Kiltane
Encyclopedia

Origins

Kiltane derives its name from Cill Seadhna, or Seadhna's church, which was in the townland of Kiltane by the banks of the Owenmore river. The name 'Seadhna' was well known in the Early Christian Period
History of Ireland
The first known settlement in Ireland began around 8000 BC, when hunter-gatherers arrived from continental Europe, probably via a land bridge. Few archaeological traces remain of this group, but their descendants and later Neolithic arrivals, particularly from the Iberian Peninsula, were...

. There is mention of a bishop and priest of that name in an old tract but no detail as to where they worked. The name was common in the family from which Darbiled
Darbiled
Darbiled was an Irish anchoress and founder of Inis Cethig, fl. 575-600.Darbilied is said to have been of the Ui Fiachrach dynasty of Connacht. Her father's name is given as Cormac mac Brecc, and had a brother called Triallach, also an ecclesiastic...

 (Dervilla) and Fighernan came, both of whom preached in Erris. A huge part of this parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...

 is blanket bog
Blanket bog
Blanket bog or blanket mire is an area of peatland, forming where there is a climate of high rainfall and a low level of evapotranspiration, allowing peat to develop not only in wet hollows but over large expanses of undulating ground. The blanketing of the ground with a variable depth of peat...

 which was acquired by Bord na Mona
Bord na Móna
Bord na Móna , abbreviated BNM, is a semi-state company in Ireland, created in 1946 by the Turf Development Act 1946. The company is responsible for the mechanised harvesting of peat, primarily in the Midlands of Ireland...

. From it they transported milled peat to the now defunct, peat-fuelled power station at Bellacorick
Bellacorick
Bellacorick or Bellacoric is a townland in County Mayo, Ireland. It comprises an area of . The area is remote, virtually uninhabited blanket bog which was once used mainly for milled peat production. Nowadays, it is a Special Area of Conservation because of the unique nature of the intact blanket...

, now the site of a large wind farm
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...

.

History

For administrative purposes as well as limiting the number of Catholic clergy during the Penal times (17th century), Erris
Erris
Erris is a barony in northwestern County Mayo in Ireland consisting of over , much of which is mountainous blanket bog. It has extensive sea coasts along its west and north boundaries. The main towns are Belmullet and Bangor Erris. The name Erris derives from the Irish 'Iar Ros' meaning 'western...

 was divided into two parishes, namely, Kilcommon
Kilcommon
Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants...

 and Kilmore. (This territorial arrangement is still adhered to for civil and statutory purposes). Only one priest was permitted to serve each parish. In 1704, Fr. Michael Monnely, serving Kilcommon
Kilcommon
Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants...

, lived at Cloontikilla. In 1731, there were two priests, no Mass
Mass
Mass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...

 house, many wandering friars and hedge schools abounded.

In a Government document of 1801 compiled from data supplied by the local Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 bishops, Kilcommon is given as still having only two priests. Their combined income was £90. The same list notes that Ballycroy
Ballycroy National Park
Ballycroy National Park is located in the Owenduff/Nephin Mountains area of the Barony of Erris in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. It is one of the largest expanses of peatland in Europe, consisting of 117.79 square kilometres of Atlantic blanket bog. It is a unique habitat with a diverse flora and...

 also had two priests with a combined annual income of £80.

About 1825, after the building of Belmullet
Belmullet
Belmullet is a coastal Gaeltacht town with a population of around 2,000 on the Mullet Peninsula in the barony of Erris, County Mayo, Ireland. Its name means the "mouth of the mullet"...

 town had begun, Kilcommon was divided into two parishes; Kilcommon
Kilcommon
Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants...

 West (the present parish of Belmullet including Geesala and Doohoma) and Kilcommon East (namely, the present Kilcommon parish plus Bangor and Ballymonnelly areas).

The boundaries were again altered in August 1873 when the present parish of Kiltane, Erris
Erris
Erris is a barony in northwestern County Mayo in Ireland consisting of over , much of which is mountainous blanket bog. It has extensive sea coasts along its west and north boundaries. The main towns are Belmullet and Bangor Erris. The name Erris derives from the Irish 'Iar Ros' meaning 'western...

, was formed and the ancient name was restored.

Townlands

Kiltane contains the following townlands:-
  • Altnabrocky
  • Attawalla
  • Ballina-Erris
  • Ballybeg
  • Bangor Erris
    Bangor Erris
    Bangor Erris is a town in Kiltane parish in Erris, County Mayo, Ireland with a population of 500. It is on the banks of the Owenmore River and is the gateway to the Erris Peninsula linking Belmullet with Ballina and Westport, nestled at the foot of the "Bangor Trail" a 22-mile mountain pass across...

  • Bellacorick
    Bellacorick
    Bellacorick or Bellacoric is a townland in County Mayo, Ireland. It comprises an area of . The area is remote, virtually uninhabited blanket bog which was once used mainly for milled peat production. Nowadays, it is a Special Area of Conservation because of the unique nature of the intact blanket...

  • Bellanumera
  • Briska
  • Cloontakilla
  • Croaghaun
  • Darraragh
  • Doohoma
    Doohoma
    - General Description :Doohoma, is named after the mass grave situated in the sand dunes in close proximity to the sea. This was as a result of the great Great Famine of 1845....

  • Doolough
    Doolough
    Doolough is a coastal townland covering an area of in Kiltane Parish, Erris, North County Mayo. It is on the Doohoma peninsula south of Belmullet town. Its name comes from its location on miles of local sand dunes and beaches.- History :...

  • Dooyork
  • Drumanaffrin
  • Gweesalia
  • Glencullen
    Glencullen
    Glencullen , is a village in south County Dublin. It is also a townland in the civil parish of Kilternan, in the Barony and Poor Law Union of Rathdown in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County....

     Upper and Lower
  • Glenturk Beg and More
  • Goolamore
  • Kilsallagh
  • Kiltane
  • Largan Beg and More
  • Lenanadurtaun
  • Muingaghel
  • Muingnahalloona
  • Muinghanarnad
  • Rosnagleragh
  • Roy
  • Sheean
  • Sheskin
  • Srahanarry
  • Srahgraddy
  • Srahmore - notorious claim to fame: the bog from Bellanaboy
    Kilcommon
    Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north Mayo consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants...

     was dumped here by Royal Dutch Shell
    Royal Dutch Shell
    Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...

    in 2007.
  • Srahnakilla
  • Tarsaghaun More
  • Tavnagh
  • Tavnanasool
  • Tristia (Mount Jubilee)
  • Tullaghanbaun
  • Tullaghanduff
  • Tullaghaunnashammer
  • Uggool
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