County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. It is located in the
South-West Region and forms part of the
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Munster. It is named after the
Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the county was 155,258 at the 2022 census,
A popular tourist destination, Kerry's geography is defined by the
MacGillycuddy's Reeks
, photo=MacGuillycuddy's Reeks.jpg
, photo_caption=
, country=Ireland
, country1=
, location = County Kerry
, region = Munster
, region_type = Provinces of Ireland
, parent=
, border=
, length_km=19
, length_orientation=East–West ...
mountains, the
Dingle
Dingle ( Irish: ''An Daingean'' or ''Daingean Uí Chúis'', meaning "fort of Ó Cúis") is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about southwest of Tralee and northwest of Kill ...
,
Iveragh
The Iveragh Peninsula () is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula. Carrauntoohil, its highest mountain, is als ...
and
Beara peninsulas, and the
Blasket and
Skellig
''Skellig'' is a children's novel by the British author David Almond, published by Hodder in 1998. It was the Whitbread Children's Book of the Year and it won the Carnegie Medal from the Library Association, recognising the year's outstandi ...
islands. It is bordered by
County Limerick
"Remember Limerick"
, image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland
, subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Ireland, Province
, subd ...
to the north-east and
Cork County
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns ar ...
to the south and south-east.
Geography and subdivisions
Kerry is the fifth-largest of Ireland's 32 traditional counties
by area and the 16th-largest
by population. It is the second-largest of Munster's six counties by area, and the fourth-largest by population. Uniquely, it is bordered by only two other counties:
County Limerick
"Remember Limerick"
, image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland
, subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Ireland, Province
, subd ...
to the east and
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns a ...
to the south-east. The
county town is
Tralee
Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...
although the Catholic diocesan seat is
Killarney
Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Cast ...
, which is; one of Ireland's most famous tourist destinations. The
Lakes of Killarney
The Lakes of Killarney are a scenic attraction located in Killarney National Park near Killarney, County Kerry, in Ireland. They consist of three lakes - Lough Leane, Muckross Lake (also called Middle Lake) and Upper Lake.
Surroundings
The ...
, an area of outstanding natural beauty are located in
Killarney National Park
Killarney National Park ( ga, Páirc Náisiúnta Chill Airne), near the town of Killarney, County Kerry, was the first national park in Ireland, created when the Muckross Estate was donated to the Irish Free State in 1932. The park has sinc ...
. The
Reeks District
Tourism in the Republic of Ireland is one of the biggest contributors to the economy of Ireland, with 9.0 million people visiting the country in 2017, about 1.8 times Ireland's population. Each year about €5bn in revenue is made from econ ...
is home to
Carrauntoohil
Carrauntoohil or Carrauntoohill ( ; ga, Corrán Tuathail , meaning "Tuathal's sickle") is the highest mountain in Ireland at . It is on the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, close to the centre of Ireland's highest mountain range, MacGillycu ...
, Ireland's highest mountain at 1,039m. The tip of the
Dingle Peninsula
The Dingle Peninsula ( ga, Corca Dhuibhne; anglicised as Corkaguiny, the name of the corresponding barony) is the northernmost of the major peninsulas in County Kerry. It ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point ...
is the westernmost point of Ireland.
Baronies
There are nine historic
baronies in the county. While baronies continue to be officially defined units, they are no longer used for many administrative purposes. Their official status is illustrated by Placenames Orders made since 2003, where official Irish names of baronies are listed under "Administrative units".
![Dingle North West (stevefe) 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/Dingle_North_West_%28stevefe%29_2.jpg)
*
Clanmaurice – '
*
Corkaguiny – '
* Dunkerron North – '
* Dunkerron South – '
* Glanarought – '
* Iraghticonnor – '
*
Iveragh (Peninsula) – '
* Magunihy – '
*
Trughanacmy
Trughanacmy ( gle, Triúcha an Aicme) is a barony in County Kerry, Ireland. The barony is an obsolete administrative area, having ceased to have any government function since the enactment of the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898.
In 1881 the ...
– '
Most populous towns
Physical geography
![County Kerry West of Ballyferriter](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/County_Kerry_West_of_Ballyferriter.jpg)
Kerry faces the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
and, typically for an Eastern-Atlantic coastal region, features many
peninsulas
A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on al ...
and inlets, principally the
Dingle Peninsula
The Dingle Peninsula ( ga, Corca Dhuibhne; anglicised as Corkaguiny, the name of the corresponding barony) is the northernmost of the major peninsulas in County Kerry. It ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point ...
, the
Iveragh Peninsula
The Iveragh Peninsula () is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula. Carrauntoohil, its highest mountain, is als ...
, and the
Beara Peninsula
Beara ( ga, Béarra) or the Beara Peninsula is a peninsula on the south-west coast of Ireland, bounded between the Kenmare "river" (actually a bay) to the north side and Bantry Bay to the south. It contains two mountain ranges running down it ...
. The county is bounded on the west by the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
and on the north by the
River Shannon. Kerry is one of the most mountainous regions of Ireland and its three highest mountains,
Carrauntoohil
Carrauntoohil or Carrauntoohill ( ; ga, Corrán Tuathail , meaning "Tuathal's sickle") is the highest mountain in Ireland at . It is on the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, close to the centre of Ireland's highest mountain range, MacGillycu ...
,
Beenkeragh
Beenkeragh or Benkeeragh () is the second-highest peak in Ireland, at , on both the Arderin and Vandeleur-Lynam lists. It is part of the MacGillycuddy's Reeks range in County Kerry. Beenkeragh also gives its name the infamous ''Beenkeragh Ridge ...
and
Caher, all part of the
MacGillycuddy's Reeks
, photo=MacGuillycuddy's Reeks.jpg
, photo_caption=
, country=Ireland
, country1=
, location = County Kerry
, region = Munster
, region_type = Provinces of Ireland
, parent=
, border=
, length_km=19
, length_orientation=East–West ...
range.
Just off the coast are a number of islands, including the
Blasket Islands
The Blasket Islands ( ga, Na Blascaodaí) are an uninhabited group of islands off the west coast of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The last island to hold a significant population, Great Blasket Island, was abandoned in 1954 due ...
,
Valentia Island
Valentia Island () is one of Ireland's most westerly points. It lies off the Iveragh Peninsula in the southwest of County Kerry. It is linked to the mainland by the Maurice O'Neill Memorial Bridge at Portmagee. A car ferry also departs from ...
and the
Skelligs.
Skellig Michael
Skellig Michael ( ga, Sceilg Mhichíl ), also called Great Skellig ( ga, link=no, Sceilig Mhór ), is a twin-pinnacled crag west of the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The island is named after the archangel Michael, with "Skellig ...
is a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
, famous for the
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whi ...
clinging to the island's cliffs. The county contains the
extreme west point of Ireland,
Dunmore Head
Dunmore Head () is a promontory in the westernmost part of the Dingle Peninsula, located in the barony of Corca Dhuibhne in southwest County Kerry, Ireland. The headland, together with parts of Mount Eagle's northern slopes is formed from ste ...
on the Dingle Peninsula, or including islands,
Tearaght Island, part of the Blaskets. The most westerly inhabited area of Ireland is
Dún Chaoin
Dunquin ( ) is a Gaeltacht village in west County Kerry, Ireland. Dunquin lies at the most westerly tip of the Dingle Peninsula, overlooking the Blasket Islands. At 10°27'16"W, it is the most westerly settlement of Ireland and of Eurasia, exclu ...
, on the Dingle Peninsula. The
River Feale
Beach seine fishing for salmon in River Feale near by town Ballybunion, year 1975.
The River Feale (''An Fhéil'' or ''Abhainn na Féile'' in Irish) rises near Rockchapel in the Mullaghareirk Mountains of County Cork in the southwest of Irel ...
, the
River Laune
The River Laune (; Irish: ''An Leamhain'') is a river in County Kerry, Ireland, which flows from Lough Leane (sometimes written as Lough Lein), one of the Lakes of Killarney, through Beaufort, past Ballymalis Castle, through the town of Killo ...
and the
Roughty River
Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay.
Location
Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare ...
flow through Kerry, into the Atlantic.
Climate
The
North Atlantic Current
The North Atlantic Current (NAC), also known as North Atlantic Drift and North Atlantic Sea Movement, is a powerful warm western boundary current within the Atlantic Ocean that extends the Gulf Stream northeastward.
The NAC originates from where ...
, part of the
Gulf Stream, flows north past Kerry and the west coast of Ireland, resulting in milder temperatures than would otherwise be expected at the 52 North
latitude
In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...
. This means that
subtropical plants such as the
strawberry tree and
tree fern
The tree ferns are arborescent (tree-like) ferns that grow with a trunk elevating the fronds above ground level, making them trees. Many extant tree ferns are members of the order Cyatheales, to which belong the families Cyatheaceae (scaly tree ...
s, not normally found in northern Europe, thrive in the area.
