Leenaun
Leenaun (Irish: An Líonán ), is an Irish town in County Galway . However, the old spelling Leenane is widespread among the local residents instead of the official Leenaun .
Name and history of the place
The name Leenane is derived from the original Irish name of the place. An Líonán Cinn Mhara , which means "the small flooding point of the head of the sea" With "An Líonán" (the small flooding point) it is meant that this point dries out at low tide and fills up again at high tide. This can also be clearly seen on the maps on which the tidal zones are entered. In addition to the small flooding point, there is also a larger one at the mouth of the Erriff River in the fjord. The Erriff Rivers and the Leenane Rivers have probably brought sediments from the mountains over time, which have deposited in the estuary area and this area now dries up at low tide.
Around 1832 the place was spelled "Lenan" in English, later it became "Leenane". As there are other places in Ireland that bear this name (e.g. on Lough Swilly in Donegal and in the south of the country), the official spelling was changed to "Leenaun" some time ago, which the local people do doesn't stop you from sticking to the usual "Leenane".
Originally there was only one intersection at today's location. Over the years, a settlement with a number of houses emerged there, including the Leenane Hotel, popular since the 19th century.
In July 1903, Leenane became the site of a historic event. For the first time in 700 years an English king visited Connemara , the sparsely populated area in the far west of Ireland. Two years after the death of Queen Victoria, King Edward VII came with his wife Victoria and daughter Alexandra on the royal yacht in the Killary Fjord and went ashore at Leenane. For the lonely area this was a major event and around 20,000 people are said to have flocked to see the king. Edward is said to have walked through the village for a while with his companions and then drove on overland to Kylemore and Sráid Salach (Recess). The royal family was so fond of the area that they even considered buying Kylemore Castle; however, the plans failed due to the high maintenance costs of the castle.
Location and sights
The place is at the head of Ireland's only fjord, Killary Harbor , in northern Connemara. Nearby attractions include the Maam Valley and Delphi Valley, as well as the Killary Harbor fjord itself. The R336 regional road, which starts from Galway , runs through Connemara and joins the N59, ends in Leenaun . The over 100 year old bridge over which the N59 led collapsed in 2007 after heavy rainfall and was replaced by a new bridge in 2009.
In the village there is a cultural center with a wool museum (sheep & wool center) and trips on the Killary Fjord can be made with an excursion boat. Tickets for trips on the fjord are sold in the small post office. On the Killary Fjord you can sometimes even watch dolphins following the salmon towards the Erriff River. Otters can also be seen.
Since a well-known hiking trail leads through the village, Leenane is also interesting for hikers. The Western Way , called Slí an Iarthar in Irish , is a 250 km long long- distance hiking trail that runs through the counties of Galway and Mayo and here in Leenane, coming from Kylemore on the N59 along the Killary Fjord in the middle of the village towards Mayo . Like the Aasleagh Falls, Leenaun was also the set for the 1990 film " The Field " with Richard Harris .
Local activities
Various events are organized by the community throughout the year. The Leenane Mountain Walking Festival is held for hikers in early May . Hiking routes of varying degrees of difficulty are offered over two days in the surrounding area (Sléibhte Mhám Toirc / Maumturk Mountains, Mweelrea , the Western Way, from Kylemore to Aasleagh ) as well as a closing party with music and dance at the end of the festival. In 2009, the Leenane Food Festival was held for the first time in autumn with the presentation of local delicacies. At the second Food Festival in September 2010, the previous year's figure of 1,500 visitors was even exceeded. On the last weekend of September 2011, the Leenane Autumnal Festival was held. It is the successor to the food festival and focuses on all things autumn, mainly culinary, arts and crafts.
The events in Leenane show that the surrounding area is still characterized by sheep farming. In June the Blackface Sheep Show , in which, among other things, the most beautiful sheep from North Connemara and South Mayo is awarded. The Blackface Ram Fair takes place in October / November , a significant event for sheep farmers in the region, as this is where the important exchange of rams for breeding takes place.
The "Leenane Hotel", formerly "Killary View Hotel"
"Gaynor's" and "Hamilton's", to the right of them obscured the small post office
The N59 just before the bridge
Before "Gaynor's" and "Hamilton's"
Leenane as seen from the shore of Killary Fjord
Leenane in the evening
Web links
- A film about Leenane, made for the wool museum. on YouTube
- Connemara: Tourist information to Leenane
- The place in the Irish place name database
- The official homepage of the place
Individual evidence
- ^ Pronunciation of place names: here
- ↑ Newspaper report on the bridge collapse
- ↑ Wollmuseum ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Killary cruises ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Events
- ↑ Leenane Mountain Walking Festival Info (English) ( Memento of the original from June 22, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Walking Festival ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Leenane Food Festival (25/26 September 2010) ( Memento of the original from June 21, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Food Festival ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Leenane Food Festival 2011
- ↑ leenanevillage.com: Archived copy ( memento of the original from June 21, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Accessed December 29, 2011
Coordinates: 53 ° 36 ′ N , 9 ° 42 ′ W