A clachan ( ga, clochán or ; gd, clachan ; gv, claghan ) is a small settlement or hamlet on the island of Ireland, the Isle of Man and Scotland. Though many were originally kirktowns,MacBain, A. (1911) ''An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language'' Stirling Eneas MacKay, 1982 edition by Gairm today they are often thought of as small villages lacking a church, post office, or other formal building. It is likely that many date to medieval times or earlier – a cluster of small single-storey cottages of farmers and/or fishermen, invariably found on poorer land. They were often related to the rundale system of farming. According to David Lloyd, the Great Famine in Ireland (1845–49) caused such disruption to the social system that the clachans there virtually disappeared; many in the Scottish Highlands were victims of the Clearances. In some cases, they have evolved into holiday villages, or one or two houses have taken over, turning smaller houses into agricultural outhouses. Remains can be seen in many upland and coastal areas. Some are clustered in a dip in the landscape, to protect from Atlantic winds, but others stretch haphazardly along main roads.

Etymology

The word is composed of two elements, ''clach''/''cloch'' meaning "stone" and the masculine diminutive suffix ''-an''/''-án''. It originally denoted one of two things: * a monastic stone-cell ( clochán). * a paved road or causeway which in the earliest period were most commonly found leading to or from a church or cell{{cite web , url=http://www.dil.ie/results-list.asp?mode=BAS&Fuzzy=0&searchtext=cloch%C3%A1n&findlet=+&findcol=&sortField=ID&sortDIR=65602&respage=0&resperpage=10&bhcp=1 , archive-url=https://archive.today/20130218075213/http://www.dil.ie/results-list.asp?mode=BAS&Fuzzy=0&searchtext=cloch%C3%A1n&findlet=+&findcol=&sortField=ID&sortDIR=65602&respage=0&resperpage=10&bhcp=1 , url-status=dead , archive-date=18 February 2013 , title=eDIL , author= , date= , publisher=

Royal Irish Academy The Royal Irish Academy (RIA; ga, Acadamh Ríoga na hÉireann), based in Dublin, is an academic body that promotes study in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. It is Ireland's premier List of Irish learned societies, learned socie ...

& University of Ulster , accessdate=10 June 2012 This should not be confused with the Scottish Gaelic plural of ''clach'' which is ''clachan'' "stones", a homonym.

Examples

In Ireland: * Cloghane in

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

Cloghan, County Offaly Cloghan () is a town in County Offaly, Ireland. It is located at the intersection of the N62 National secondary road and the R356 and R357 regional roads. Amenities Cloghan had (as of 2016) a population of 601, and is home to a car dealers ...

Cloghan, County Donegal Cloghan () is a village in the rural centre of County Donegal, Ireland. Cloghan is on the R252 regional road, northwest of the "Twin Towns" of Ballybofey and Stranorlar. Cloghan has one of the most prolific wild salmon and sea trout fishing ...

* Cloghanmore in

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

* Menlo/ Mionloch in Galway In the meaning of "causeway", the most prominent example in Irish is the Giant's Causeway, known in Irish as ''Clochán an Aifir'' or ''Clochán na bhFomhórach''. In Scotland, clachans can be found in Argyll and Bute, Highland

Perthshire Perthshire (locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, ...

and in the

Highland Council The Highland Council (' ), the political body covering the Highland local authority created in 1995, comprises 21 wards, each electing three or four councillors by the single transferable vote system, which creates a form of proportional represe ...

region but also elsewhere, for example: * Clachan, Cowal, Argyll and Bute * Clachan, Lismore, Argyll and Bute * Clachan, Kintyre, Argyll and Bute * Clachan, Ross and Cromarty, Highland * Clachan, Skye, Highland * Clachan, Sutherland, Highland * Clachan, Raasay on the

Isle of Raasay Raasay (; gd, Ratharsair) or the Isle of Raasay is an island between the Isle of Skye and the mainland of Scotland. It is separated from Skye by the Sound of Raasay and from Applecross by the Inner Sound. It is famous for being the bir ...

, Highland * Clachan, South Uist, Outer Hebrides *

Clachan of Campsie Clachan of Campsie or Campsie Glen ( gd, Clachan Chamais) is a settlement in the East Dunbartonshire area of Scotland. It was formerly part of the county of Stirlingshire. It is situated to the south of the Campsie Fells at the foot of Campsie Gl ...

* Clachan of Glendaruel in Argyll * Clachaneasy in Galloway *

Hessilhead Hessilhead is in Beith, North Ayrshire, Scotland. Hessilhead used to be called Hazlehead or Hasslehead. The lands were part of the Lordship of Giffen, and the Barony of Hessilhead, within the Baillerie of Cunninghame and the Parish of Beith. T ...

in North Ayrshire * Bloak in East Ayrshire * Ladeside in East Ayrshire * Damnaglaur in the Rinns of Galloway In Canada: * Clachan, Ontario, Canada

Notes

External links

The Glens of Antrim Historical Society
includes a substantial section on Clachans in County Antrim Rural geography Hamlets Types of populated places