Because of the mountainous area and the prevailing southwesterly winds, Kerry is among the regions with the highest
rainfall
Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...
in Ireland. Owing to its location, there has been a weather reporting station on Valentia for many centuries. The Irish record for rainfall in one day is , recorded at Cloore Lake in Kerry in 1993.
In 1986 the remnants of
Hurricane Charley crossed over Kerry as an
extratropical storm
Extratropical cyclones, sometimes called mid-latitude cyclones or wave cyclones, are low-pressure areas which, along with the anticyclones of high-pressure areas, drive the weather over much of the Earth. Extratropical cyclones are capable of ...
causing extensive rainfall, flooding and damage.
History
Kerry ( ga, Ciarraí or in the original pre-Irish language reform spelling ''Ciarraighe'') means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was
Ciar, son of
Fergus mac Róich
Fergus mac Róich (literally " manliness, son of great stallion") is a character in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. Formerly the king of Ulster, he is tricked out of the kingship and betrayed by Conchobar mac Nessa, becomes the ally and lo ...
.
[T J Barrington, ''Discovering Kerry, its History Heritage and toponymy'', Dublin, 1976] In
Old Irish
Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writt ...
"Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective describing a dark complexion. The suffix ''raighe'', meaning ''people/tribe'', is found in various ''-ry'' place names in Ireland, such as ''Osry''—''Osraighe'' ''Deer-People/Tribe''. The county's nickname is ''the Kingdom''.
Lordship of Ireland
On 27 August 1329, by
Letters Patent,
Maurice FitzGerald, 1st Earl of Desmond
Maurice FitzThomas FitzGerald, 1st Earl of Desmond (died 25 January 1356) in Dublin Castle, Dublin, Ireland was an Irish nobleman in the Peerage of Ireland, Captain of Desmond Castle in Kinsale, so-called ruler of Munster, and for a short time ...
was confirmed in the feudal seniority of the entire
county palatine
In England, Wales and Ireland a county palatine or palatinate was an area ruled by a hereditary nobleman enjoying special authority and autonomy from the rest of a kingdom. The name derives from the Latin adjective ''palātīnus'', "relating to ...
of Kerry, to him and his heirs male, to hold of the Crown by the service of one knight's fee. In the 15th century, the majority of the area now known as County Kerry was still part of the
County Desmond
The Kingdom of Desmond () was a historic kingdom in southwestern Ireland. It was founded in 1118 by Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh, King of Munster when the Treaty of Glanmire formally divided the Kingdom of Munster into Desmond and Thomond (, "North ...
, the west Munster seat of the
Earl of Desmond
Earl of Desmond is a title in the peerage of Ireland () created four times. When the powerful Earl of Desmond took arms against Queen Elizabeth Tudor, around 1578, along with the King of Spain and the Pope, he was confiscated from his estates ...
, a branch of the
Hiberno-Norman FitzGerald dynasty
The FitzGerald/FitzMaurice Dynasty is a noble and aristocratic dynasty of Cambro-Norman, Anglo-Norman and later Hiberno-Norman origin. They have been peers of Ireland since at least the 13th century, and are described in the Annals of the ...
, known as the
Geraldines
The FitzGerald/FitzMaurice Dynasty is a noble and aristocratic dynasty of Cambro-Norman, Anglo-Norman and later Hiberno-Norman origin. They have been peers of Ireland since at least the 13th century, and are described in the Annals of the ...
.
Kingdom of Ireland
![Skellig Michael](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Skellig_Michael.png)
In 1580, during the
Second Desmond Rebellion
The Second Desmond Rebellion (1579–1583) was the more widespread and bloody of the two Desmond Rebellions in Ireland launched by the FitzGerald Dynasty of Desmond in Munster against English rule. The second rebellion began in July 1579 whe ...
, one of the most infamous massacres of the Sixteenth century, the
Siege of Smerwick
The siege of Smerwick took place at (known in English as Smerwick) in November 1580, during the Second Desmond Rebellion in Ireland. A force of between 400 and 700 Papal freelance soldiers, mostly of Spanish and Italian origin, landed at Smer ...
, took place at Dún an Óir near
Ard na Caithne
Ard na Caithne (; meaning "height of the arbutus/ strawberry tree"), sometimes known in English as Smerwick, is a bay and townland in County Kerry in Ireland. One of the principal bays of Corca Dhuibhne, it is located at the foot of an Triúr ...
(Smerwick) at the tip of the
Dingle Peninsula
The Dingle Peninsula ( ga, Corca Dhuibhne; anglicised as Corkaguiny, the name of the corresponding barony) is the northernmost of the major peninsulas in County Kerry. It ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point ...
. The 600-strong Italian, Spanish and Irish
papal invasion force of
James Fitzmaurice Fitzgerald
James fitz Maurice FitzGerald (died 1579), called "fitz Maurice", was captain-general of Desmond while Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond, was detained in England by Queen Elizabeth after the Battle of Affane in 1565. He led the first Des ...
was besieged by the English forces and massacred.
In 1588, when the fleet of the
Spanish Armada in Ireland
The Spanish Armada in Ireland refers to the landfall made upon the coast of Ireland in September 1588 of a large portion of the 130-strong fleet sent by Philip II to invade England.
Following its defeat at the naval battle of Gravelines the ...
were returning to
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
during stormy weather, many of its ships sought shelter at the
Blasket Islands
The Blasket Islands ( ga, Na Blascaodaí) are an uninhabited group of islands off the west coast of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The last island to hold a significant population, Great Blasket Island, was abandoned in 1954 due ...
and some were wrecked.
During the
Nine Years' War, Kerry was again the scene of conflict, as the O'Sullivan Beare clan joined the rebellion. In 1602 their castle at
Dunboy was
besieged and taken by English troops.
Donal O'Sullivan Beare, in an effort to escape English retribution and to reach his allies in
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...
, marched all the clan's members and dependants to the north of Ireland. Due to harassment by hostile forces and freezing weather, very few of the 1,000 O'Sullivans who set out reached their destination.
In the aftermath of the War, much of the native owned land in Kerry was confiscated and given to English settlers or 'planters'. The head of the
MacCarthy Mor
The Chief of the Name, or in older English usage Captain of his Nation, is the recognised head of a family or clan (''fine'' in Irish and Scottish Gaelic). The term has sometimes been used as a title in Ireland and Scotland.
In Ireland
In Eli ...
family,
Florence MacCarthy was imprisoned in London and his lands were divided between his relatives and colonists from England, such as the Browne family.
In the 1640s Kerry was engulfed by the
Irish Rebellion of 1641, an attempt by Irish Catholics to take power in the Protestant
Kingdom of Ireland. The rebellion in Kerry was led by
Donagh McCarthy, 1st Viscount Muskerry. His son
the Earl of Clancarty held the county during the subsequent
Irish Confederate Wars and his forces were among the last to surrender to the
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland in 1652. The last stronghold to fall was
Ross Castle
Ross Castle ( ga, Caisleán an Rois) is a 15th-century tower house and keep on the edge of Lough Leane, in Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland. It is the ancestral home of the Chiefs of the Clan O'Donoghue, later associated wit ...
, near Killarney.
The Famine
In the 18th and 19th centuries Kerry became increasingly populated by poor tenant farmers, who came to rely on the
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
as their main food source. As a result, when the potato crop failed in 1845, Kerry was very hard hit by the
Great Irish Famine of 1845–49. In the wake of the famine, many thousands of poor farmers emigrated to seek a better life in America and elsewhere. Kerry was to remain a source of emigration until recent times (up to the 1980s). Another long term consequence of the famine was the
Land War
The Land War ( ga, Cogadh na Talún) was a period of agrarian agitation in rural Ireland (then wholly part of the United Kingdom) that began in 1879. It may refer specifically to the first and most intense period of agitation between 1879 and 18 ...
of the 1870s and 1880s, in which tenant farmers agitated, sometimes violently, for better terms from their landlords.
War of Independence and Civil War
![RossCastleAndLoughLeane](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/RossCastleAndLoughLeane.jpg)
In the 20th century, Kerry was one of the counties most affected by the
Irish War of Independence (1919–21) and
Irish Civil War (1922–23). In the war of Independence, the
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief th ...
fought a guerilla war against the
Royal Irish Constabulary
The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC, ga, Constáblacht Ríoga na hÉireann; simply called the Irish Constabulary 1836–67) was the police force in Ireland from 1822 until 1922, when all of the country was part of the United Kingdom. A separate ...
, and British military. One of the more prominent incidents in the conflict in Kerry was the
siege of Tralee
The siege of Tralee was an event that took place between 1 and 9 November 1920 in Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland.
History
Patrick Cahill, the Officer Commanding Kerry No. 1 Brigade, Irish Republican Army instructed the Tralee Battalion to carry o ...
in November 1920, when the
Black and Tans
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...
placed
Tralee
Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...
under curfew for a week, burned many homes, and shot dead a number of local people in retaliation for the IRA killing of five local policemen the night before. Another was the
Headford Junction ambush in spring 1921, when IRA units ambushed a train carrying British soldiers outside Killarney. About ten British soldiers, three civilians and two IRA men were killed in the ensuing gun battle. Violence between the IRA and the British was ended in July 1921, but nine men, four British soldiers and five IRA men, were killed in a shoot-out in Castleisland on the day of the truce itself, indicating the bitterness of the conflict in Kerry.
