Scarva ( meaning "shallow place, rough ford") is a small

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

and

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 orig ...

in County Down,

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. It is at the boundary with

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 ...

, which is marked by the

Newry Canal The Newry Canal, located in Northern Ireland, was built to link the Tyrone coalfields (via Lough Neagh and the River Bann) to the Irish Sea at Carlingford Lough near Newry. It was the first summit level canal to be built in Ireland or Great ...

. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 320. Scarva is famous as the location of the "Sham Fight" Pageant on 13 July every year. The Pageant attracts thousands of members of the

Royal Black Preceptory The Royal Black Institution, the Imperial Grand Black Chapter Of The British Commonwealth, or simply the Black Institution,wikipedia:Manual of Style/Words to watch#Unsupported%20attributions">who?''/sup> argue is an Ulster syncretism of rit ...

, a group related to the Orange Order, who come to march and stage a symbolic (sham) re-enactment of the 1690

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ga, Cath na Bóinne ) was a battle in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II of England and Ireland, VII of Scotland, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and J ...

History

Places of interest

The village boasts a beautiful park, with playing fields and well inhabited wildlife pond, scenic walks and wild fowl sanctuary.

People

* Rear Admiral Charles Davis Lucas (1834–1914), recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

Schools

Scarva Primary School Scarva ( meaning "shallow place, rough ford") is a small village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is at the boundary with County Armagh, which is marked by the Newry Canal. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 320. Scarva i ...

Sport

The local football club is Scarva Rangers, formed in 1972. Home matches are played at

Scarva Park Scarva ( meaning "shallow place, rough ford") is a small village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is at the boundary with County Armagh, which is marked by the Newry Canal. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 320. Scarva i ...

Transport

Scarva railway station Scarva railway station serves Scarva in County Down, Northern Ireland. Despite serving the County Down village, the station itself is in County Armagh, the nearby Newry Canal being the boundary. History The station opened on 23 March 1859. The ...

opened on 23 March 1859. * Scarva is on

National Cycle Route 9 Route The route will eventually connect Belfast and Dublin. The route is currently signposted between the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge in Belfast Newry. The portion south of Newry past Slieve Gullion was scrapped on safety grounds in 2020. ...

, linking

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

with

Newry Newry (; ) is a City status in Ireland, city in Northern Ireland, divided by the Newry River, Clanrye river in counties County Armagh, Armagh and County Down, Down, from Belfast and from Dublin. It had a population of 26,967 in 2011. Newry ...

, and eventually

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 ...

References

External links

{{authority control Villages in County Down Townlands of County Down Civil parish of Aghaderg