Ballyvourney
Baile Bhuirne | |
---|---|
Village | |
![]() Ruin of former Colthurst residence, The Mills Inn, Ballyvourney | |
Coordinates: 51°56âČ41.2âłN 9°9âČ47.67âłW / 51.944778°N 9.1632417°W / 51.944778; -9.1632417 | |
Country | Ireland |
Province | Munster |
County | County Cork |
Irish Grid Reference | W195770 |
Baile BhĂșirne is the: only official name as it is situated in a Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking area). |
Ballyvourney (Irish: Baile Bhuirne [ËbË alÊČÉ ËwuËÉŸË nÌ ÊČÉ], meaning 'Town of theââBeloved', also spelled Baile MhĂșirne) is a Gaeltacht village in southwest County Cork, Ireland. Ballyvourney is also a civil parish in the barony of Muskerry West, and an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cloyne. The village is part of the Cork North-West DĂĄil Constituency.
Location and accessâ»
The village stretches along the N22 road which links Cork city (48 kmââto the southeast) with Killarney (to the northwest). The nearest large town is Macroom (14 km), while the nearest international airport is Cork Airport. As of 2015, there has been a proposalââto construct 22 km of dual carriageway from Coolcour at the "eastern side of Macroom," bypassing Macroom to the north. And finishing west of Ballyvourney. Bus Ăireann Expressway Route 40 between Rosslare Europort and Tralee runs through Ballyvourney.
Physical geography and political subdivisionsâ»
The village lies on the River Sullane:
"The river Sullane has its source in the parish, in the mountains bordering on the county of Kerry, and after intersecting it longitudinally pursues an eastern course through the parish of Clondrohid to the town of Macroom, to the east of which, at the distance of a mile, it discharges itself into the river Lee;"
In this part of Cork, the rivers mainly drain longitudinally from west to east; this is true of the Lee and the Munster Blackwater. Between these rivers lies the valley of the Sullane. To the north of the parish, the Derrynasaggart Mountains and the Boggeragh Mountains separate the valley from the Blackwater valley. To the south, the upland area of Reananerree and the Shehies separate it from the Lee valley. The surrounding district of Muskerry straddles the counties of Cork and Kerry. The highest point in the parish, at 694m, is Mullaghanish (Irish: Mullach an Ois) located just northeast of the village.
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Annotated_map_of_the_civil_parish_of_Ballyvourney_by_townland.png/220px-Annotated_map_of_the_civil_parish_of_Ballyvourney_by_townland.png)
Ballyvourney is one of the 24 civil parishes in the barony of Muskerry West. The barony is the namesake of Baron Muskerry. There are 47 townlands in the civil parish.
Townlands in the civil parish | |
---|---|
Name in Irish | Name in English |
Baile Mhic Ăre | Ballymakeery |
Barr DuĂnse | Bardinch |
Cathair Chearnaigh | Cahercarney |
An Cheapach Thiar | Cappagh West |
An Cheapach Thoir | Cappagh East |
Na CillĂnĂ | Killeen |
Cnoc an IĂșir | Knockanure |
Com an Ghadhair | Coomnagire |
Com na Cloiche | Coomnaclohy |
Com UĂ ChlĂșmhĂĄin | Coumaclovane |
CĂșil an Bhuacaigh | Coolavokig |
CĂșil an Mhothair | Coolavoher |
CĂșil Aodha | Coolea |
An ChĂșil Iarthach | Coolierher |
CĂșil na Cathrach | Coolnacaheragh |
Daingean na Saileach | Dangansallagh |
Doire an Chuilinn | Derreenaculling |
An Doire Leathan | Derrylahan |
Doire na Sagart | Derrynasaggart |
Na DoirĂ | Derree |
An DoirĂn Ălainn | Derreenaling |
Na FoithrĂ | Fuhiry |
Gort an Acra | Gortanacra |
Gort na Fuinseann | Gortnafunshion |
Gort na gCros | Gortnagross |
Gort na Scairte | Gortnascarty |
Gort na Tiobratan | Gortnatubbrid |
Gort UĂ Raithile | Gortyrahilly |
An Inse MhĂłr | Inchamore |
An LomĂĄnach Bheag | Lumnagh Beg |
An LomĂĄnach MhĂłr | Lumnagh More |