Following the
Anglo-Irish Treaty
The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty ( ga , An Conradh Angla-Éireannach), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the ...
, most of the Kerry IRA units opposed the settlement. One exception existed in
Listowel
Listowel ( ; , IPA: lʲɪsˠˈt̪ˠuəhəlʲ is a heritage market town in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the River Feale, from the county town, Tralee. The town of Listowel had a population of 4,820 according to the CSO Census 2016.
Desc ...
where a pro-Treaty garrison was established by local Flying Column commandant Thomas Kennelly in February 1922. This unit consisted of 200 regular soldiers along with officers and NCOs. A batch of rifles, machine guns and a
Crossley
Crossley, based in Manchester, United Kingdom, was a pioneering company in the production of internal combustion engines. Since 1988 it has been part of the Rolls-Royce Power Engineering group.
More than 100,000 Crossley oil and gas engines ...
tender were sent from Dublin. Listowel would remain a base for those supporting the treaty throughout the conflict. The town was eventually overcome by superior numbers of anti-Treaty forces belonging to the Kerry No. 2 and 3 Brigades in June 1922. In the ensuing civil war between pro- and anti-treaty elements, Kerry was perhaps the worst affected area of Ireland. Initially the county was held by the
Anti-Treaty IRA
The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty ( ga , An Conradh Angla-Éireannach), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the ...
but it was taken for the
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between ...
after
seaborne landings by National Army troops at
Fenit
Fenit () is a small village in County Kerry, Ireland, located on north side of Tralee Bay about west of Tralee town, just south of the Shannon Estuary. The bay is enclosed from the Atlantic by the Maharee spit which extends northwards from ...
,
Tarbert
Tarbert ( gd, An Tairbeart) is a place name in Scotland and Ireland. Places named Tarbert are characterised by a narrow strip of land, or isthmus. This can be where two lochs nearly meet, or a causeway out to an island.
Etymology
All placenames ...
and
Kenmare
Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay.
Location
Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare Ba ...
in August 1922. Thereafter the county saw a bitter guerilla war between men who had been comrades only a year previously. The republicans, or "irregulars", mounted a number of successful actions, for example attacking and briefly re-taking
Kenmare
Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay.
Location
Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare Ba ...
in September 1922. In March 1923 Kerry saw a series of
massacres
A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
of republican prisoners by
National Army soldiers, in reprisal for the ambush of their men—the most notorious being the
killing of eight men with mines at Ballyseedy, near Tralee. The internecine conflict was brought to an end in May 1923 as the rule of law was re-established following the death of IRA Chief of Staff
Liam Lynch, and the order by
Frank Aiken
Francis Thomas Aiken (13 February 1898 – 18 May 1983) was an Irish revolutionary and politician. He was chief of staff of the Anti-Treaty IRA at the end of the Irish Civil War. Aiken later served as Tánaiste from 1965 to 1969 and Minister ...
to dump all arms.
Local government
County council
The principal local authority is
Kerry County Council
Kerry County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Chiarraí) is the authority responsible for local government in County Kerry, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and ...
. The council provides a number of services including planning, roads maintenance, fire brigade, council housing, water supply, waste collection, recycling and landfill, higher education grants and funding for arts and culture.
Town councils
An additional tier of local government existed in the three largest towns in the county,
Killarney
Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Cast ...
,
Listowel
Listowel ( ; , IPA: lʲɪsˠˈt̪ˠuəhəlʲ is a heritage market town in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the River Feale, from the county town, Tralee. The town of Listowel had a population of 4,820 according to the CSO Census 2016.
Desc ...
and
Tralee
Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...
until the
2014 local elections were held on 23 May 2014. These elections were held following the changes effected by the
Local Government Reform Act 2014
The Local Government Reform Act 2014 (No. 1) is an act of the Oireachtas which provided for a major restructuring of local government in Ireland with effect from the 2014 local elections. It merged some first-tier county and city councils, ...
. The act abolished
town councils
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...
and introduced
municipal district
A municipal district is an administrative entity comprising a clearly-defined territory and its population. It can refer to a city, a town, a village, a small grouping of them, or a rural area.
Brazil
In Brazil, municipal districts are, in genera ...
s. County Kerry was divided into four municipal districts, which are identical with the local electoral areas (LEA) used for election of Councillors.
Parliamentary representation
Following boundary changes in 2016, Kerry is represented in
Dáil Éireann by five
TDs returned from a single parliamentary constituency. The TDs elected to the
33rd Dáil Éireann at the
2020 general election included
Pa Daly (
SF),
Norma Foley (
FF),
Brendan Griffin (
FG),
Danny Healy-Rae (
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
) and
Michael Healy-Rae
Michael Healy-Rae (born 9 January 1967) is an Irish Independent politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Kerry constituency since 2016, and previously from 2011 to 2016 for the Kerry South constituency. He previously served as Chair ...
(
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
).
Culture
As a region on the extremity of Ireland, the culture of Kerry was less susceptible to outside influences and has preserved the
Irish language
Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...
, as well as
Irish traditional music
Irish traditional music (also known as Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is a genre of folk music that developed in Ireland.
In ''A History of Irish Music'' (1905), W. H. Grattan Flood wrote that, in Gaelic Ireland, there we ...
, song and
dance. The
Sliabh Luachra
Sliabh Luachra (), sometimes anglicised Slieve Logher, is an upland region in Munster, Ireland. It is on the borders of counties Cork, Kerry and Limerick, and bounded to the south by the River Blackwater. It includes the Mullaghareirk Mounta ...
area of northeast Kerry, that borders Limerick and Cork, is renowned for its traditional music, dance and song, especially its slides, polkas and fiddle playing. The
Siamsa Tíre centre in Tralee is a hub of traditional Irish pastimes.
Corca Dhuibhne
The Dingle Peninsula ( ga, Corca Dhuibhne; anglicised as Corkaguiny, the name of the corresponding barony) is the northernmost of the major peninsulas in County Kerry. It ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point o ...
and
Uíbh Ráthach are considered
Gaeltacht
( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home.
The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially reco ...
regions and Irish culture is also very strong in these areas.
The Blasket Islands off the Dingle Peninsula are known for their rich literary heritage; authors such as
Peig Sayers
Máiréad "Peig" Sayers (; 29 March 18738 December 1958) was an Irish author and seanchaí ( or – plural: ) born in Dún Chaoin, County Kerry, Ireland. Seán Ó Súilleabháin, the former Chief archivist for the Irish Folklore Commission, ...
,
Muiris Ó Súilleabháin
Muiris Ó Súilleabháin (; 19 February 1904 – 25 June 1950), anglicised as Maurice O'Sullivan, was an Irish author famous for his Irish-language memoir of growing up on the Great Blasket Island and in Dingle, County Kerry, off the western ...
and
Tomás Ó Criomhthain Tomás may refer to:
* Tomás (given name)
* Tomás (surname) Tomás is a Spanish and Portuguese surname, equivalent of '' Thomas''.
It may refer to:
* Antonio Tomás (born 1985), professional Spanish footballer
* Belarmino Tomás (1892–1950) ...
have all written books about life on the islands, which were evacuated in 1953 due to increasingly
extreme weather
Extreme weather or extreme climate events includes unexpected, unusual, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Often, extreme events are based on a loca ...
conditions that made them uninhabitable.
John B Keane
John Brendan Keane (21 July 1928 – 30 May 2002) was an Irish playwright, novelist and essayist from Listowel, County Kerry.
Biography
A son of a national school teacher, William B. Keane, and his wife Hannah (née Purtill), Keane was ...
, a native of
Listowel
Listowel ( ; , IPA: lʲɪsˠˈt̪ˠuəhəlʲ is a heritage market town in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the River Feale, from the county town, Tralee. The town of Listowel had a population of 4,820 according to the CSO Census 2016.
Desc ...
, is considered one of Ireland's greatest playwrights and is known for his works such as ''
The Field'', ''
Sive Sive may refer to:
*Sive means hear us in isiXhosa
* David Sive (1922–2014), American attorney, environmentalist, and professor of environmental law
* Sive (noun), a Nation, a large body of people united by common descent, history, culture, or l ...
'' and ''Big Maggie''. The annual Listowel Writers' Week Festival serves as a celebration of Irish writers past and present.
Sport
Gaelic games
Kerry is known for its
senior Gaelic football team. Gaelic football is by far the dominant sport in the county, and Kerry has the most successful of all football teams; the Kerry footballers have won the
Sam Maguire cup
The Sam Maguire Cup ( ga, Chorn Sam Mhic Uidhir), often referred to as Sam or The Sam , is a trophy awarded annually by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) to the team that wins the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the main competiti ...
