Placenames fall victim to builders and ill-informed ideologues

DURING the course of several social study conferences in the late 1980s I came to know and admire Eoin 0’Loinsigh of Siochán, Castlegregory, Co Kerry, who, in his 90s by then, was a life-long scholar and a great advocate of the Irish language.

In many discussions about Irish placenames he spoke of the anglicisation and the reverse Irish renaming of various localities around the countryside, drawing attention to the great descriptive beauty that has often been lost through the practice of ill-informed translation by over-zealous Irishians.

In particular, he used his own townland, Dingle, as an example of inadvertent anglicisation of the original name which he held as being, and of, the following — Dún na nGael (Fort of the Gaels/Celts), Dún Geal (Fort of Light, or even perhaps the Bright Fort).

He suggested this could have referred to either a renowned place of learning or a large building or town constructed mainly of white stone. It could possibly even have referred to a fort/town consisting of whitewashed buildings.

He speculated on one occasion that Dingle (Dún Geal) — like its opposite northern county, Donegal — might have been known originally as Dún na Geall or Fort of the Gauls who were invasive settlers and who probably would have been of French origin. However, he never implied other than that the anglicised name for Dingle was Dun Geal. I have no reason to doubt Eoin’s scholarship as he was born in Castlegregory on the Dingle peninsula around the turn of the 20th century when Irish was still the spoken language.

There are glaring examples of placename misinterpretation all around the country. One example of crude ‘re-Irishisation’ close to where I live in Co Cork is Glanmire, which has been interpreted as Gleann na Meaghair or Maher’s Glen.

It should be obvious to anyone with a bit of native savvy and an appreciation of topography that the original Irish placename obviously was Gleann na Mara, or the Sea Glen. Everywhere I look I see blatant examples of this corruption of Irish placenames and I find it sad that the natural feel for the Irish language seems to be lacking in those who have taken it upon themselves to ‘re-Irishise’ the countryside.

Even worse still is the actual anglicisation of housing estates, roads, streets and buildings by builders and property speculators who have no concern other than a good (some would say immoral) profit. I would have thought this right to name new buildings and estates should be the sole prerogative of the local authority.

Mike Kearney

4 Boyne Crescent

Mayfield

Cork