Clarecastle

Clarecastle An Clár or Droichead an Chláir
Town
Estate at Clarecastle
Clarecastle Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 52°49′00″N 8°58′00″W / 52.816667°N 8.966667°WCoordinates: 52°49′00″N 8°58′00″W / 52.816667°N 8.966667°W
Country	Ireland
Province	Munster
County	County Clare
Elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Time zone	WET (UTC+0)
• Summer (DST)	IST (WEST) (UTC-1)
Irish Grid Reference	R346742

Clarecastle (Irish: An Clár or Droichead an Chláir, meaning "Bridge of the Plateau") is a village in County Clare, Ireland, located just south of Ennis. Over the eight years through 2008 to now 2016 the village saw a big population increase due to its close proximity to Ennis, Shannon and Limerick.

Name

The town is named after the Clare Castle,^[1] which stands on an island in the narrowest navigable part of the River Fergus. The Irish Clár, meaning a wooden board, is often used for a bridge. The name probably originated as Clár adar da choradh, which means "the bridge between two weirs". Another explanation of the name is that the de Clare family gave the castle its name, since they had acquired land in Kilkenny and Thomond that included the castle. In 1590 County Clare was named after the castle, which is in a strategic location.^[1]

Clarecastle (Clare Abbey) is a parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe.^[2] It is also known as Ballyea/Clarecastle. Clare Abbey and Killone Abbey are linked by a footpath, the Pilgrim's road.^[3]

Main street in Clarecastle in 2010

Sports

The main sport played in Clarecastle is hurling with the team's of all age groups named Clarecastle GAA. The team colours are black and white and are known as the 'magpies'.

Notable people

The composer Gerald Barry was born in Clarehill in 1952.^[4]

See also

• List of abbeys and priories in County Clare
• List of towns and villages in Ireland

• 
  The quay was once a busy port, acting as port of Ennis
• 
  With the building of a weir and walls along the floodplains of the river it was tried to improve the reachability of the quay.
• 
  On the left the ruins of the castle itself, name-giver of the village. In the middle the former military barracks.
• 
  Build in the 1970s it replaced a five arch bridge to cope with the increasing traffic
• 
  The factory of Roche is the main employer in Clarecastle

References

1. Clarecastle Historical Background.
2. Clarecastle (Clare Abbey).
3. "Mass at St John's Well – a very special occasion". Clarecastle Community Development. 23 June 2013. Retrieved 2014-04-04.
4. "The Importance of Being Barry". roh.org.uk.

• "Clarecastle (Clare Abbey)". Diocese of Killaloe. Retrieved 2004-03-30.
• "Clarecastle Historical Background". Clare County Library. Retrieved 2014-03-30.

External links

• Clarecastle GAA