38 times, with the next nearest team
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
on 30 wins.
Hurling is popular at club level in north Kerry, although the county has only won one
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, in 1891. The senior team currently compete in the
Joe McDonagh Cup.
Association football
The
Kerry District League
The Kerry District League (known as the Denny Kerry District League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league featuring amateur and junior clubs from County Kerry. The KDL is a winter league run by Adrian Casey. Its top divisio ...
is the main competition for association football in the county.
Tralee Dynamos have represented Kerry in the
A Championship
The A Championship, also known as the Newstalk A Championship, was an association football league featuring League of Ireland reserve teams and emerging senior teams. It was a third level league in the Republic of Ireland football league system. ...
, while they and Killarney Celtic also competed in the
Munster Senior League during the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
is played in County Kerry by County Kerry Cricket Club. They play their home games at the Oyster Oval near
Tralee
Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...
.
Irish language
In 2011 there were 6,083
Irish language
Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...
speakers in County Kerry, with 4,978 native speakers within the
Kerry Gaeltacht. This does not count the 1,105 attending the four
Gaelscoil
A Gaelscoil (; plural: ''Gaelscoileanna'') is an Irish language-medium school in Ireland: the term refers especially to Irish-medium schools outside the Irish-speaking regions or Gaeltacht. Over 50,000 students attend Gaelscoileanna at primary an ...
s (Irish language primary schools) and two
Gaelcholáiste
A Gaelcholáiste is a secondary school on the island of Ireland (in either the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland) located outside Gaeltacht areas, where Irish is the primary language of teaching and communication.
Gaelcholáistí are sup ...
(Irish language secondary schools) outside the Kerry Gaeltacht.
Places of interest
![Cliffs in Kerry](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Cliffs_in_Kerry.jpg)
Kerry, with its mountains, lakes and nearly 1,000 kilometres of
Atlantic coastline is among the most scenic areas in Ireland and is among the most significant tourist destinations in Ireland. Killarney is the centre of the tourism industry, which is a significant element of the economy in Kerry. The
Kerry Way
The Kerry Way () is a long-distance trail in County Kerry, Ireland. It is a long circular trail that begins and ends in Killarney and is typically broken into nine stages. It is designated as a long-distance trails in the Republic of Ireland, Na ...
,
Dingle Way
The Dingle Way () is a long-distance trail around the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. It is a long circular route that begins and ends in Tralee and is typically completed in eight days. It is designated as a National Waymarked Trai ...
and
Beara Way
The Beara Way () is a long-distance trail in the southwest of Ireland. It is a long circular trail around the Beara Peninsula that begins and ends in Glengarriff, County Cork, also passing through parts of County Kerry. It is typically compl ...
are walking routes in the county. The
Ring of Kerry
The Ring of Kerry ( ga, Mórchuaird Chiarraí) is a circular tourist route in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. Clockwise from Killarney it follows the N71 to Kenmare, then the N70 around the Iveragh Peninsula to Killorglin – passi ...
on the
Iveragh Peninsula
The Iveragh Peninsula () is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula. Carrauntoohil, its highest mountain, is als ...
is a popular route for tourists and cyclists. The pedestrian version is the scenic
Kerry Way
The Kerry Way () is a long-distance trail in County Kerry, Ireland. It is a long circular trail that begins and ends in Killarney and is typically broken into nine stages. It is designated as a long-distance trails in the Republic of Ireland, Na ...
which follows ancient paths generally higher than that adopted by the Ring of Kerry.
Kerry has an abundance of archaeological sites. The earliest evidence of human settlement dates to the Mesolithic period. The county has a notably high concentration of open-air
Atlantic rock art, which is believed to date to the Late Neolithic / Early Bronze Age period (2300-1500BC). This rock art is scattered throughout the county and exists in dense clusters on the
Iveragh
The Iveragh Peninsula () is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula. Carrauntoohil, its highest mountain, is als ...
and
Dingle
Dingle ( Irish: ''An Daingean'' or ''Daingean Uí Chúis'', meaning "fort of Ó Cúis") is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about southwest of Tralee and northwest of Kill ...
peninsulas. These carvings form part of a tradition which stretches across Atlantic Europe and are distinct from the megalithic art of the type found at Newgrange. Kerry has many Bronze Age monuments including standing stones, wedge tombs, boulder burials, and stone circles, along with Iron Age forts. Like the rest of Ireland, Kerry has large numbers of monuments from the Early Christian period, such as ring forts, churches, cross-inscribed stones, holy wells, saints’ graves, and ogham stones, along with Medieval castles and churches.
Attractions:
*
Ballinskelligs
Ballinskelligs, officially (Irish for "town (townland) of the craggy rock"), is a townland in the civil parish of Prior, County Kerry, Ireland. It may also refer to the wider district around the townland. It is located in the south-west of the ...
*
Banna Strand
*
Blasket Islands
The Blasket Islands ( ga, Na Blascaodaí) are an uninhabited group of islands off the west coast of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The last island to hold a significant population, Great Blasket Island, was abandoned in 1954 due ...
*
Blennerville Windmill
The Blennerville Windmill is a 21.30 m high, stone, reefing stage, windmill in Blennerville, Co. Kerry, Ireland. The mill has five floors, ground floor, intermediate floor, grinding floor, stone floor and cap floor.
History
The mill was buil ...
*
Caragh Lake
Caragh Lake ( ga, Loch Cárthaí), also Lough Caragh, is a lake in the Reeks District in County Kerry, Ireland. The lake was formed by the damming of the Caragh River.
Caragh Lake railway station was on the Great Southern and Western Railwa ...
*
Carrauntoohil
Carrauntoohil or Carrauntoohill ( ; ga, Corrán Tuathail , meaning "Tuathal's sickle") is the highest mountain in Ireland at . It is on the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, close to the centre of Ireland's highest mountain range, MacGillycu ...
*
Conor Pass
*
Dingle Peninsula
The Dingle Peninsula ( ga, Corca Dhuibhne; anglicised as Corkaguiny, the name of the corresponding barony) is the northernmost of the major peninsulas in County Kerry. It ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point ...
*
Eightercua
Eightercua ) is a four-stone alignment
Alignment may refer to:
Archaeology
* Alignment (archaeology), a co-linear arrangement of features or structures with external landmarks
* Stone alignment, a linear arrangement of upright, parallel m ...
*
Ecclesiastical sites at Ardfert
*
Fenit Harbour
*
Gallarus Oratory
The Gallarus Oratory (, ''Gallarus'' being interpreted as either 'rocky headland' (''Gall-iorrus'') or 'house or shelter for foreigner(s)' (''Gall Aras'') is a chapel on the Dingle Peninsula, County Kerry, Ireland. It has been presented variou ...
*
Killarney National Park
Killarney National Park ( ga, Páirc Náisiúnta Chill Airne), near the town of Killarney, County Kerry, was the first national park in Ireland, created when the Muckross Estate was donated to the Irish Free State in 1932. The park has sinc ...
*
Kerry County Museum
Kerry County Museum ( ga, Músaem Chontae Chiarraí) is a museum located in Tralee, County Kerry in Ireland. The museum is based in the Ashe Memorial Hall in the centre of Tralee. The aim of the museum is to collect, record, preserve and display ...
*
Kerry Woollen Mills
Kerry Woollen Mills are historic wool mills based just off the Ring of Kerry.
History
Kerry Woollen Mills are one of the last remaining traditional wool mills still manufacturing in County Kerry. The company was founded over 300 years ago. T ...
*
Lakes of Killarney
The Lakes of Killarney are a scenic attraction located in Killarney National Park near Killarney, County Kerry, in Ireland. They consist of three lakes - Lough Leane, Muckross Lake (also called Middle Lake) and Upper Lake.
Surroundings
The ...
*
Lartigue Monorail
The Lartigue Monorail system was developed by the French engineer Charles Lartigue (1834–1907). He further developed a horse drawn monorail system, which had been invented by Henry Robinson Palmer in 1821.
Lartigue had seen camels in Algeria ...
*
Maharees
Maharees or Magharees ( or ''Na Machairí'') is a 5 km long tombolo located on the northern side of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland.
Fenit Harbour, the main port of County Kerry, is sheltered from large Atlantic swells by ...
*
Mount Brandon
Mount Brandon or Brandon (), at , is one of the ten highest peaks in Ireland, being the 8th–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin list, and the 9th–highest on the Vandeleur-Lynam list. Brandon is the highest Irish mountain outside the Mac ...
*
Muckross House
Muckross House ( ga, Teach Mhucrois) is located on the small Muckross Peninsula between Muckross Lake and Lough Leane, two of the lakes of Killarney, from the town of Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. In 1932 it was presented by Willia ...
*
Rattoo Round Tower and
Sheela na Gig
*
Ring of Kerry
The Ring of Kerry ( ga, Mórchuaird Chiarraí) is a circular tourist route in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. Clockwise from Killarney it follows the N71 to Kenmare, then the N70 around the Iveragh Peninsula to Killorglin – passi ...
