Lough Corrib ( ; ) is a lake in the west of Ireland. The River Corrib or Galway River connects the lake to the sea at

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

. It is the largest lake within the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

and the second largest on the

island of Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially named Irelanda sovereign state covering five-sixths of th ...

(after

Lough Neagh Lough Neagh ( ; ) is a freshwater lake in Northern Ireland and is the largest lake on the island of Ireland and in the British Isles. It has a surface area of and is about long and wide. According to Northern Ireland Water, it supplies 4 ...

). It covers 176 km² and lies mostly in

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

with a small area of its northeast corner in

County Mayo County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...

. The first canal on the island of Ireland was cut in the 12th century. Known as the Friar's Cut, it allowed boats to pass from Lough Corrib to the sea at Galway. Lough Corrib was designated a

Ramsar site A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O) *** Permanent 8 ha (P) *** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts) **

Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

Name

is a corruption of , . According to placename lore, this refers to or —another name for the figure —who is believed to have been a god of the sea. In Irish, the lough is also called ("the Corrib").

Marine archaeology and charts

Surveys have been undertaken since 2007 by a local surveyor/cartographer to create up-to-date charts of Lough Corrib. These have uncovered a number of objects of historical significance, which have been investigated by the Underwater Archaeology Unit of the National Monuments Service. These include Bronze Age and Iron Age vessels (

dugout canoe A dugout canoe or simply dugout is a boat made from a hollowed-out tree. Other names for this type of boat are logboat and monoxylon. ''Monoxylon'' (''μονόξυλον'') (pl: ''monoxyla'') is Greek''mono-'' (single) + '' ξύλον xylon'' (tr ...

s), the "Annaghkeen Boat" being 40 ft in length and intricately carved, the "Carrowmoreknock Boat", a well preserved 10th century vessel carrying three

Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

battle axes, and the wreck of a Victorian pleasure yacht. The lake is hence of international importance as a marine archaeological site. All historic wrecks in the lough are protected, and a licence to dive them is required from the National Monuments Service.

Wildlife

The wildlife in Lough Corrib includes birds and hawks, otters, mink, stoat, frogs, and bats. Lough Corrib can be divided into two parts: a smaller shallower basin to the south and a larger deeper basin to the north. These two parts are connected by a narrow channel. In the southern and eastern parts of the lake, the lake bed is dominated by limestone bedrock covered by deposits of precipitated marl. The surrounding land is mostly pastoral farmland to the south and east and bog to the west and north. In addition to the lake basis, some areas of scientific interest adjoining the lake, e.g. woodland, callows grassland and raised bog, have been incorporated into the Lough Corrib Special Area of Conservation.

Threats to ecology

In early 2007, large numbers of the protozoan parasite ''

Cryptosporidium ''Cryptosporidium'', sometimes called crypto, is an apicomplexan genus of alveolates which are parasitism, parasites that can cause a respiratory and gastrointestinal illness (cryptosporidiosis) that primarily involves watery diarrhea (inte ...

'' were detected in water from the lake, leading to contamination of the public water supply in

Galway city Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

and an outbreak of

cryptosporidiosis Cryptosporidiosis, sometimes informally called crypto, is a parasitic disease caused by ''Cryptosporidium'', a genus of protozoan parasites in the phylum Apicomplexa. It affects the ileum, distal small intestine and can affect the respiratory tr ...

. Another unwelcome visitor is the invasive species '' Lagarosiphon major'' (also known as 'curly-leaved waterweed' or 'South African pondweed') which is destroying fish habitat and the

zebra mussel The zebra mussel (''Dreissena polymorpha'') is a small freshwater mussel, an Aquatic animal, aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Dreissenidae. The species originates from the lakes of southern Russia and Ukraine, but has been accidentally Intro ...

Cryptosporidium outbreak

On 21 March 2007, ''Cryptosporidium'' was confirmed to be present in the

drinking water Drinking water or potable water is water that is safe for ingestion, either when drunk directly in liquid form or consumed indirectly through food preparation. It is often (but not always) supplied through taps, in which case it is also calle ...

