlands to higher pastures. In fact, buaile could refer to any location, regardless of altitude, that became suitable for grazing under particular weather conditions, or to any place that had been specifically set aside for grazing at certain times of the year, as in Boleynanollag / Buaile na Nollag ‘the boley of Christmas-time’ (logainm.ie #21027) and Easterfield / Buaile na Cásca ‘the boley of Easter-time’ (logainm.ie #20989) in Co. Galway (‘Baulanacaske’ 1801); and Boolanacausk / Buaile na Cásca ‘the boley of Easter-time’ (logainm.ie #7433) in Co. Clare. (Even so, as we saw last week, care was still to be taken in some of the places chosen, e.g. Bolabradda / An Bhuaile Bhradach ‘the treacherous boley’ (logainm.ie #52877) and Ballybregagh / An Bhuaile Bhréagach ‘the false (deceptive, treacherous) boley’ (logainm.ie #52339) in Co. Wexford.)

In the examples from Lewis / Leòdhas, then, Scottish Gaelic àirigh served a different purpose to buaile, referring to locations further away from the farm. Note that Dwelly (Am Faclair Beag) s.v. àirigh gives ‘hill pasture’ and ‘Summer residence for herdsmen and cattle’. This is in keeping with the attested meanings of the word’s Old Irish forerunner áirge, i.e., ‘summer milking-places in the mountains’, ‘place for milking cows, byre, cowshed’ (it could also refer to the herd of cattle itself; eDIL s.v. áirge). See for example Luid Mael Ruain Tamlachta fechtas dia airge .i. ceppan i Sléib Mairgge “Máel Rúain of Tallaght once went to his summer milking-place, i.e., a clearing in Slievemargie” (quoted in Fergus Kelly, Early Irish Farming p. 44). In any case, this interesting correspondence concerning Hebridean examples of àirigh led us to seek placenames on our own island containing the Modern Irish form of the same word, áirí. (Cf. ‘a herd (of cattle), a pasture, a herdman’s hut’ Dinneen (1927) s.v. airghe; ‘milking-place; herd (of cows)’ Ó Dónaill s.v. áirí. Note the variation of short a- and long á-, which we will see again below.)

The first thing to be noted is that in Irish placenames the sense conveyed by Scottish àirigh – (remote) summer milking-place – is already covered by the predominant Modern Irish element buaile, which could be found on high ground or low, whether near or far from the farm, unlike the restricted distribution of Scottish Gaelic buaile on Leòdhas. Having said that, however, examples of áirí are not unknown in Irish townland names. It is ironic that what is probably the most unambiguous example could not be situated much further away from our correspondent’s home in the Hebrides! The townland of Drominaharee / Drom na hÁirí ‘the ridge of the (summer) milking-place’ (logainm.ie #23392) in Co. Kerry is some 700 km from Lewis, which if nothing else reminds us of the vast contiguous area once covered by the Gaelic-speaking world. Interestingly, the meaning of …na hÁirí in this placename was not understood by the local Irish-speaking community in the mid-19th century. Nor was it clear to the Irish scholar John O’Donovan, who visited the area in 1841 while working on the Ordnance Survey. O’Donovan was a native Irish-speaker and reasonably familiar with Middle Irish literature even at this early stage of his career. He interpreted the name as the ‘ridge of the watching’, confusing the final element with the unconnected word aire (eDIL s.v. 1 aire). Drominaharee / Drom na hÁirí is located in steep, mountainous terrain, very much in keeping with animal-husbandry restricted to the summer months. However, it would seem that by the late 18th/early 19th century, either the practice of bringing cattle to this particular áirí had long ceased, or the word had been completely usurped by buaile in common speech, and the meaning of the placename was forgotten.

Note that the word áiríoch ‘herdsman’ – a derivative of áirí (eDIL s.v. áirgech) – occurs in the name of another mountainous townland in Co. Kerry, Derreenanaryagh / Doirín na nÁiríoch ‘the (little) (oak-)grove of the herdsmen’ (logainm.ie #22330) near Glencar. Strange to say, O’Donovan correctly identified this word (‘shepherds’). So did Pádraig Ó Siochfhradha (a.k.a. An Seabhac), another highly regarded native Irish-speaking placenames scholar, in the 20th century.

Other upland examples in the southern half of Ireland include Glenary / Gleann Áirí ‘valley of (the) (summer) milking-place’ (logainm.ie #49236) in the Comeragh Mountains, Co. Waterford, and Killary / Coill Áirí ‘wood of (the) (summer) milking-place’ (logainm.ie #46377) near Ballina in Co. Tipperary. The same name appears as Killaree / Coill Áirí ‘wood of (the) (summer) milking-place’ (logainm.ie #26989) in Co. Kilkenny. Although this last example is not located in a mountainous area, the local topography is dominated by steep hills to the south and east of the Black Castle, mostly under tree cover, with large amounts of surface bedrock (see epa). Like the townlands already mentioned, this terrain would almost certainly have been suitable for grazing only in summer months. (Note again that the local Irish-speakers did not understand the word áirí in the 19th century: they told Eoghan Ó Comhraí / Eugene O’Curry, ‘there are three of the Kings of Ireland buried in [the large rath in Killaree townland], whence the name Kileree or the Cell of the King’ LSO I 203 (1839), as if *cill an rí!)

Still in the south, we find Arywee / Airí Bhuí ‘yellow (summer) milking-place’ (logainm.ie #31155) in Co. Limerick. (Airí is a local variant of áirí with short initial /a/.) This townland is located on relatively low land, however, and airí in question may have been near the peat bog in the west. Arrybreaga / Airí Bhréige ‘false (summer) milking-place’ (logainm.ie #32471) is another low-lying townland in the same county, mostly containing free-draining soil which would have been suitable for grazing all year round. In parts of the townland, however, grazing would have been restricted to fine weather, namely the surface bedrock extending up to the hilltop to the neighbouring Longstone to the east, and the area of peat fen to the west. As we saw last week, bréige, the genitive form of the noun bréag ‘falsehood, lie’ is used in Irish as an adjective meaning ‘false, deceptive’: the ‘false airí’ may have referred to one of these areas of marginal land which was not, despite first appearances, suitable for grazing.

