Kilmanaheen ( ga, Cill Mhainchín) is a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

in County Clare,

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 contains the market town of Ennistymon.

Location

Kilmanaheen is named after Saint

Mainchín Manchán, Mainchín, Manchéne and a variety of other spellings may refer to: Places * Manaccan, south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. People Saints * Ireland ** Mainchín of Limerick (''fl''. late 6th century), son of Sétna, patron saint of ...

, the patron saint of the diocese of Limerick. It is part of the historical

barony Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

of Corcomroe. The parish is and covers . It includes a detached district of about to the south of the main part of the parish. Liscannor Bay forms the western boundary. The land is mostly low hills and is suitable for farming. It rises to on the eastern boundary.

Antiquities

The old church of Kilmanaheen stood on top of a hill in the Lissatunna townland. It has almost vanished now, but the large cemetery surrounding it was still in use in 1897. According to tradition the church stood on the same place as the former Dún, or residence, of Baoth Bronach, King of Corcomroe. He gave the place to Saint Mainchín for the glory of God. There was a castle in Ennistymon, which in 1580 belonged to O’Connor. It has since disappeared.

Settlements

In 1841 the population of the parish was 6,436 in 1,065 houses, of whom 4,494 lived in rural districts. Kilmanaheen contains the small town of Ennistymon and part of the village of Lahinch. Ennistymon lies at one end of the N85 road from

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...

, and on the N67 road between

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

and

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 ...

(via the

Shannon Ferry Shannon Ferry Group (also known as Shannon Ferries) is an Irish private company that operates a ro-ro ferry crossing of the Shannon Estuary between counties Clare and Kerry. The company is based in Killimer Co. Clare, with the service operating b ...

). It has shops selling local crafts, pubs, restaurants and a weekly market. The river Cullenagh runs through the town. Ennistymon is near to the edge of the Burren, a scenic area. Ennistymon was a stop on the West Clare Railway until it was closed in the late 1950s.

Brian Merriman Brian Merriman or in Irish Brian Mac Giolla Meidhre (c. 1747 – 27 July 1805) was an Irish language bard, farmer, and hedge school teacher from rural County Clare. His single surviving work of substance, the 1000-line long Dream vision poem ( ...

, the poet, was born in Ennistymon in 1749.

Caitlin Macnamara Caitlin Thomas (née Macnamara; 8 December 1913 – 31 July 1994) was an author and the wife of the poet and writer Dylan Thomas. Their marriage was a stormy affair, fuelled by alcohol and infidelity, though the couple remained together until D ...

of Ennistymon married the Welsh poet,

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...

Catholic parish

In 1837 the parish was part of the Catholic union or district of Ennistymon, which also included the parish of Clooney, and contained the chapels of Ennistymon, Lahinch, and Kilthomas. Today the Catholic parish of Ennistymon in the

diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora The Roman Catholic Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora ( ga, Deoise na Gaillimhe, Chill Mhic Duaich agus Chill Fhionnúrach) is a Roman Catholic diocese in the west of Ireland. It is in the ecclesiastical province of Tuam and is subject ...

includes the churches of Our Lady and Saint Michael in Ennistymon, Saint Columba in Clouna and The Immaculate Conception in Lahinch.

Townlands

Townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic origi ...

s are Ardnacullia North, Arcnacullia South, Attycristora, Ballingaddy East, Ballingaddy West, Calluragh East, Calluragh South, Calluragh West, Carrowgar, Carrowntedaun, Castlequarter, Cloonaveige, Clooncoul, Clooneybreen, Crag, Deerpark Lower, Deerpark Middle, Deerpark Upper, Deerpark West, Ennistimon, Fahanlunaghta Beg, Fahanlunaghta More, Furraglaun, Glebe, Gortnaclohy, Kilcornan, Knockbrack, Knockpatrick, Lehinch, Lissatunna, Maghera, Rinneen, Shanbally, Sroohil, Tullygarvan East, Tullygarvan West and Woodmount.

References

Citations Sources * * * * * * * {{Civil parishes of County Clare Civil parishes of County Clare