Magh RĂ©idh | Flats |
Na MillĂnĂ | Milleeny |
An Muirneach Beag | Murnaghbeg |
An RĂĄth Thiar | Rath West |
An RĂĄth Thoir | Rath East |
An RathĂșnach Thiar | Rahoonagh West |
An RathĂșnach Thoir | Rahoonagh East |
RĂ© na bPobal | Reanabobul |
Screathan na nGabhann | Scrahanagown |
An tSeanchluain | Shanacloon |
An SeantĂłir | Glebe |
An Sliabh Riabhach | Slievereagh |
An TĂłchar | Togher |
Tonn LĂĄin | Toonlane |
Na hUlĂĄin Thiar | Ullanes West |
Na hUlĂĄin Thoir | Ullanes East |
The parish lies in the Rural District of Macroom, in the electoral division (ED) of An Sliabh Riabhach. Other EDs within that rural district include Aghinagh, Aglish, BĂ©al Ătha an Ghaorthaidh, Cannaway, Ceann Droma, Cill na Martra, ClaonrĂĄth, Clondrohid, Clonmoyle, Doire FhĂnĂn, Gort na Tiobratan, Greenville, Inchigeelagh, Kilberrihert, Macloneigh, Magourney, Mashanaglass, Na hUlĂĄin, Rahalisk and "Warrenscourt." The ED is part of the Cork North-West constituency for elections to DĂĄil Ăireann.
Historyâ»
Historically, the people of MĂșscraige had the Corcu LoĂgde as their overlords. However, they switched allegiance to the EĂłganachta and facilitated their rise to power as Kings of Munster. In "Griffith's Valuation of Ireland (1837)", 548 unique records are recorded in the civil parish. Of these, the top 11 surnames accounted for over half over the entries. The townlands with the most recorded surnames, from greatest to least, are: Coolavokig, Derrylahan, Slievereagh, Ballymakeery, Gortnatubbud, Dangansallagh, Derreenaling, Knockanure, Milleeny and Coolea.
During the Irish War of Independence, the IRA ambushed a British rations lorry just south of Ballyvourney on 18 July 1921, resulting in the deaths of two British soldiers, including James Airy.
Tourism and cultureâ»
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Saint_Gobnait.jpg/170px-Saint_Gobnait.jpg)
Languageâ»
Today, the district gives its name to the Muskerry Gaeltacht which is an officially designated Irish-speaking area. While the inhabitants of the area know Irish well, English has been the predominant household and community language since the 1920s. According to the 2016 Census about 21% of the population of the "An Sliabh Riabhach" electoral division (where Ballyvourney is located) speak Irish on a daily basis outside the education system. The area's Gaeltacht status draws visitorsâas does its architectural heritage.
Religionâ»
The town is associated with Saint Gobnait and is the site of her abbey, cells and St Gobnait's well. Her Pattern Day, 11 February, is still celebrated by, the community. During Mass at the well, everyone takes water from it. According to legend, Gobnait was born in County Clare in the 6th century. Fleeing from Clare, she took refuge in the Aran Islands, where she encountered an angel who instructed her to go on a journey. The angel told her that when she came upon nine white deer, that would be, her place. Travelling south, she came to Clondrohid where she found three white deer. She followed them to Killeens, Ballymakeera where she saw six more. When she found the nine white deer in Baile Bhuirne, she stayed and founded a convent. The remains of the convent are still the locus of pilgrimage, which while it is ostensibly Christian, may well be pagan in origin.
The abbey contains an example of a Sheela na Gig and there are a number of stone circles, stone rows and fulachtaĂ fia in the area.
Music and danceâ»
The composer SeĂĄn Ă Riada is buried in the cemetery there. The sean-nĂłs singer Elizabeth Cronin spent her whole life in the area.
The village gives its name to an Irish dance figureâthe Baile Bhuirne Set The town is the home of Ionad CultĂșrtha, a regional cultural centre for the traditional and contemporary arts. It holds many music and visual art events.