So we come full circle and finish with a some more placenames containing the elements bréige (gen.) or bréagach (adj.) ‘lying, false; (dangerously) deceptive, treacherous’:

• Ard Mhacha Bréige ‘the false Ard Mhacha’, the forerunner to Ardmaghbreague (logainm.ie #38187) and Armaghbrague (logainm.ie #56378; placenamesni) in Cos. Meath and Armagh, respectively, in contrast to the ‘real’ Ard Mhacha / Armagh (#1411561);
• Knockbreaga / Cnoc Bréige ‘false, (dangerously) deceptive(?) hill’ (logainm.ie #37474) in Co. Mayo;
• Boughilbreaga / An Buachaill Bréige ‘the false boy, cowherd’ (logainm.ie #1413201) in Co. Limerick (‘there is an old stone on top of it’ *c.*1973);
• Shauneenabreaga / Seáinín na Bréige ‘the false Seáinín’ (logainm.ie #1421372) in Co. Waterford (a mountain-top cairn, WA002-080).
• Foylenabreaga / Faill na Bréige ‘the false cliff’ (#1415485) beside the Aherlow River in Co. Limerick;
• Trawbreaga Bay / Trá Bhréige ‘treacherous strand’ (logainm.ie #111463) in Co. Donegal (where the Ordnance Survey Letters record people being swept away by sudden tides);
• Carnanbregagh / An Carnán Bréagach ‘the false/deceptive (little) cairn, heap of stones’ (logainm.ie #33822) in Co. Louth.

Last week we noted John O’Donovan’s personal description of the river Breagagh / An Bhréagach ‘the treacherous (river)’ in his native Co. Kilkenny, which got its name because it would often break its banks, sometimes with tragic consequences. When he was in West Kerry in 1841 the locals pointed out the dangerous rock near the mouth of Cuan Fionntrá (Ventry Harbour) with several smaller rocks between it and the mainland. These rocks, they said, “deceive the boatmen” (ÓD:AL); the Irish name of this treacherous feature is An Bréagaire ‘the liar’ (logainm.ie #1393949).

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• Buaile na Cásca/Boolanacausk
• Buaile na Cásca/Easterfield
• Buaile na Nollag/Boleynanollag
• Doirín na nÁiríoch/Derreenanaryagh
• Drom na hÁirí/Drominaharee
• Coill Áirí/Killaree
• Airí Bhuí/Arywee
• Airí Bhréige/Arrybreaga
• An Carnán Bréagach/Carnanbregagh
• Cnoc Bréige/Knockbreaga
• Ard Mhacha Bréige/Ardmaghbreague
• Coill Áirí/Killary
• Gleann Áirí/Glenary
• An Bhuaile Bhréagach/Ballybregagh
• An Bhuaile Bhradach/Bolabradda
• Ard Mhacha Bréige/Armaghbrague
• Trá Bhréige/Trawbreaga Bay
• Ard Mhacha/Armagh
• An Buachaill Bréige/Boughilbreaga
• Droichead Fhaill na Bréige/Foylenabreaga Bridge
• Seáinín na Bréige/Shauneenabreaga

Date: 16/08/2025

In our discussion of nicknames among the Gaelic Irish over the last two weeks, we have noted a number of personal epithets and descriptive adjectives that were not all that complimentary. We continue the theme with a few more examples:

• ‘Ferrall Bradagh’ [Fearghal Bradach], i.e., thieving/dishonest Fearghal Bradach , of Co. Longford (Fiants [Eliz.] §4924, anno 1596);
• ‘Walter Bradagh m‘Laghlin boy’ [Ualtar Bradach mac Lochlainn Bhuí], i.e., thieving/dishonest Ualtar Bradach mac Lochlainn Bhuí , son of ‘yellow’ Lochlann of Co. Galway (Fiants [Eliz.] §4028, anno 1582) (see last week’s note for the epithet buí ‘yellow’; anglic. Laghlin could also represent the common Irish name Maoleachlainn);
• ‘Morgh bregaghe m‘Teig oge’ [Murcha Bréagach mac Taidhg Óig], i.e., lying/deceitful Murcha Bréagach mac Taidhg Óig , of Inchiquin, Co. Clare (Fiants [Eliz.] §3042, anno 1577);
• ‘John Bregagh’ [Seán Bréagach], i.e., lying/deceitful Seán Bréagach , [prob. Co. Limerick] (Fiants [Eliz.] §6461, anno 1600);
• ‘Edm. Bregagh M‘Echey, of Tullegolkhorke’ [Éamann Bréagach Mac an Chaoich], i.e., lying/deceitful Éamann Bréagach Mac an Chaoich , of ‘Tullegolkhorke’ [defunct], par. Iniskeen, Co. Cavan (Fiants §4908, anno 1586). (Mac an Chaoich was the name of the main branch of Muintir Raghallaigh (the O’Reillys) in southeast Co. Cavan (cf. #380); they gave their name to the barony of Clankee / Clann Chaoich , #11).

The words bréagach ‘lying’ and bradach ‘thieving’ have a range of meanings and, of course, are not confined to personal epithets. A cow that wanders off its own land and interests itself in the crops of a neighbouring farmer, for instance, is a bó bhradach ‘trespassing cow’; bradach can also mean ‘obtained unjustly, stolen’ and – trespassing into the territory of bréagach – ‘false’ (see Dinneen, Ó Dónaill s.v.). In placenames, particularly those referring to topographical features, the sense these words convey is that the places in question are in some way unreliable, deceptive or even dangerous (compare Eng. treacherous conditions). The late Fiachra Mac Gabhann was no doubt correct in translating Moneenbradagh / An Móinín Bradach (logainm.ie #35707) in Co. Mayo as ‘the dangerous (little) bogland’ (Logainmneacha Mhaigh Eo V, p. 540). Note also that Portaghbradagh (logainm.ie #44765) in Co. Sligo was described in the 17th century as containing ‘Red Shaking Bog’ (Down Survey [1654], bar. Tireragh), whence its Irish name An Portach Bradach , ‘the dangerous peat bog’. This is also the most likely sense of bradach intended in the case of Bolabradda / An Bhuaile Bhradach (logainm.ie #52877), Co. Wexford, where the alluvial soil along the Inch River – suggesting historical overflowing – would have remained soft underfoot long after the surrounding ground had dried enough for cattle to be introduced (see Logainmneacha na hÉireann IV, p. 555).

Just like An Bhuaile Bhradach in Co. Wexford, there is a significant patch of alluvial soil in the townland of An Baile Bradach / Balbradagh (logainm.ie #38613) in Cp. Meath, and perhaps the element bradach in this placename is linked to that area remaining soft and muddy after the surrounding ground has long since become safe for cattle. In light of the generic baile ‘town(land)’, however, it is possible that bradach here is the substantivized adjective meaning ‘thief, plunderer’, and that the sense intended is Baile Bradach , ‘town(land) of (the) thieves’. Close analysis of the landscape and soil in other ambiguously named places, such as Boherbraddagh / Bóthar Bradach (logainm.ie #32035) in Co. Limerick (“thieving road / road of thieves” in Logainmneacha na hÉireann I, lch. 73), might throw some light on which meaning is more likely. Sometimes the topography seems to clearly indicate peril, as in the names of Glenbradagh / Gleann Bradach (logainm.ie #12300), a particularly steep-sided valley in Co. Cork, and An Méile Bradach (logainm.ie #1396731), a cluster of rocks off the coast of Na hArlanna in the Donegal Gaeltacht.