Galway City Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

, Moycullen,

Oughterard Oughterard () is a small town on the banks of the Owenriff River close to the western shore of Lough Corrib in Connemara, County Galway, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located about northwest of Galway on the N59 road (Ireland), N59 road. ...

and Headford, which had been instructed six days earlier to boil their water before drinking. The water taken from Lough Corrib was likely contaminated by migration of animal and human

faeces Feces (also known as faeces American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, or fæces; : faex) are the solid or semi-solid remains of food that was not digested in the small intestine, and has been broken down by bacteria in the ...

. Controversy emerged when it was revealed that funds previously earmarked to improve Galway's water system had not been spent. Dick Roche, the Minister of the Environment, later announced allocation of additional funds to tackle the issue. Measures included upgrading existing water treatment and filtration systems, as well as the projected importing of water from nearby Luimnagh,

Tuam Tuam (; , meaning 'mound' or 'burial-place') is a town in Ireland and the second-largest settlement in County Galway. It is west of the midland Region, Ireland, midlands of Ireland, about north of Galway city. The town is in a civil parishe ...

, County Galway. This plant at Luimnagh has facilities for ''

'' eradication and filtration. The Community Care Organisation, Cope, delivered bottled water to their elderly clients from 30 March 2007. A lobby group was formed in April 2007 to highlight the issue.

Islands

While Lough Corrib is reputed to have 365 islands, a recent figure from the creator of the charts of the lake is 1,327. These islands include Inchagoil Island, midway between Cong and

. It is one of the largest of the wooded islands along Lough Corrib. The island has views of the Maumturk range, Joyce Country and the mountains of

Connemara Connemara ( ; ) is a region on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of western County Galway, in the west of Ireland. The area has a strong association with traditional Irish culture and contains much of the Connacht Irish-speaking Gaeltacht, ...

. There are some beaches and woods with walks around the island. There is evidence of an early monastic settlement, and two churches -

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick (; or ; ) was a fifth-century Romano-British culture, Romano-British Christian missionary and Archbishop of Armagh, bishop in Gaelic Ireland, Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Irelan ...

's and the 12th century church known as the "saints" church. St. Brendan of Clonfert is also said to have spent some time on an island in this lake after returning from his travels in Britain. There are several paths around the island, an old cemetery and remains of four or five cottages which housed the few inhabitants. Another lake island is Caislean-na-Circe, between Maam and Doon. This section of Lough Corrib is free from islands except for the rock on which the ancient Hen's Castle of the O'Connor's and the O'Flaherty's stands. The castle was home of the pirate Queen

Gráinne O'Malley Gráinne O'Malley (, ; – ), also known as Grace O'Malley, was the head of the Ó Máille dynasty in the west of Ireland, and the daughter of Eóghan Dubhdara Ó Máille. Upon her father's death, she took over active leadership of the lords ...

, who lived in the time of Queen

Elizabeth I of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

. In 1225, the Lord Justice caused Odo O'Flatherty to give up Kirk Castle to Odo O'Connor, King of Connaught; for assurance of his fidelity. Cruises on the lough depart from Cong, Ashford Castle, Galway City, and Oughterard.

Influence on writers

Paul Féval's novel '' La Quittance de minuit'' (1846) is set in

, near Lough Corrib.

William Wilde Sir William Robert Wills Wilde Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, FRCSI (March 1815 – 19 April 1876) was an Irish Otology, oto-Ophthalmology, ophthalmologic surgeon and the author of significant works on medicine, archaeology and folklore ...

, father of

Oscar Wilde Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 185430 November 1900) was an Irish author, poet, and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential playwright ...

, wrote a book about the lake, ''Lough Corrib, its Shores and Islands'' (1867). He built a summerhouse on the banks of the lake, called Moytura House. ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

'' states that "the unspoilt countryside around Lough Corrib provided the inspiration" for '' The Hounds of the Morrigan'', a children's novel by Pat O'Shea.

Annalistic references

See ''

Annals of Inisfallen The ''Annals of Inisfallen'' () are a chronicle of the medieval history of Ireland. Overview There are more than 2,500 entries spanning the years between 433 and 1450. The manuscript is thought to have been compiled in 1092, as the chronic ...

'' (AI) * ''AI1027.9 Muiredach Ua Flaithbertaig besieged Cathal, son of Ruaidrí, on Inis Crema in Loch Oirbsen, and divided his land despite him.''

References

External links

Corrib Cruises
{{Authority control Corrib Corrib Protected areas of County Galway Corrib Corrib