*
Ross Castle
Ross Castle ( ga, Caisleán an Rois) is a 15th-century tower house and keep on the edge of Lough Leane, in Killarney National Park, County Kerry, Ireland. It is the ancestral home of the Chiefs of the Clan O'Donoghue, later associated wit ...
*
Rossbeigh beach
Rossbeigh, or Rossbehy (Irish: ''Ros Beithe'', meaning "headland of the Birch trees") is a sandspit with beaches on either side, located approximately 1.6 km from the village of Glenbeigh, in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the Ring of K ...
*
Scotia's Grave
*
Siamsa Tíre
*
Skellig Michael
Skellig Michael ( ga, Sceilg Mhichíl ), also called Great Skellig ( ga, link=no, Sceilig Mhór ), is a twin-pinnacled crag west of the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The island is named after the archangel Michael, with "Skellig ...
*
Torc Waterfall
Torc Waterfall () is a high, long cascade waterfall formed by the Owengarriff River as it drains from the '' Devil's Punchbowl'' corrie lake at Mangerton Mountain. The waterfall, which lies at the base of Torc Mountain, in the Killarney Nati ...
*
Uragh Stone Circle
The Uragh Stone Circle is an axial five-stone circle located near Gleninchaquin Park, County Kerry, Ireland. The Bronze Age site includes a multiple stone circle and some boulder burials. Description
The Uragh Stone Circle is a small Bronze ...
*
Valentia Island
Valentia Island () is one of Ireland's most westerly points. It lies off the Iveragh Peninsula in the southwest of County Kerry. It is linked to the mainland by the Maurice O'Neill Memorial Bridge at Portmagee. A car ferry also departs from ...
Media
County Kerry has two local newspapers, ''
The Kerryman
''The Kerryman'' is a weekly local newspaper published in County Kerry in Ireland by Independent News & Media who are a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper was founded in 1904 by Maurice Griffin and cousins Thomas and Daniel Nolan. Independen ...
'' and ''
Kerry's Eye
''Kerry's Eye'' is a weekly local newspaper in County Kerry, Ireland. It is published every Thursday and, as of 2010, had a claimed circulation of approximately 25,000. '', both published in Tralee.
The county has a commercial radio station,
Radio Kerry
Radio Kerry is a full-service, licensed radio station that operates from the franchise area of County Kerry in Southwest Ireland.
Radio Kerry was established in 1989 and began broadcasting on 14 July 1990. The station headquarters are in Tral ...
, which commenced operations in 1990.
RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta
RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta (; "Radio of the Gaeltacht"), abbreviated RnaG, is an Irish language radio station owned and operated by Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). The station is available on FM in Ireland and via satellite and on the Inter ...
has a studio in
Baile na nGall in the west Kerry
gaeltacht
( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home.
The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially reco ...
.
Spin South West has a studio in
Tralee
Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...
, which commenced operations in 2016.
Infrastructure
Road
The main
National Primary Route
A national primary road ( ga, Bóthar príomha náisiúnta) is a road classification in Ireland. National primary roads form the major routes between the major urban centres. There are 2649 km of national primary roads. This category of ro ...
s into Kerry are the
N21 road
The N21 road is a national primary road in Ireland. The route runs from the M20 outside Limerick to Tralee with connecting roads to other parts of County Kerry. It is in length. It runs through the towns of Abbeyfeale, Newcastle West, Ada ...
from Limerick and the
N22 road
The N22 road is a national primary road in Ireland which goes through counties Kerry and Cork, from Tralee in the west through Killarney, Macroom and Ballincollig to Cork City in the east.
Improvements
Sections of the N22 were upgrad ...
from
Cork
Cork or CORK may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
***Wine cork
Places Ireland
* Cork (city)
** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
, each terminating in Tralee.
Kerry Airport
Kerry Airport ( gle, Aerfort Chiarraí; ), often called Farranfore Airport, is an international airport in Farranfore, County Kerry, Ireland. It is north of the Ring of Kerry and southeast of the county's capital Tralee. Passenger services a ...
is situated on the
N23 road between Castleisland and Farranfore which connects the N21 and N22. Within Kerry the main
National Secondary Routes include the well-known
Ring of Kerry
The Ring of Kerry ( ga, Mórchuaird Chiarraí) is a circular tourist route in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. Clockwise from Killarney it follows the N71 to Kenmare, then the N70 around the Iveragh Peninsula to Killorglin – passi ...
which follows the
N70 road that circles the Iveragh Peninsula and links at Kenmare with the
N71 road to
west Cork
West Cork ( ga, Iarthar Chorcaí) is a tourist region and municipal district in County Cork, Ireland. As a municipal district, West Cork falls within the administrative area of Cork County Council, and includes the towns of Bantry, Castletownber ...
.
The
N86 road connects Tralee with Dingle along the Dingle Peninsula, while the
N69 road from Limerick links Listowel and Tralee through north Kerry.
Greenways
There is a developing
greenway network across the county. The
North Kerry (part of the
Great Southern Trail
The Great Southern Trail, comprising the Limerick Greenway and North Kerry Greenway, is a greenway rail trail under development in County Limerick and County Kerry in Ireland. As of October 2022, of the Limerick Greenway and of the North Kerr ...
),
South Kerry and
Tralee-Fenit greenways are under-development or in the planning phases.
Rail
![Train at Killarney Station - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Train_at_Killarney_Station_-_geograph.org.uk_-_2556130.jpg)
Kerry is served by
rail
Rail or rails may refer to:
Rail transport
*Rail transport and related matters
*Rail (rail transport) or railway lines, the running surface of a railway
Arts and media Film
* ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini
* ''Rail'' ( ...
at
Tralee railway station
Tralee Casement station (Tralee Railway Station; ga, Stáisiún Trá Lí) is the terminus station on the Mallow–Tralee line and serves the town of Tralee in County Kerry. It is the most westerly railway station in Europe.
Description
Sup ...
,
Farranfore railway station
Farranfore railway station serves the village of Farranfore in County Kerry, Ireland. It is located a short distance away from Kerry Airport.
History
The station opened on 18 July 1859 as part of the Tralee & Killarney Railway which opened on ...
,
Killarney railway station
Killarney railway station is a station on the Mallow to Tralee line serving the town of Killarney in County Kerry.
It is situated next to the bus station and Killarney Outlet Centre. Adjacent to the station on the approach road is the Great S ...
and
Rathmore railway station
Rathmore railway station is a station on the Mallow to Tralee railway line and serves the town of Rathmore in County Kerry, Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western ...
which connect to
Cork
Cork or CORK may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
***Wine cork
Places Ireland
* Cork (city)
** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
and
Dublin Heuston
Heuston Station ( ; ga, Stáisiún Heuston; formerly Kingsbridge Station) also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iar ...
, via
Mallow.
Branch line services existed to each of the peninsulas (Beara, Iveragh and Dingle) and also to the north of the county. They were closed during the
rationalisations of the 1950s and 1960s.
*
Tralee and Dingle Light Railway
__NOTOC__
The Tralee and Dingle Light Railway and Tramway was a , narrow gauge railway running between Tralee and Dingle, with a branch from Castlegregory Junction to Castlegregory, in County Kerry on the west coast of Ireland. It operated bet ...
: a narrow-gauge railway that closed in July 1953.
* Kenmare via Headford Junction: (8 miles outside Killarney) closed on 31st December 1959.
*
Valentia Harbour
Valentia Island () is one of Ireland's most westerly points. It lies off the Iveragh Peninsula in the southwest of County Kerry. It is linked to the mainland by the Maurice O'Neill Memorial Bridge at Portmagee. A car ferry also departs from R ...
via Farranfore: also closed on 31st January 1960 (though the last trains ran the day before due to 31st being a Sunday, and there was no Sunday service anyway). The ''Gleesk Viaduct'' near Kells, tyhe viaduct at Killorglin, and many other structures on the line still exist.
* Listowel was served via the North Kerry line, which extended from Tralee to Limerick. Passenger service ceased in 1963, freight in 1983 and the lines were pulled up in 1988.
*
Fenit
Fenit () is a small village in County Kerry, Ireland, located on north side of Tralee Bay about west of Tralee town, just south of the Shannon Estuary. The bay is enclosed from the Atlantic by the Maharee spit which extends northwards from ...
was served via a branch off the North Kerry line until 1978; the rails are still in place.
Listowel to Ballybunion had the distinction of operating experimental
Lartigue Monorail
The Lartigue Monorail system was developed by the French engineer Charles Lartigue (1834–1907). He further developed a horse drawn monorail system, which had been invented by Henry Robinson Palmer in 1821.
Lartigue had seen camels in Algeria ...
services from 1882 to 1924. A 500m section was re-established in 2003. A road-car route, the ''Prince of Wales Route'', was a link from
Bantry to Killarney, operated by the
Cork, Bandon and South Coast Railway
Cork, Bandon and South Coast Railway (CB&SCR), was an Irish gauge () railway in Ireland. It opened in 1849 as the Cork and Bandon Railway (C&BR), changed its name to Cork Bandon and South Coast Railway in 1888 and became part of the Great Sout ...
as a service for tourists.