The word bréagach ‘lying, deceitful’ could also convey a sense of ‘dangerously deceptive, treacherous’. Parts of the townland of Ballybregagh / An Bhuaile Bhréagach (logainm.ie #52339) in Co. Wexford, for example, would remain unsuitable for cattle even after quite a long period of dry weather (see Logainmnneacha na hÉireann IV, p. 239). Bréagach in river-names warns of flash flooding or other deceptive behaviour, e.g. Breagagh / An Bhréagach , ‘the treacherous (river)’ in Cos. Tipperary (logainm.ie #116103) and Kilkenny (logainm.ie #116566) and the smaller Srahanbregach / An Sruthán Bréagach , ‘the false(?) stream’ (logainm.ie #41847) in Co. Offaly. (O’Donovan said that the river Breagagh / An Bhréagach in his native county of Kilkenny was “but a mere streamlet” in the summer, until there was an unexpected cloudburst over the mountains, whereupon “the little runnel is suddenly swelled to such a height that it often sweeps away men and cattle” LSO (Donegal [sic]) p.31 (1835).)

In other placenames, however, it is clear that bréagach did not have treacherous or dangerous connotations. As mentioned before in these notes, many geographical features are figuratively named from their appearance from a certain angle, giving rise to some very imaginative back-stories in folk etymology. (We find a nice subversion of the usual placename-etymologizing in the 9th-century tale Fionaíl Rónáin ‘the kin-slaying committed by Rónán’ (Mid.Ir. Fingal Rónáin). An important event in the story takes place near some stone cairns with the wonderful name Ba Aoife , ‘the cows of Aoife’. Rather surprisingly, the narrator does not attempt any imaginative analysis, stating matter-of-factly: “Ba Aoife ‘the cows of Aoife’ are stones on the side of the mountain. They look like white cows from afar.” [Bae Aífi .i. clocha filet la tóeb int ṡléibe. It cosmaile fri bú finna do chéin.] The author was merely keeping his powder dry: the plot takes a tragic turn when a character makes an untimely metaphorical reference to the cairns as ‘cows’. No spoilers! [Cf. FSÁG s.nn. Baoi Aoife, Bun Aoife.]) In any case, there are a number of placenames such as Farbreaga / An Fear Bréige (logainm.ie #55861) in Co. Wicklow (bréige, the genitive of the noun bréag ‘falsehood’, used as an adjective meaning ‘false’) and An Fear Bréagach (logainm.ie #1418649) in the south Kerry Gaeltacht (‘Cloch mhór ard, cheapfá gur fear atá ann’ 1969) which refer to stones resembling a human figure from a distance: both names can be translated as ‘the false man’. A reminder that truth is often only a matter of perspective. More examples next week!

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• Clann Chaoich/Clankee
• Inis Caoin/Enniskeen
• Gleann Bradach/Glenbradagh
• Bóthar Bradach/Boherbraddagh
• An Móinín Bradach/Moneenbradagh
• An Baile Bradach/Balbradagh
• An Sruthán Bréagach/Srahanbregagh
• An Portach Bradach/Portaghbradagh
• An Bhuaile Bhradach/Bolabradda
• An Fear Bréige/Farbreaga
• An Bhréagach/Breagagh River
• An Bhréagach/River Breagagh

Date: 09/08/2025

Last week we discussed the epithet carrach ‘mangy, scabby, rough-skinned’, which was prevalent enough among the Gaelic Irish in the Early Modern period to make its way into some townland names (e.g. Ballymacahara / Baile Mhic Aodha Charraigh ‘the town(land) of the son of scabby, mangy, rough-skinned Aodh’ (logainm.ie #55479) in Co. Wicklow). We will now look at some other relatively blunt epithets attached to the eponyms of administrative placenames.

Some of these epithets seem more pejorative than others: for example, Lissagroom / Lios Aodha Ghruama ‘the ring-fort of gloomy Aodh’ (logainm.ie #8091) in Co. Cork and Ballingayrour / Baile an Ghéill Ramhair ‘the town(land) of the fat hostage’ (logainm.ie #30902) in Co. Limerick do not have the same bite as Bishop’s Island / Oileán an Easpaig Ghortaigh ‘the island of the mean, stingy, hungry bishop’ (logainm.ie #7132) in Co. Clare. Others are more ambiguous, such as the word lúbach, which can mean ‘strong, supple’ – a fine epithet – but can also mean ‘slippery, crafty’! We cannot be sure how exactly ‘Moriertagh Loobagh McMolrony Fyn’ [Muircheartach Lúbach Mac Maolruanaidh Fhinn] earned his name, i.e. crafty(?)/supple(?) Muircheartach of the sept of Mac Maolruanaidh Fhinn (a branch of the McDonaghs in southeast Co. Sligo) (CPR p.331).

(We may note in passing that this epithet lúbach was also the source of a surname, as we saw last week with Ó Clabaigh, deriving from clabach ‘big-mouthed, big-lipped’. A family surnamed Ó Lúbaigh ‘the descendant of (An) Lúbach ((the) crafty(?)/supple(?) person)’ (anglic. Lubby/Looby) are commemorated in the townland name Ballylooby / Baile Uí Lúbaigh ‘the town(land) of Ó Lúbaigh’ (logainm.ie #31574) in Co. Limerick.)

Similarly, geancach literally means ‘snub-nosed’ (from geanc), but is also used for ‘snubby, surly, rude’ (eDIL s.v. genncach; FGB s.v. geancach). However, in the following examples – which occur across different generations of the same family – we appear to be dealing with an inherited facial feature: ‘Donald gangaughe O’Dowill’ [Dónall Geancach Ó Dúill], i.e., snub-nosed Dónall Ó Dúill of Kyle (par. Kilpatrick), near Crossabeg in Co. Wexford, received an official pardon in 1549 (Fiants [Ed.] §314), and his apparent grandson ‘Daniel Doyle alias Gankagh’ – another Dónall Geancach – of ‘Kildenis’ [defunct] in Tinnacross (par. Clone) near Enniscorthy, was implicated in connection with the 1641 rebellion (C. Ó Crualaoich & K. Whelan, Gaelic Wexford 1550-1650; cf. The Past 17 (1990), p.36). Among the many other bearers of this epithet was yet another Dónall, namely ‘Donyll geankaghe O’Cuyllon’ [Dónall Geancach Ó Coiliúin], i.e., snub-nosed/rude Dónall Ó Coiliúin (Cullen) of Downings in Co. Wicklow, who received a pardon in 1549 (Fiants [Ed.] §272). Closer to our own era, the local Irish-language name of the townland Knockwilliam (logainm.ie #27123) in Co. Kilkenny was recorded in 1839 as ‘cnoc uilliam gannca’ [Cnoc Liam Gheancaigh] ‘the hill of snub-nosed/rude Liam’. In east Co. Galway the local Irish pronunciation of Gorteenayanka / Goirtín an Gheancaigh ‘the (little) field of the snub-nosed or rude person’ (logainm.ie #20188) was still available to Placenames Branch researchers in the mid-20th century. Although unfortunately lacking surnames, these placenames provide further evidence of the prevalence of geancach ‘snub-nosed; rude’ as an epithet among the Gaelic Irish.