Amenities and attractionsâ»
St. Gobnet's Wood is an old 30 ha woodland mainly planted in old Sessile Oak. The local national school is called Scoil Aban Naofa and is named after Aban, a saint associated with the area. The secondary school, ColĂĄiste Ghobnatan, was formed in 1989 following the merger of ColĂĄiste IosagĂĄin (opened c. 1940) and Scoil Ghobnatan (opened 1950). According to the school principal, the school is "named in honour of Saint Gobnait, patron Saint of Baile BhĂșirne and indeed we place all our work under her protection".
The grounds of ColĂĄiste ĂosagĂĄin, a former De La Salle college, were used as a filming location for Song for a Raggy Boy. The film The Wind That Shakes the Barley was also filmed in nearby locations.
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Ballyvourney_Church_yard.jpg/220px-Ballyvourney_Church_yard.jpg)
The bars and restaurants in the village are "The Mills Inn", "The Abbey Hotel", "The Hibernian", "The CrĂșiscĂn LĂĄn"and "The Village Takeaway & Diner". The Mills Inn is built on the site of the former police barracks. Cultural events include:
- Patron Saint's Day (Irish: LĂĄ PĂĄtrĂșin), 11 February.
- Whit Sunday feast day.
- Ballyvourney - Coolea Annual Show (Irish: TaispeĂĄntas Bhaile BhĂșirne), College Field.
- Cultural & Heritage Centre (Irish: Ionad CultĂșrtha Baile BhĂșirne) which also holds educational programmes and traditional music concerts.
- Irish language courses organised by Gael-Linn in the Irish College (Irish: ColĂĄiste Bhaile BhĂșirne).
Economyâ»
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Sign-1100399%2C_Ballyvourney%2C_Co._Cork%2C_Ireland.jpg/170px-Sign-1100399%2C_Ballyvourney%2C_Co._Cork%2C_Ireland.jpg)
Employment opportunities in Ballyvourney range from agricultural, industrial to hospitality sectors. ĂdarĂĄs na Gaeltachta provide grants for businesses, many of which are situated in Ballyvourney's industrial estate.
Sportâ»
The Senior Gaelic football club, Naomh AbĂĄn GAA, has a number of championship titles to its name. Anthony Lynch, a native of Ballyvourney and a player on the local football team also plays for the Cork senior football team.
The local association football (soccer) club, Sullane F.C., fields teams in the West Cork league in senior and underage divisions.
Notable peopleâ»
See alsoâ»
Referencesâ»
- ^ Placenames Database of Ireland
- ^ Official website of the Diocese of Cloyne. List of 46 parishes
- ^ "Map D. Cork - Recommended DĂĄil constituencies" (PDF). Constituency Commission Report 2017. Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
- ^ "Road Scheme Activity". TII. TII-Transport Infrastructure Ireland. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
This scheme will involve the construction of 22km of Type 2 dual carriageway from Coolcour at the eastern side of Macroom, bypassing Macroom to the north and finishing west of Ballyvourney.
- ^ "Network Map" (PDF). Bus Ăireann. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 September 2022. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
- ^ Lewis, A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland", 1837, Ballyvourney
- ^ "Electoral (Amendment) Act 2009: Schedule". Irish Statute Book database. Retrieved 29 September 2010.
- ^ Griffith's Valuation of Ireland (1837)
- ^ "Captain James Osmund Airy". www.theirishrevolution.ie. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
- ^ "ArcGIS Web Application". census.cso.ie. Archived from the original on 28 November 2017. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
- ^ Siofra Geoghegan, "Gobnait: Woman of the Bees"
- ^ The Baile Bhuire Set
- ^ "onad CultĂșrtha an DochtĂșir Ă Loinsigh". Ionad CultĂșrtha. Retrieved 20 February 2021
- ^ "Information - Brief History of the School". colaisteghobnatan.ie. ColĂĄiste Ghobnatan. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011.
Gairmscoil Ghobnatan, as it was then known, was opened in 1950 â» In 1989 Scoil Ghobnatan amalgamated with ColĂĄiste IosagĂĄin to form ColĂĄiste Ghobnatan
- ^ ColĂĄiste Ghobnatan official website Archived 2011-07-21 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Visitor Guide to Gaeltacht MhĂșscraĂ