Bus
Bus Éireann operates an extensive bus service network on routes throughout the county, with connection hubs in Killarney and Tralee.
Air
Kerry Airport
Kerry Airport ( gle, Aerfort Chiarraí; ), often called Farranfore Airport, is an international airport in Farranfore, County Kerry, Ireland. It is north of the Ring of Kerry and southeast of the county's capital Tralee. Passenger services a ...
is located at Farranfore in the centre of the county and has operated scheduled services since 1989. Destinations served as of 2014 are
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
(
Stansted
London Stansted Airport is a tertiary international airport serving London, England, United Kingdom. It is located near Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex, England, northeast of Central London.
London Stansted serves over 160 destinations acro ...
&
Luton
Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable a ...
),
Frankfurt-Hahn Airport,
Faro, Portugal
Faro ( , ) is a municipality, the southernmost city and capital of the district of the same name, in the Algarve region of southern Portugal. With an estimated population of 60,995 inhabitants in 2019 (with 39,733 inhabitants in the city proper, ...
and
Alicante
Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in t ...
all operated by
Ryanair.
Aer Lingus Regional also operate an all-year-round service to Dublin. The airport is served by
Farranfore railway station
Farranfore railway station serves the village of Farranfore in County Kerry, Ireland. It is located a short distance away from Kerry Airport.
History
The station opened on 18 July 1859 as part of the Tralee & Killarney Railway which opened on ...
.
Sea
![Fenit harbour ireland](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/Fenit_harbour_ireland.jpg)
Fenit harbour near Tralee is a regional harbour capable of handling ships of up to 17,000 tonnes. Large container cranes from
Liebherr
Liebherr is a German-Swiss multinational equipment manufacturer based in Bulle, Switzerland, with its main production facilities and origins in Germany.
Liebherr consists of over 130 companies organized into 11 divisions: earthmoving, mining, ...
s in Killarney are regularly exported worldwide. A rail-link to the port was closed in the 1970s. The harbour at
Dingle
Dingle ( Irish: ''An Daingean'' or ''Daingean Uí Chúis'', meaning "fort of Ó Cúis") is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula, it sits on the Atlantic coast, about southwest of Tralee and northwest of Kill ...
is one of Ireland's secondary fishing ports.
In the north of the county, a ferry service operates from
Tarbert
Tarbert ( gd, An Tairbeart) is a place name in Scotland and Ireland. Places named Tarbert are characterised by a narrow strip of land, or isthmus. This can be where two lochs nearly meet, or a causeway out to an island.
Etymology
All placenames ...
to
Killimer
__NOTOC__
Killimer () is a village in County Clare, Ireland, in a civil parish of the same name. It is located on the northern bank of the Shannon and the N67 which passes through the village.
Location
The village is the northern port of the Kil ...
in
County Clare
County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,81 ...
.
Hospitals
Hospitals in Kerry include the public
University Hospital Kerry
University Hospital Kerry ( ga, Ospidéal Ollscoile Chiarraí) is a public hospital in Quill Street, Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland. It is managed by South/Southwest Hospital Group.
History
The hospital was commissioned to replace the aging St C ...
which is the second-largest acute hospital in the
Health Service Executive
The Health Service Executive (HSE) ( ga, Feidhmeannacht na Seirbhíse Sláinte) is the publicly funded healthcare system in Ireland, responsible for the provision of health and personal social services. It came into operation on 1 January 2005 ...
South Region. It serves as the main hospital for County Kerry and also serves the people in parts of north Cork and west Limerick. Other hospitals include the private
Bon Secours Hospital in Tralee and community hospitals in Cahirciveen, Dingle, Kenmare, Killarney and Listowel.
Education
The
Institute of Technology, Tralee
The Institute of Technology, Tralee (IT Tralee; ga, Institiúid Teicneolaíochta Thrá Lí) was an institute of technology, located in Tralee, Ireland. It was established in 1977 as the Regional Technical College, Tralee. In January 2021, itse ...
(IT Tralee), to be merged into
Munster Technological University
Munster Technological University (MTU; ga, Ollscoil Teicneolaíochta na Mumhan) is a public technological university consisting of six campuses located in Cork and Kerry. The university was established in January 2021, the result of a merger ...
(MTU), is the main third-level institution in the county. It was established in 1977 as the Regional Technical College, Tralee but acquired its present name in 1997. It has an enrolment of about 3,500 students. The institute has two campuses: the North campus (opened in Dromtacker in 2001) and the South campus (opened in Clash in 1977) approximately 2.4 km (1.5 mi) apart.
Septs, families, and titles
A number of Irish
surnames are derived from septs who hail from the Kerry area, such as
Falvey
Falvey is a surname which is an anglicisation of the name Ó Fáilbhe: in the Irish language Ó means "descendant" fand "fáilbhe" literally means "lively, pleasant, sprightly, merry, cheerful" or, according to another historian, "joker". Other ...
,
Foley,
McCarthy,
Murphy,
O'Connor,
O'Moriarty,
Clifford,
Kennelly,
McGrath
McGrath or MacGrath derives from the Irish surname Mac Craith and is occasionally noted with a space: e.g. Izzy Mc Grath. In Ireland, it is pronounced "Ma Grah". In Australia and New Zealand it is pronounced ''MuhGrah''.
Notable people with the su ...
,
O'Carroll
O'Carroll ( ga, Ó Cearbhaill), also known as simply Carroll, Carrol or Carrell, is a Gaelic Irish clan which is the most prominent sept of the Ciannachta (also known as Clan Cian). Their genealogies claim that they are kindred with the Eógan ...
,
O'Sullivan
O'Sullivan ( ga, Ó Súilleabháin, Súileabhánach) is an Irish Gaelic clan based most prominently in what is today County Cork and County Kerry. The surname is associated with the southwestern part of Ireland, and was originally found in Count ...
,
O'Connell,
O'Donoghue
Donoghue or O'Donoghue is an anglicized form of the Irish language surname Ó Donnchadha or Ó Donnchú.
Etymology
The name means "descendant of Donnchadh", a personal name composed of the elements ''donn'' "brown-haired an and ''cath'' "battle" ...
,
O'Shea
O'Shea is a surname and, less often, a given name. It is an anglicized form of the Irish patronymic name Ó Séaghdha or Ó Sé, originating in the Kingdom of Corcu Duibne in County Kerry.
Notable people with the name include:
Surname
*Alicia ...
,
Quill
A quill is a writing tool made from a moulted flight feather (preferably a primary wing-feather) of a large bird. Quills were used for writing with ink before the invention of the dip pen, the metal- nibbed pen, the fountain pen, and, eventual ...
,
Scannell Scannell is an Irish surname.
People
Notable people with the surname include:
Acting
* Brendan Scannell (born 1990), American actor and comedian
* Susan Scannell (born 1958), American actress
* Tony Scannell
Thomas Anthony Scannell (14 Augu ...
,
Stack,
Sugrue and
Tangney.
The area was also home to the
Hiberno-Norman families, the
FitzMaurice
Fitzmaurice is a Hiberno-Norman, Cambro-Norman, Anglo-Norman surname. It is patronymic as the prefix '' Fitz-'' derives from the Latin'' filius'', meaning "son of".
According to Irish genealogist Edward MacLysaght:
Fitzmaurice is uncommon ...
s and the
Desmonds
''Desmond's'' is a British television situation comedy broadcast by Channel 4 from 1989 to 1994. Conceived and co-written by Trix Worrell, and produced by Charlie Hanson and Humphrey Barclay, ''Desmond's'' stars Norman Beaton as barber Desmo ...
, a branch of the
FitzGeralds.
Titles in the British
Peerage of Ireland
The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisi ...
with a family seat in Kerry are
*the
Knight of Kerry
Knight of Kerry (), also called The Green Knight, is one of three Hiberno-Norman hereditary knighthoods, all of which existed in Ireland since feudal times. The other two were The White Knight (surname fixed as Fitzgibbon), being dormant sinc ...
– a branch of Fitzgeralds who had lands at Valentia Island
*the
Earl of Kenmare
The title of Earl of Kenmare was created in the Peerage of Ireland in 1801. It became extinct upon the death of the 7th Earl in 1952.
All of the Earls bore the subsidiary titles of Viscount Castlerosse (1801), Viscount Kenmare (1798), and Baron ...
(also ''
Viscount Castlerosse,
Viscount Kenmare
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a Title#Aristocratic titles, title used in certain European countries for a nobility, noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-he ...
and
Baron Castlerosse'') – the descendants of
Sir Valentine Browne
Sir Valentine Browne (died 1589), of Croft, Lincolnshire, was auditor, treasurer and victualler of Berwick-upon-Tweed. He acquired large estates in Ireland during the Plantation of Munster, in particular the seignory of Molahiffe. He lived at R ...
who was awarded lands in Killarney
*the
Earl of Desmond
Earl of Desmond is a title in the peerage of Ireland () created four times. When the powerful Earl of Desmond took arms against Queen Elizabeth Tudor, around 1578, along with the King of Spain and the Pope, he was confiscated from his estates ...