(In Ulster the related word geancánach referred to an unpleasant supernatural character beautifully described in Dinneen’s 1927 dictionary (s.v. geanncánach) as “one of the lower and more vicious kinds of fairies”; cf. “a fairy cobbler” FGB s.v. geancánach. Examples in northern placenames include Poll na nGeancánach / Pullagankana “the hole, pool of the malevolent snub-nosed fairies”, recorded in the parish of Shercock, Co. Cavan, in the 20th century.)

Not all epithets carried connotations of judgements of character. Some merely described hair colour or skin characteristics, such as bán ‘white’, ballach ‘freckled’, crón ‘dark yellow’, dubh ‘black’, fionn ‘fair’, liath ‘grey’, odhar ‘greyish-brown’, riabhach ‘greyish, dusky’. (NB It is very difficult to accurately trace the history and development of the words for colours in any given language, never mind trying to ‘match’ them directly with another language! Any English translations here should be taken as very rough guides.) These colour-based personal epithets are some of the most common survivals in townland names. See for example Ballyshonickbane / Baile Sheoinic Bháin ‘the town(land) of white Seoinic’ (logainm.ie #32243) in Co. Limerick; Gortshanecrone / Gort Sheáin Chróin ‘the field of dark yellow Seán’ (logainm.ie #13305) in Co. Cork; Ballyteigeduff / Baile Thaidhg Dhuibh ‘the town(land) of black Tadhg’ (logainm.ie #28485) in Co. Laois; Attithomasreva / Áit Tí Tomáis Riabhaigh ‘the house-site of greyish, dusky Tomás’ (logainm.ie #18891) in Co. Galway; and Léim Fhir Léith ‘leap of (the) grey man’ or ‘the leap of Fear Liath [personal name]’ (logainm.ie #22686) in the Co. Kerry Gaeltacht.

One very common adjective of this type was buí, which basically means ‘yellow’. Although this word could be used in reference to hair colour, particularly in the earlier language (cf. Mid.Ir. foltbuide ‘yellow-haired’ eDIL s.v. folt, falt compds. (1)), as a personal epithet it was frequently used as a term for tanned, sallow skin (FGB s.v. 3 buí (2)). (Note that crón was used of skin of a darker tone than buí, and is often translated ‘swarthy’; see eDIL s.v. crón.) Although this type of skin does not seem to have been highly prized by the Gaels, the term buí was not particularly offensive. It features in a well-known Irish proverb which reminds us that beauty is only skin deep, and also cautions us not to rush to judgement, lest we ourselves be judged: Más peaca a bheith buí, tá na mílte damanta! “If it’s a sin to have sallow skin, then thousands of us are damned!”

Buí ‘yellow’ occurs in conjunction with personal names in a number of townland names, such as Ballyduboy / Baile Dháith Bhuí ‘the town(land) of ‘yellow’ Dáith [a version of Dáibhí]’ (logainm.ie # 53145) in Co. Wexford; Ballymacshaneboy / Baile Mhic Sheáin Bhuí ‘the town(land) of the son of ‘yellow’ Seán’ (logainm.ie #30800) in Co. Limerick; Ballyjohnboy / Baile Sheáin Bhuí ‘the town(land) of ‘yellow’ Seán’ (logainm.ie #27364) in Co. Kilkenny; Clone / Cluain Mhic Sheáin Bhuí ‘the meadow, pasture of the son of ‘yellow’ Seán’ (logainm.ie #30800) in Co. Limerick; Inisdauwee / Inis Dáith Bhuí ‘the island of ‘yellow’ Dáith’ (logainm.ie #20679) in Co. Galway; and Tawnycoolawee / Tamhnaigh Mhic Giolla Bhuí ‘the arable field of the son of Giolla Buí [‘the ‘yellow’ fellow’]’, or ‘the arable field of Mac Giolla Bhuí [a surname usually anglicized McIlwee]’ (logainm.ie #35715) in Co. Mayo.

Incidentally, if buí referred to hair colour rather than skin tone in any of these examples, it would have been quite the complimentary epithet in an Irish context. According to Fynes Moryson – the English historian who served as secretary to the notorious Mountjoy, Lord Deputy of Ireland, during the period 1600–1603 – the Gaelic Irish were particularly fond of ‘yellow’ hair (see Analecta Hibernica 37: ‘The Irish Sections of Fynes Moryson’s Unpublished Itinerary’, ed. Graham Kew). By yellow it is likely that Moryson meant what would now be called blond hair, which may have overlapped in sense with Irish buí. (The word blond(e) had yet to become established in English at this period. Note that Shakespeare also refers to yellow hair as an idealized symbol of youth and vitality: see Janziz (1997) ‘A Study of Colour Words in Shakespeare’s Works’ (PhD, Sheffield).)

These are only some of the Gaelic Irish epithets that come down to us in townland names in Ireland. We hope to be able to carry out a proper analysis on this topic in the coming years. Obviously, the modern corpus of townland names preserves only a tiny proportion of the vast range of Irish nicknames and personal epithets found in Irish and English historical sources. (Not to mention striking examples from early literature such as Aiteannchaithreach ‘abounding in furze-like pubic hair’!). A few further examples are preserved in fortuitous references to defunct historical placenames, leading to the usual sobering realization that countless others have perished since the destruction of Gaelic Irish society in the 17th century.

To lift the mood a little, we will finish with the adjective súgach. This word is very similar to Eng. merry in that it can quite innocently mean ‘cheerful, happy’ but is far more likely to imply ‘mellow with drink, tipsy’ (FGB s.v. súgach; eDIL s.v. súcach): Má chím daoine súgacha is má bhím súgach leo / ó cad é sin don té sin nach mbaineann sin dó? ‘if I see tipsy people, and if I’m tipsy myself with them / what’s that to the person whose business it isn’t?’ As a personal epithet it occurred in two historical placenames – both apparently referring to the same individual – near Ballywilliamroe (par. Monart), in the area known as The Duffry / An Dufair ‘the wilderness, jungle’ west of Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. The anglicized spellings ‘Rahingerrald soughagh’ (NAI-Lodge-4-237) and ‘Aghgarraltsugagh’ (The Civil Survey of Wexford IX p. 279) point to Irish Ráithín Ghearailt Shúgaigh ‘the ring-fort of tipsy, cheerful Gearalt’ and Áth Ghearailt Shúgaigh ‘the ford of tipsy, cheerful Gearalt’, respectively. No other information about Gearalt Súgach survives: perhaps it would be too cynical to infer that he may occasionally have had difficulty crossing the ford named in his honour, the poor creature /ˈkreːt̪ər/!

