Connemara
For the region on Jupiter's moon Europa, see Conamara Chaos. |
A view of Conamara, taken from the N59 road. |
Conamara (anglicised
Connemara), which derives from Conmhaicne Mara (meaning: descendants of Con Mhac, of the sea), is a district in the west of
Ireland (
County Galway). The
Conmhaicne Mara were a branch of the Conmhaicne, an early tribal grouping that had a number of branches located in different parts of
Connacht. As this branch of Conmhaicne were located by the sea they became known as the Conmhaicne Mara i.e. of the sea. Conamara lies in the territory of
Iar Connacht "West Connacht", which is the portion of County Galway west of
Lough Corrib and the portion of County Mayo in the barony of Ross. Conamara was traditionally divided into North Conamara and South Conamara. The mountains of the
Twelve Bens and the
Owenglin river, which flows into the sea at An Clochán /
Clifden, marked the boundary between the two parts. Conamara is bounded on the west, south and north by the
Atlantic. Conamara's land boundary with the rest of County Galway is marked by the
Invermore River (which flows into the north of
Cill Chiaráin Bay),
Loch Oorid, (which lies a few miles west of An Teach Dóite, and the western spine of the
Maumturks mountains in the north of which the boundary meets the sea at the
Killary a few miles west of
Leenaun.
The term Conamara is now commonly used (although incorrectly) to describe all of Galway west of Lough Corrib. Conamara is often used to describe the
Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking areas) of west Galway, however this is inaccurate as some of these areas are outside of the traditional boundary of Conamara. A more limited definition, although still incorrect, is that the boundary of Conamara with the rest of Galway begins where the Irish speaking area starts west of Galway. Another misconception, also incorrect, is that Conamara's eastern boundary ends around
Indreabhán and
An Teach Dóite.
Conamara is composed of the
Catholic parishes of
Carna, Clifden (
Omey and
Ballindoon),
Ballynakill,
Roundstone and
Inishbofin. The territory contains the civil parishes of Moyrus, Ballynakill, Omey, Ballindoon, Inishbofin (the last parish was for a time part of the territory of the Clan Ã" Máille).
The coast of Conamara consists of a number of peninsulas. The peninsula of Iorras Aithneach in the south is the largest and contains the villages of Carna and Cill Chiaráin The peninsula of Errismore consists of the area west of the village of
Ballyconneely. Errisbeg peninsula lies to the south of the village of Roundstone. The Errislannan peninsula lies just south of the town of An Clochán /
Clifden. The peninsulas of Aughris,
Cleggan and Rinville (or Renvyle) are found in the north-west of Connemara. There are numerous islands found off the coast of Conamara of which Inishbofin is the largest, other islands include
Omey, Inishark, High Island, Friars Island, Feenish and Mweenish.
The main town of Connemara is An Clochán /
Clifden. The area around the town is rich with megalithic tombs. The famous green/white Conamara
Marble was a trade treasure used by the inhabitants of the time and continues to be of great value today.
(Clockwise from
Galway city)
*
Carna*
Cloch na Rón / Roundstone*
Ballyconneely* An Clochán /
Clifden* Claddaghduff (for
Omey Island)
*
Cleggan (for
Inishbofin).
*
Letterfrack*
Aran Islands (day trips from
Ros An MhÃl).
*
Alcock and Brown's first non-stop flight across the
Atlantic crash landed near Clifden.
*
Connacht Irish* The
Western Way (
Long-distance trail)
* The
Twelve Bens and
Maumturks mountains.
*
Lough Corrib*
Irish tourist board web site for Conamara.*
Connemara Ireland An tourist information site for all of the regions of Conamara. Includes an accommodation guide and links to this beautiful part of Ireland.