– the Fitzgeralds of Desmond who had lands in North Kerry until they were seized at the end of the Desmond Rebellions
*the
Marquess of Lansdowne
Marquess of Lansdowne is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain created in 1784, and held by the head of the Petty-Fitzmaurice family. The first Marquess served as Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Origins
This branch of the Fitzmaurice famil ...
(also ''
Earl of Shelburne
Earl of Shelburne is a title that has been created two times while the title of Baron Shelburne has been created three times. The Shelburne title was created for the first time in the Peerage of Ireland in 1688 when Elizabeth, Lady Petty, was m ...
,
Baron Dunkeron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
'') – the descendants of
Sir William Petty
Sir William Petty FRS (26 May 1623 – 16 December 1687) was an English economist, physician, scientist and philosopher. He first became prominent serving Oliver Cromwell and the Commonwealth in Ireland. He developed efficient methods to su ...
who was awarded lands in Kenmare and elsewhere
*the
Earl of Kerry
Baron Kerry is an ancient title in the Peerage of Ireland named after County Kerry. It was created circa 1223 for Thomas FitzMaurice, Lord OConnello.
In 1325, Maurice FitzMaurice, 4th Baron Kerry, murdered Diarmaid Óg MacCarthy (son of Corma ...
(also ''
Baron Kerry
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...
,
Viscount Clanmaurice
Baron Kerry is an ancient title in the Peerage of Ireland named after County Kerry. It was created circa 1223 for Thomas FitzMaurice, Lord OConnello.
In 1325, Maurice FitzMaurice, 4th Baron Kerry, murdered Diarmaid Óg MacCarthy (son of Corma ...
'') – the Fitzmaurice family
*the
Earl of Listowel
Earl of Listowel (pronounced "Lish-''toe''-ell") is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1822 for William Hare, 1st Viscount Ennismore and Listowel, who had earlier represented Cork City and Athy in the Irish House of Commons.
...
– the Hare family
*the
Baron Ventry Baron Ventry, of Ventry in the County of Kerry, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for Sir Thomas Mullins, 1st Baronet. He had already been created a Baronet, of Burnham in the County of Kerry, in the Baronetage of Irela ...
– the Mullins family who had lands in the Dingle Peninsula, including Ventry
Viscount Valentia
Viscount Valentia is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It has been created twice. The first creation came in 1621 for Henry Power. A year later, his kinsman Sir Francis Annesley, 1st Baronet, was given a "reversionary grant" of the viscountcy, ...
appears to have been associated with lands in
County Armagh
County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of an ...
, rather than Kerry.
People
Associated People:
*
Roger Casement
Roger David Casement ( ga, Ruairí Dáithí Mac Easmainn; 1 September 1864 – 3 August 1916), known as Sir Roger Casement, CMG, between 1911 and 1916, was a diplomat and Irish nationalist executed by the United Kingdom for treason during Worl ...
*
Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone, posthumously known as Wolfe Tone ( ga, Bhulbh Teón; 20 June 176319 November 1798), was a leading Irish revolutionary figure and one of the founding members in Belfast and Dublin of the United Irishmen, a republican soci ...
*
Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh
Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh (; 12 February 1911 – 21 March 1978) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician, judge and barrister who served as the fifth president of Ireland from December 1974 to October 1976.
His birth name was registered in English ...
Historical:
*
Daniel O'Connell
Daniel O'Connell (I) ( ga, Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilizat ...
*
Thomas Ashe
Thomas may refer to:
People
* List of people with given name Thomas
* Thomas (name)
* Thomas (surname)
* Saint Thomas (disambiguation)
* Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church
* Thomas the Ap ...
*
Annie Chemis
*
Tom Crean Tom or Thomas Crean may refer to:
*Thomas Crean (1873–1923), Irish rugby union player, British Army soldier and doctor
*Tom Crean (explorer) (1877–1938), Irish seaman and Antarctic explorer
*Tom Crean (basketball)
Thomas Aaron Crean (born Ma ...
*
Con Cremin
Cornelius Christopher Cremin (6 December 1908 – 20 April 1987) was an Irish diplomat who was born in Kenmare, County Kerry.
One of four children, Cremin was born to a family that operated a drapery business. His brother, Francis Cremin, bec ...
*
Austin Stack
Augustine Mary Moore Stack (7 December 1879 – 27 April 1929) was an Irish republican and politician who served as Minister for Home Affairs from 1921 to 1922. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1918 to 1927.
Early life
Stack was born in Ball ...
*
Horatio Kitchener
Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener, (; 24 June 1850 – 5 June 1916) was a senior British Army officer and colonial administrator. Kitchener came to prominence for his imperial campaigns, his scorched earth policy against the Boers, ...
*
Richard Kelliher
Richard Kelliher, VC (1 September 1910 – 28 January 1963) was an Irish-born Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Kelliher received his VC while ...
*
Jennifer Musa
Jennifer Musa ( Bridget Jennifer Wren; 11 November 1917 – 12 January 2008) was an Irish-born Pakistani nurse, politician, social worker and the second wife of Qazi Musa. She was often nicknamed the "Queen of Baluchistan" and "Mummy Jenni ...
*
Charlie Daly
*
Maurice Moynihan
Maurice Gerard Moynihan, (14 December 1902 – 21 August 1999) was an Irish economist and civil servant who served as the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland from 1960 to 1969. He was also a co-drafter of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland, S ...
*
Patrick Edward Connor
Patrick Edward Connor (March 17, 1820Rodgers, 1938, p. 1 – December 17, 1891) was an American soldier who served as a Union general during the American Civil War. He is most notorious for his massacres against Native Americans during th ...
*
William Melville
William Melville (25 April 1850 – 1 February 1918) was an Irish law enforcement officer and the first chief of the British Secret Service Bureau.
Birth
William Melville was born into a Roman Catholic family in Direenaclaurig Cross, Sneem, Co ...
*
Richard Cantillon
*
John Connors
*
Saint Brendan
Brendan of Clonfert (c. AD 484 - c.577), is one of the early Irish monastic saints and one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. He is also referred to as Brendan the Navigator, Brendan the Voyager, Brendan the Anchorite, Brendan the Bold. The ...
*
Trevor Chute
General (United Kingdom), General Sir Trevor Chute, Order of the Bath, KCB (31 July 1816 – 12 March 1886) was an Irish-born officer who served in the British Army during the Victorian era.
Born in County Kerry, Ireland, Chute joined the Bri ...
Literary & Musical:
*
Con Houlihan
Con Houlihan (6 December 1925 – 4 August 2012) was an Irish sportswriter. Despite only progressing to national journalism at the age of 46, he became "the greatest and the best-loved Irish sports journalist of all".
Journalism career
Over a le ...
*
Thomas O'Brien Butler
Thomas O'Brien Butler (3 November 1861 – 7 May 1915; lost on the '' Lusitania''), was an Irish composer who wrote the Irish-language opera ''Muirgheis'' (1903).
Biography
O'Brien Butler, as he was generally known, was born in Caherciveen, Cou ...
*
Malachi Martin
*
Julia Clifford
Julia Clifford (19 June 1914 – 18 June 1997) was a fiddler and Irish traditional musician.
Julia Murphy was born at Lisheen, Gneeveguilla, County Kerry, part of an area in west Munster known as Sliabh Luachra. Her father Bill played flu ...
*
Jerome Connor
Jerome Connor (23 February 1874 in Coumduff, Annascaul, County Kerry – 21 August 1943 in Dublin) was an Irish sculptor.
Life
In 1888, he emigrated to Holyoke, Massachusetts. His father was a stonemason, which led to Connor's jobs in New York ...
*
Canon James Goodman
Canon James Goodman (22 September 1828 – 18 January 1896) was a Church of Ireland clergyman, a piper and a collector of Irish music and songs.
Life
As a cleric
Goodman was born in Ballyameen, Dingle, County Kerry and was raised in Ventry ...
*
John B. Keane
*
Brendan Kennelly
Timothy Brendan Kennelly (17 April 1936 – 17 October 2021), usually known as Brendan Kennelly, was an Irish poet and novelist. He was Professor of Modern Literature at Trinity College Dublin until 2005. Following his retirement he was a Pr ...
*
Denis Murphy
*
Thomas MacGreevy
*
Ernest John Moeran
}
Ernest John Smeed Moeran (31 December 1894 – 1 December 1950) was an English composer of part-Irish extraction, whose work was strongly influenced by English and Irish folk music of which he was an assiduous collector. His output includes or ...
*
Paula Murrihy
*
Tomás Ó Criomhthain Tomás may refer to:
* Tomás (given name)
* Tomás (surname) Tomás is a Spanish and Portuguese surname, equivalent of '' Thomas''.