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• Oileán an Easpaig Ghortaigh/Bishop's Island
• Lios Aodha Ghruama/Lissagroom
• Gort Sheáin Chróin/Gortshanecrone
• Áit Tí Tomáis Riabhaigh/Attithomasrevagh
• Goirtín an Gheancaigh/Gorteenayanka
• Inis Dáith Bhuí/Inishdauwee
• Léim Fhir Léith/Leamirlea
• Cnoc Liam Gheancaigh/Knockwilliam
• Baile Sheáin Bhuí/Ballyjohnboy
• Baile Thaidhg Dhuibh/Jamestown or Ballyteigeduff
• Baile Mhic Sheáin Bhuí/Ballymacshaneboy
• Baile an Ghéill Ramhair/Ballingayrour
• Baile Uí Lúbaigh/Ballylooby
• Baile Sheoinic Bháin/Ballyshonickbane
• Tamhnaigh Mhic Giolla Bhuí/Tawnycoolawee
• Baile Dháith Bhuí/Ballyduboy
• Baile Mhic Aodha Charraigh/Ballymacahara

Date: 02/08/2025

Last week we noted the surname Ó Clabaigh (anglic. Clabby), borne by a professional Gaelic family who held hereditary office as airchinnigh (church-stewards) and as intergenerational (parish) priests at Oran / Órán in Co. Roscommon. We begin this week’s note with a closer look at the surname itself. Most native Irish surnames formed with Ó (earlier Ua, originally meaning ‘grandson of’) are based on the personal name of the family’s ultimate ancestor. For example, the family surnamed Ó Maoileoin (anglic. Malone) purport to trace their lineage back to a person named Maoileoin (< Maol Eoin ‘(tonsured) servant of (Saint) Eoin’). This is also true, though to a slightly lesser extent, for those surnames formed with Mac (originally meaning ‘son of’): the surname Mac Aodha (anglic. Hughes, McKay, etc.) harks back to a progenitor named Aodh.

However, in some instances, the basic element of the surname does not come from a personal name, per se. Ó Clabaigh is based on the epithet clabach ‘big-mouthed’ or ‘garrulous’, or even – as the editors of the Annals of Loch Cé translated it – ‘thick-lipped’ (eDIL s.v. clapach; Ó Dónaill s.v. clabach; Dinneen s.v. id.; cf. ‘Geróid clapach … thick-lipped’ (Annals of Loch Cé anno 1581)). The Irish annals and genealogies abound in nicknames and epithets. Further examples can also be found in English government documents from the 16th and 17th centuries, which record the names of Irish-speakers of both native Gaelic and Old English (gaelicized Anglo-Norman) descent. Hundreds of unique nicknames and epithets can be found in these sources, not even including repetitions of commonly used and relatively neutral adjectives such as beag ‘little’, mór ‘big, senior’, óg ‘young, junior’, etc. Not all of the epithets were as innocuous as these, of course; the word clabach is likely to have been a derogatory or at least mildly offensive nickname in any of its senses, notwithstanding the current fashion for fuller lips. Indeed, the nicknames found among the Gaelic Irish in these sources would be very unlikely to be recorded in modern-day official documents, to put it mildly, and most would be considered highly inappropriate outside the immediate family or intimate social circle of the bearer.

For example, there is no shortage of examples of the epithet gránna ‘ugly’. See for instance the official pardons given to ‘Gilpatrike Grane O’Morro’ [Giolla Phádraig Gránna Ó Murchú], i.e., Ugly Giolla Phádraig Ó Murchú (Murphy) of Kilpatrick near Crossabeg in Co. Wexford, in 1552 (Fiants [Ed.] §959); to ‘Diermod grana m‘Manus M‘Donogh’ [Diarmaid Gránna mac Mánais Mac Donncha], i.e, Ugly Diarmaid, son of Mánas Mac Donncha (McDonagh) of Bricklieve, Co. Sligo, in the 1580s (Fiants [Eliz.] §5805); and to ‘Shane Grana O’Carrolane’ [Seán Gránna Ó Cearúlláin], i.e., Ugly Seán Ó Cearúlláin (Carolan) of Co. Meath, in 1610 (CPR, p.183). The same epithet also occurs in great numbers in Irish sources: it is found among members of the Mac Diarmada and the Ó hAirt families in Mac Fhirbhisigh’s Book of Genealogies (LMnG) (c. 1666). We will not speculate whether the prevalence of gránna as an epithet implies that the Gaels were not generally very good-looking or, conversely, that they had extremely high standards of physical beauty.

There are many other such ‘derogatory’ epithets found in these and other sources, some more well-known than others. Other examples include ‘Owen Loghtaghe O’Hairt’ [Eoghan Lochtach Ó hAirt], i.e., Faulty/Wicked(?)/Slightly Mad(?) Eoghan Ó hAirt (Harte), of Ballyconnell in Co. Sligo (Fiants [Eliz.] §4706); ‘John Kykeraghe Roche’ [Séan Cíocrach de Róiste], i.e., Gluttonous Seán de Róiste (Roche), of Kilcavan in south Co. Wexford (Fiants [Ed.] §317); ‘Cahir moddere’ [Cathaoir Modartha], i.e., Gloomy Cathaoir, of Ardamine, Co. Wexford (Fiants [Eliz.] §6789); ‘Edm. sallagh M‘Gillegallingee’ [Éamann Salach Mac Giolla(…)], i.e., Dirty Éamann [Mac Giolla(…)], of ‘Ratyhlie’ [now defunct] near Easky, Co. Sligo (Fiants [Eliz.] §5805).

Although extremely widespread in daily life, these derogatory epithets are not commonly found in modern townland names. (That is not to say that they never featured in placenames. Sometimes they occur in older forms before falling out of use: see for example Aghfarrell / Áth Fhearaíl ‘the ford of Fearaíol [< Fearghal]’ (#17417) on the Co. Dublin/Wicklow border, formerly Áth Fhearaíl Fhinn ‘the ford of fair(-haired) Fearaíol’: ‘Agherillin’ (c. 1578), ‘Aghferylin’ (1605), ‘Aghfarrellfin’ (c. 1660) → ‘Affarrell’ (1664).) But a handful of examples do survive. Carrach ‘scabby, rough-skinned, mangy’ is a very commonly occurring epithet, no doubt due to the prevalence of skin diseases in the absence of effective medical treatments. Example include ‘Tirrelagh Carrogh McPhellim O’Connor, gent’ [Toirealach Carrach mac Féilim Ó Conchúir], i.e., Scabby/Mangy/Rough-Skinned Toirealach, son of Féilim Ó Conchúir (O’Connor), of Co. Sligo (CPR p.20); ‘Wm. Carragh Bermigam, horsm[a]n’ [Liam Carrach Mac Fheorais], i.e., Scabby Liam Mac Fheorais (Bermingham) of Co. Meath (Fiants [Eliz.] §3952); ‘Brian carragh mcAlexander McDonill, galloglass’ [Brian Carrach mac Alastair Mac Dónaill], i.e., Scabby Brian son of Alastar Mac Dónaill (McDonnell) of Co. Wicklow (Fiants [Eliz.] §444); ‘Patrick carraugh Forlong’ [Pádraig Carrach Forlang], i.e., Scabby Pádraig Forlang (Furlong) of Glynn in Co. Wexford (Fiants [Eliz.] §61). This epithet carrach is unusual insofar as it is found in more than one townland name. In Co. Wicklow we have Ballymacahara / Baile Mhic Aodha Charraigh ‘the town(land) of the son of scabby, mangy, rough-skinned Aodh’ (logainm.ie #55479), while both Ballyshane in Co. Wexford (logainm.ie #53282) (‘Ballyshancarragh’, anno 1757, CGn. 205.48.135029) and Ballyshancarragh in Co. Carlow (logainm.ie #3225) are from Baile Sheáin Charraigh ‘the town(land) of mangy, scabby, rough-skinned Seán’.

These skin ailments were not confined to the southeast, however! There are two separate townlands in the Donegal Gaeltacht called Mín Ghiolla Charraigh ‘the mountain grass-land of (An) Giolla Carrach [(the) Scabby Fellow]’ (logainm.ie #14971; #16180). Here, (An) Giolla Carrach would seem to be a nickname: compare ‘Giolla Críost mac Aonghusa, aonmhac leis .i. an Giolla Carrach (Sithriug a ainm)’ [Giolla Críost son of Aonghas had one son, i.e., An Giolla Carrach “the Scabby Fellow” (Sithreag was his [real] name)], in the genealogy of a South Ulster family (LMnG §315.2).

(More next week.)

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• Baile Sheáin Charraigh/Ballyshancarragh
• Mín Ghiolla Charraigh/Meengilcarry
• Mín Ghiolla Charraigh/Meengilcarry
• Áth Fhearaíl/Aghfarrell
• Baile Sheáin Charraigh/Ballyshane
• Baile Mhic Aodha Charraigh/Ballymacahara

Date: 23/07/2025

Last week’s contribution concerning the theme of wells, springs and fountains in Irish placenames focused of the element tobar ‘well, fountain, spring, source’ and its occurrence in placenames that sometimes reflect the reputed curative properties of their waters, all the while barely mentioning other terms that can also refer to a ‘well’, ‘spring’ or ‘fountain’ such as tiobra, or its more commonly occurring variant tiobraid (a fossilised oblique form of tiobra) as in Tipperary / Tiobraid Árann ‘the well, spring, fountain, source of (at the) Ára (possibly an old name of the river flowing through Tipperary town (see Onomasticon DIAS s.n. ára))’, and fuarán as in Carrownaworan / Ceathrú na bhFuarán ‘the quarter (land) of the springs, fountains’ (logainm.ie #45715) in Co. Sligo.

While tiobra / tiobraid ‘well, spring, fountain, source’ cannot be considered at all rare in townland names, it is particularly noticeable that it rarely occurs in conjunction with a personal name, as is the case in Tibberaghny / Tiobra Fhachna ‘the well of Fachna (< Mid.Ir. Fachtna)’ (logainm.ie #26492) in Co. Kilkenny. This contrasts greatly with placenames containing tobar ‘well, fountain, spring, source’ of which there are many more examples with personal names, as in Toberphelim / Tobar Féilim ‘Féilim’s well’ (logainm.ie #32934) in Co. Longford; Toberjarleth / Tobar Iarlatha ‘Iarlaith’s well’ (logainm.ie # 21995) in Co. Galway and Toberrory / Tobar Ruairí ‘Ruairí’s well’ (logainm.ie #43913) in Co. Roscommon. Not to mention the ubiquity of townlands and wells called Toberbride / Tobar Bhríde (sometimes also Tobar Bríde, i.e. with a fossilised form of gen. Bríde without initial lenition) ‘St. Brigid’s well’ or Toberpatrick / Tobar Phádraig (sometimes also Tobar Pádraig) ‘St. Patrick’s well’. This implies that tobar was far more commonly used than tiobra / tiobraid, but it is worth noting that tiobraid was not at all uncommon as a qualifier, as seen in placenames such as Aughatubbrid or Chatsworth/ Achadh Tiobraide “field of (the) well, spring, fountain, source” (logainm.ie #26541) in Co. Kilkenny; Baile na Tiobraide ‘the town(land) of the well, spring’ is the forerunner to Ballintubbert (logainm.ie #28120) and Springhill (earlier ‘Balletibred’) (logainm.ie #28860) in Co. Laois, as well as Ballintubbrid (logainm.ie #31887) in Co. Limerick. We also have Kiltubbrid / Cill Tiobraide ‘church of (the) spring, fountain’ (logainm.ie #40330; #40825) in Co. Monaghan; Clontubbrid / Cluain Tiobraide ‘meadow, pasture of (the) spring, fountain’ in Cos. Mayo (logainm.ie #36824) and Kilkenny (logainm.ie #27473); Ballintubbrid / Baile na dTiobrad ‘the town(land) of the springs, fountains’ (logainm.ie #52227) in Co. Wexford; Lisnatubbrid / Lios na dTiobrad ‘the ringfort of the springs, fountains’ (logainm.ie #48375) in Co. Tipperary; Kiltubbrid/Cill Tiobrad ‘church of springs, fountains’ (logainm.ie #29335) in Co. Leitrim; while Cluain Tiobrad ‘meadow, pasture of springs, fountains’ is the forerunner to Clontibret (logainm.ie #1979) in Co. Monaghan, Cloontubbrid (logainm.ie #30033) in Co. Leitrim and Cloontubbrid in Cos. Mayo (logainm.ie #35972) and Kerry (logainm.ie #23901). The frequency of tiobraid in combination with cluain ‘meadow, pasture’ is particularly striking, and although the specific reason for this is unclear, it may be connected to the fact that while cluain is generally explained as meaning a “meadow, pasture” or similar (see FGB, Dinneen cluain; DIL clúain), Julius Pokorny (Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, I 1959 p. 603) traces the word back to Indo-European *klop-ni-, from the root *klep- meaning ‘feucht’ “damp” (cf. Pádraig Ó Cearbhaill, Logainmneacha na hÉireann III: Cluain i Logainmneacha Co. Thiobraid Árann, p. 19). This suggests that cluain originally referred to ‘wet’ pasture, and this was often likely caused by the present of springs therein, although a riverside location appears to be the most common feature of placenames with cluain.