It may refer to:
* Antonio Tomás (born 1985), professional Spanish footballer
* Belarmino Tomás (1892–1950) ...
*
Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin
Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin (174829 June 1784), anglicized as Owen Roe O'Sullivan ("Red Owen"), was an Irish poet. He is known as one of the last great Gaelic poets. A recent anthology of Irish-language poetry speaks of his "extremely musical" p ...
*
Padraig O'Keeffe
*
Arthur O'Leary
*
Muiris Ó Súilleabháin
Muiris Ó Súilleabháin (; 19 February 1904 – 25 June 1950), anglicised as Maurice O'Sullivan, was an Irish author famous for his Irish-language memoir of growing up on the Great Blasket Island and in Dingle, County Kerry, off the western ...
*
Aogán Ó Rathaille
Aodhagán Ó RathailleVariant Irish spellings of his name include ''Aogán'' and ''Ua Rathaille'' or Egan O'Rahilly (c.1670–1726), was an Irish language poet. He is credited with creating the first fully developed Aisling.
Early life
It is tho ...
*
Peig Sayers
Máiréad "Peig" Sayers (; 29 March 18738 December 1958) was an Irish author and seanchaí ( or – plural: ) born in Dún Chaoin, County Kerry, Ireland. Seán Ó Súilleabháin, the former Chief archivist for the Irish Folklore Commission, ...
*
Larry Mathews
Larry Mathews (born Larry Mazzeo August 15, 1955, in Burbank, California) is an American actor known for his role as Ritchie Petrie on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show''.
After the series ended in 1966, Larry Mathews left acting to pursue a more conve ...
*
Christie Hennessy
Christie Hennessy (born Edward Christopher Ross; 19 November 1945 – 11 December 2007) was an Irish folk singer-songwriter. Although Hennessy was unable to read or write due to severe dyslexia, he still wrote his own songs such as "Roll Back ...
*
John Moriarty
*
Paddy Cronin
Paddy Cronin (6 July 1925 – 15 March 2014) was an Irish fiddler.
Cronin was born in Ré Buí near Gneeveguilla, County Kerry. He was taught fiddle by Padraig O'Keeffe. In 1949, Seamus Ennis recorded him on acetate disc for Radió Éi ...
*
Patrick S. Dinneen
*
Mark Lanegan
Sport:
*
Danny Barnes
*
Edward Barrett
*
John Barrett
*
Colm Cooper
Colm "the Gooch" Cooper (born 3 June 1983) is an Irish Gaelic footballer whose league and championship career at senior level with the Kerry county team spanned fifteen years from 2002 to 2017.
Born in Killarney, County Kerry, Cooper was born ...
*
Patrick Clifford
*
Jack Doyle
*
Mick Doyle
*
Maurice Fitzgerald
*
Tony Flavin
*
Thos Foley
*
Paul Galvin
*
Mick Galwey
Michael Joseph Galwey (born 8 October 1966) won an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship with the Kerry Gaelic football team in 1986, as a 19-year-old, before turning to rugby union. He is thus the only winner of an "All-Ireland" in both rug ...
*
JJ Hanrahan
John Joseph Hanrahan (born 27 July 1992) is an Irish rugby union player who plays for Welsh club Dragons in the United Rugby Championship. He plays primarily as a fly-half, but can also play as a centre or fullback.
Early years
Hanrahan be ...
*
David Higgins
*
Liam Higgins Liam Higgins may refer to:
* Liam Higgins (golfer) (born 1942), Irish golfer
* Liam Higgins (Irish footballer), Kerry Gaelic footballer in Ireland
* Liam Higgins (rugby league), English rugby league player
* Liam Higgins (New Zealand footballer), N ...
*
Robert Hilliard
Robert Martin Hilliard (7 April 1904 – 22 February 1937) was an Olympic boxer, Irish republican, Church of Ireland minister and communist. He was killed in the Spanish Civil War fighting in the International Brigades.
Biography
Hilliard was ...
*
Moss Keane
Maurice Ignatius "Moss" Keane (27 July 1948 – 5 October 2010) was a Gaelic footballer and a rugby union footballer who played for Ireland and the British and Irish Lions.
Life and career
Born at Currow in County Kerry, Keane started out as a ...
*
Tadhg Kennelly
Tadhg Kennelly (born 1 July 1981) is an Irish-Australian former international sportsperson turned recruiter and coach. He is most known for his top-level careers in both Gaelic football and Australian rules football being the only holder of bot ...
*
Jerry Kiernan
Jeremiah Kiernan (31 May 1953 – 21 January 2021) was an Irish long-distance runner.
Biography
Kiernan was born in Listowel, County Kerry. He represented his native country at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, where he finis ...
*
John Lawlor
*
Jack McKenna
Jack may refer to:
Places
* Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community
* Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA
People and fictional characters
* Jack (given name), a male given name ...
*
Bryan Cooper
*
Ultan Dillane
*
Mick O'Connell
Michael O'Connell (born 4 January 1937) is an Irish former Gaelic footballer. Throughout his 25-year club career, he played for Young Islanders, winning seven South Kerry Championship titles during a golden age for the club; he also played fo ...
*
Mick O'Dwyer
Michael O'Dwyer (born 9 June 1936) is an Irish retired Gaelic football manager and former player. He most famously managed the senior Kerry county team between 1974 and 1989, during which time he became the county's longest-serving manager an ...
*
Gillian O'Sullivan
Gillian O'Sullivan (born 21 August 1976 in Killarney) is an Irish race walker. She set the unofficial world record in the 5000m walk in Belfast, United Kingdom since 2002 however, the IAAF have refused to verify it. She won a silver medal at th ...
*
Paul Griffin
*
Darragh Ó Sé
Darragh Ó Sé (born 5 March 1975 in Ard an Bhóthair, Ventry, County Kerry) is an Irish former Gaelic footballer. He plays with his local club, An Ghaeltacht, and was a member at senior level of the Kerry county team from 1997 until he ann ...
*
Pat Spillane
*
Jack O'Shea
Jack O'Shea (born 19 November 1957 in Cahersiveen, County Kerry) is an Irish former sportsperson. He played Gaelic football at various times with his local clubs St Mary's in Kerry and Leixlip in Kildare. He was a member of the Kerry senior fo ...
*
Mark O'Connor
Mark O'Connor (born August 5, 1961) is an American fiddle player and composer whose music combines bluegrass, country, jazz and classical. A three-time Grammy Award winner, he has won six Country Music Association Musician Of The Year awards ...
*
Tommy Walsh
*
Sean Wight
John Phillip "Sean" Wight (15 March 1964 – 30 June 2011) was an Irish-Australian Australian rules footballer in the VFL/AFL.
He is a member of the Melbourne Football Club Hall of Fame and was named as one of the 150 Heroes of the club duri ...
Film/Stage/Radio:
*
Michael Fassbender
*
Eamon Kelly
*
Fodhla Cronin O'Reilly
*
Richard Wall
Richard Wall (born in Ballybunion, County Kerry) is an Irish film, television and theatre actor.
He is known for roles such as Robert Power in TV series ''The House'' and also Sgt. Thornton in the IFTA nominated ''Anton''
After completing his ...
*
Jessie Buckley
Jessie Buckley (born 28 December 1989) is an Irish actress and singer. The recipient of a Laurence Olivier Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and three BAFTA Awards, she was listed at number 38 on ''The Irish Times'' list of ...
*
Timothy V. Murphy
Political:
*
Martin Ferris
Martin Ferris (born 28 March 1952) is a former Irish Sinn Féin politician and former Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteer who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 2002 to 2020.
Early and personal life
Ferris was born in Strand Stre ...
*
Jackie Healy-Rae
*
Joe Higgins
*
Thomas O'Driscoll
*
Dick Spring
Dick Spring (born 29 August 1950) is an Irish businessman and former politician. He was a Labour Party Teachta Dála (TD) for the Kerry North from 1981 to 2002. He became leader of the Labour Party in 1982, and held this position until 1997 ...
Fashion:
*
Don O'Neill
See also
*
Wild Atlantic Way
The Wild Atlantic Way ( ga, Slí an Atlantaigh Fhiáin) is a tourism trail on the west coast, and on parts of the north and south coasts, of Ireland. The 2,500 km (1,553 mile) driving route passes through nine counties and three provinces, s ...
References
External links
Gaelscoil statsGaeltacht Comprehensive Language Study 2007Ring of Kerry Tourism
{{Authority control
Kerry
Kerry or Kerri may refer to:
* Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name)
Places
* Kerry, Queensland, Australia
* County Kerry, Ireland
** Kerry Airport, an international airport in Count ...
Kerry
Kerry or Kerri may refer to:
* Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name)
Places
* Kerry, Queensland, Australia
* County Kerry, Ireland
** Kerry Airport, an international airport in Count ...
Kerry
Kerry or Kerri may refer to:
* Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name)
Places
* Kerry, Queensland, Australia
* County Kerry, Ireland
** Kerry Airport, an international airport in Count ...