Unlike either tobar or tiobraid, which commonly feature in the beginning of placenames (as the generic) and also as a qualifier as seen above, the word fuarán (< Old Irish úarán ‘spring, ‘a well spring or fountain’’) or any variant thereof, appears to occur as the generic element in initial position of placenames in barely any modern townland name. This observation might lead one to suggest that fuarán wasn’t particularly productive as a word in spoken Irish, but it does, in fact, occur relatively frequently as a qualifier in townland names, which largely undermines any presumption that it wasn’t commonly used in Irish. For example, we have Carrownaworan / Ceathrú na bhFuarán “the quarter (land measure) of the springs” (logainm.ie #45715) in Co. Sligo; Aghanoran / Achadh an Fhuaráin ‘the field of the spring’ (logainm.ie #33002) in Co. Longford; Carrickanoran / Carraig an Fhuaráin ‘the rock of the spring’ in Cos. Kilkenny (logainm.ie #27169) and Monaghan (logainm.ie #40895); Knockanoran / Cnoc an Fhuaráin ‘the hill of the spring’ in Cos. Wexford (logainm.ie #54079), Laois (logainm.ie # 27962) and Cork (logainm.ie #8924); along with Coolanoran / Cúil an Fhuaráin ‘the recess of the spring’ (logainm.ie #32158) in Co. Limerick. Additionally, Baile an Fhuaráin ‘the town(land) of the spring’ is the forerunner to Ballynoran, as found in Cos. Tipperary (logainm.ie #47427) and Cork (logainm.ie #12063), as well as Ballinoran (logainm.ie #31077) in Co. Limerick. In regard to the etymology of fuarán which goes back to Old Irish úarán (dil.ie s.v.), it is generally understood by linguists to be connected to the forerunner of Old Irish úar ‘cold’ (see J. Vendryes, Lexique Étymologique de l’Irlandais Ancien; T U, 1978), and this is clearly how it was understood when the placename An Fuarán ‘the spring, ‘a spring well or fountain’’ was translated as ‘Coldewelle’ [Coldwells] in Co. Kildare as early as 1243 (see logainm.ie #25820).

A further derivate of Old Irish úarán ‘spring, ‘a spring well or fountain’ is the variant órán (Ó Dónaill s.v. órán), as found in a small number of placenames in Connaught, where one finds, for example, Oranbeg / Órán Beag ‘spring, small’ (logainm.ie #18799), and the very well-known neighbouring Oranmore / Órán Mór ‘spring, big’ (logainm.ie #18476) in Co. Galway. Notably, while Oranmore / Órán Mór is attested as ‘Uarán Mór’ in written sources, spoken Irish forms of the name recorded in the 1960s clearly reflect an initial long Ó /oː/ as in /oːrɑːn moːr/, a fact to which recognition was given in the official Irish form of the names, Órán Mór and Órán Beag.

As a qualifier we also find órán ‘spring, fountain’ in a handful of townlands in Co. Galway such as Barnanoraun / Barr na nÓrán ‘the (hill-)top of the springs” (logainm.ie #18055). A number of streams are depicted as having their source in this townland on the Ordnance Survey 6″ map — it is, then, certainly true to its name. Two further townlands that contain this element in Co. Galway are Lisheenanoran / Lisín an Óráin ‘the (small) ringfort of the spring’ (logainm.ie #18424) near Corrandulla, and Oranhill / Cnoc Óráin ‘hill of (the) spring’ (logainm.ie #18615) next to Oranmore. It is also possible that órán, when found as the final element in a number of other placenames refers to a ‘spring’, but sometimes this may also be a reflex of the homophonous personal name Órán (< Early Mod. Ir. Odhrán), e.g. Cloonoran / Cluain Óráin ‘meadow, pasture of (the) spring; or Órán’s meadow, pasture’ (logainm.ie #20540) in Co. Galway (see also Castlebellew / Cluain Óráin Íochtarach (logainm.ie #20538) and Cloonoranoughter / Cluain Óráin Uachtarach (logainm.ie #20527); along with two townlands called Gorteenoran (logainm.ie #30371) and Georgia or Gorteenoran (logainm.ie #30390) in Co. Leitrim, which are both from an original Goirtín Óráin ‘(small) field of (the) spring; or ‘Órán’s (small) field’.

In the case of Oran / Órán (logainm.ie # 2114) in Co. Roscommon there can be no doubt about its origin as it is attested a number of times in Irish literary sources, both in the simplex form of ‘Uarán’, and with qualifiers as in ‘Fuaran Mhoighe h-Oi’ ‘Órán of Maigh nAí’ (Maigh nAí is a defunct territorial name) and ‘Uarán nGaraidh’ (et var.) which retain the more conservative spellings (f)uarán ‘spring, fountain’. Anglicised ‘Oraneclabby’ recorded circa 1660 reflects another longer version of this placenames namely Órán Uí Chlabaigh ‘Órán of Ó Clabaigh’ (< Uarán), and this association with the surname Ó Clabaigh is no accident or once-off. In 1558 ‘Giolla Colaim O Clapaicch [Giolla Cholaim Ó Clabaigh]’ was described as the successor of St. Patrick at Oran (ARE V, p. 1542), and 100 years earlier in 1454 ‘Cornelius Oclabaid [Conchúr? Ó Clabaigh]’ was recorded as ‘perpetual vicar’ of this parish, i.e. ‘St. Patrick’s de Fuaian [Fuaran]’ (Calendar of Papal Registers X, pp. 704-714). Ó Clabaigh was accused by ‘Maurice Oclabaid [Muiris? Ó Clabaigh]’of having made a ‘simoniacal agreement’ to divide the ecclesiastical income of Oran with ‘Matthew Oclabaid [Matha Ó Clabaigh] who has also formerly claimed a right to that vicarage’. We have, then, three Ó Clabaighs involved in the dispute concerning the fruits of this parish, which is actually no coincidence. This family’s association with the ecclesiastical foundation at Oran was so profound that P. W. Woulfe specifically referred to the Ó Clabaighs function as ‘erenaghs [airchinnigh ‘stewards’] of the church founded by St. Patrick’s at Oran’ (Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall). In this regard it is important to note that clerical families in the Gaelic Irish church, as in this instance, were not as we would imagine in today’s world — in fact the office of parish vicar or comharba ‘successor (of the founder)’ frequently passed from father to son (both being priests). Indeed, in this instance it is possible that both ‘Matthew’ and ‘Cornelius’ were father and son. There certainly seems to be more than initially meets the eye in the history of the placename Oran and it’s Irish precursors!

• Órán/Oran
• Barr na nÓrán/Barnanoraun
• Lisín an Óráin/Lisheenanoran
• Órán Mór/Oranmore
• Cnoc Óráin/Oranhill
• Cluain Óráin Uachtarach/Cloonoranoughter
• Cluain Óráin Íochtarach/Castlebellew
• Cluain Óráin/Cloonoran
• Tobar Iarlatha/Toberjarlath
• An Fuarán/Coldwells
• Tiobra Fhachna/Tibberaghny
• Achadh Tiobraide/Aughatubbrid or Chatsworth
• Baile na Tiobraide/Ballintubbert
• Baile na Tiobraide/Springhill
• Goirtín Óráin/Gorteenoran
• Goirtín Óráin/Georgia or Gorteenoran
• Baile na Tiobraide/Ballintubbrid
• Tobar Féilim/Toberfelim
• Tobar Ruairí/Toberrory
• Ceathrú na bhFuarán/Carrownaworan

Date: 19/07/2025

We are fortunate enough in Ireland that the worst ‘water shortage’ we suffer is the occasional hosepipe ban in mid-July. Not all countries are so lucky! If we do have a hot summer, we are reminded of the vital importance of a reliable supply of fresh potable water. Local authorities – and nowadays also Uisce Éireann – often turn to boreholes to exploit the abundant natural water reservoirs under our feet, but of course, Mother Nature is also kind enough to bring the water to the surface in the form of natural springs. One way or another, humans have been going to the well for many thousands of years, and it is no surprise that references to these important sources of fresh water are also abundant in Irish townland names.

This week we will introduce the most common terms for wells or springs in placenames, beginning with tiobra ‘well, spring, fountain, source’ (see eDIL s.v. tipra; cf. Carey, Éigse 52 (2002) p. 80). This word often occurs in its fossilized oblique form tiobraid, the most well-known example of which is of course Tipperary / Tiobraid Árann ‘the well of/at the (river) Ára’. (See River Ara / An Ára (#67249); cf. F.J. Byrne, Éigse 9 (1958) p. 25). Another term is fuarán ‘spring, fountain’ (Ó Dónaill s.v. fuarán; var. uarán), as in Carrownaworan / Ceathrú na bhFuarán ‘the quarter(land) of the springs, fountains’ (logainm.ie #45715) in Co. Sligo. Fuarán is a development from the Old Irish úarán ‘spring, well or fountain’ (eDIL s.v.). As we will see next week, this also developed to órán in some dialects, especially in Connaught, e.g. Oran / Órán ‘spring, fountain’ (logainm.ie #2114) in Co. Roscommon.

Of course, the word that most frequently occurs in placenames – so frequently that we could not possibly list all the examples – is tobar ‘a well, fountain, spring, source’ (Ó Dónaill s.v.; eDIL s.v. topar). While the toibreacha, tiobracha, fuaráin and uaráin that gave their names to these places can all be presumed to have been sources of good potable water, other characteristics are sometimes implied in the placename itself. For example, in Co. Wexford we have Toberanierin near Camolin – a location now probably most famous as the site of a United Irishman victory during the 1798 rebellion – for which the linguistic evidence collected by the Placenames Branch clearly suggests derivation from Tobar an Iarainn ‘the well of the iron’ (logainm.ie #52786) (‘Tober in ernig’ 1581). It is salient to note that there is a well in Toberanierin South described on the Ordnance Survey 6″ map (1st edition) as a Spa Well, and on later editions as a Spa Well (Chalybeate). Chalybeate generally refers to mineral waters containing salts of iron, which became fashionable to consume in the 18th century. Unlike many other ‘luxury destination spas’ which have sprung up around the country in recent years – even in locations with no such natural chalybeate feature – the well in Toberanierin does not seem to have been exploited for its medicinal benefits in living memory. Nevertheless, the Irish townland name tells us that its special properties were well-known long before the Spa Well was engraved on the 19th-century maps.

Well-names sometimes refer to more specific cures. (For a thorough discussion of curative and supernatural associations of wells see The holy wells of County Kilkenny (2018) by Dr. Pádraig Ó Dálaigh, former Higher Placenames Officer at the Placenames Branch.) The reason for the naming of Toberanania / Tobar an Fhaithne ‘the well of (the cure for) the wart” (logainm.ie #45003) in Co. Sligo, for example, needs no explanation. (It is interesting that by the mid-19th century local Irish-speakers appear to have reinterpreted faithne as the name of a weed.) An interesting investigation was carried out at Tobernagalt / Tobar na nGealt ‘the well of the mad people’ (logainm.ie #1414570) in the townland of Scrallaghbeg / An Screallach Bheag (#24607) in the well-known valley of Glannagalt / Gleann na nGealt ‘the valley of the mad people’ (logainm.ie #24603), close to the Co. Kerry Gaeltacht. The Ordnance Survey Parish Namebook (1841) described the well as ‘a Spring … visited by the Mad people’ and noted that it was located only a hundred metres or so from ‘Ath na nGelth’ [Áth na nGealt ‘the ford of the mad people’]. When the producers of the TG4 programme Cogar had a sample of water from Tobar na nGealt analysed, it was discovered that it was unusually rich in lithium, a mineral frequently used in the treatment of bipolar disorders and depression (see West Kerry Blog). Whether coincidence or not, it would be interesting to find out if the waters in any of the springs around another Glannagalt / Gleann na nGealt ‘the valley of the mad people’ (logainm.ie #41350) in the parish of Kilbarrymeadan in Co. Waterford have similar qualities! Not only that, it would be very desirable to carry out a similar analysis of the water in all the wells locally reputed to have had traditional curative powers, as recorded in sources such as the Ordnance Survey records or the later Schools’ Folklore Collection. We could be in for some very revealing findings.

Further examples of tobar, tiobra/tiobraid and fuarán, uarán will be discussed next week.

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill)

• Órán/Oran
• Gleann na nGealt/Glannagalt
• An Screallach Bheag/Scrallaghbeg
• Lomchluain/Lumcloon
• Tobar an Fhaithne/Toberanania
• Ceathrú na bhFuarán/Carrownaworan
• Tobar an Iarainn Íochtarach/Toberanierin Lower
• An Ára/River Ara
• Tobar na nGealt/Tobernagalt