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From: "Maureen Reynolds" <>
Subject: [DONEGAL] Re: Definitions of those pesky land divisions
Date: Tue, 3 Oct 2000 10:50:46 +1000


I had to revise my limited knowledge of Townlands when I had a look at the 1901 census in the Letterkenney Library. This showed many families living in the Townlands I was interested in.

>From what I had been told about Townlands, I too had thought that there would have been only one dwelling.

I am fortunate to have the copy of my grandfather's 1871 Donegal birth registration - for some reason he had obtained it in Sydney in 1922. It gives his birthplace as 'Tirhomin'. The family always knew that he came from 'The Glack'.

I now have a photo of his grandparents' old farmhouse at The Glack where he was born, and also, a photo of the hill where he lived where his father had another farm and farmhouse.

I was also pleased to find the meaning of 'Tirhomin' from a book in the Letterkenney Library. It means 'the place of the little burial mound'. The Library has a wonderful old two volume book giving the meanings of place names - this was a hard one that even Donal Begley had not been able to find for me, but the Letterkenney Library came good. 'The Glack' is 'glaic' - a hollow.

Researching in Ireland:
JOHNSTON Tirhomin, Co. Donegal
HUNTER, Rossgarrow, Co. Donegal
SPENCE, Co. Donegal
ENGLISHBY, Co. Louth
TOOLE, Co. Wexford
BRYAN/O'BRIEN, Dublin
DUNN, Dublin
BUCHANAN, Co. Wexford

>In talking with my older cousin in Donegal a few years back he told
>me this. "Some people say the townland is the smallest division of
>land in Donegal, but it is not." "It is the field and each field has its
>own name." He then went on to name the fields in the area we
>were. The names were very strange and gaelic sounding. He
>knew each of the fields and how good the soil and productivity was
>in them. I found it fascinating that he would have this intimate
>knowledge of each and every field. When I asked him the origins of
>the names he had not idea where they came from, as that was just
>what they have always been called.

>Now these field names, of course, are not legal divisions, such as
>are Baronies and Townlands, but I am sure if he still knows these
>names today, they were probably much used in times gone by
>when people were more reliant of the land for food. I have often
>wondered when researchers have a location name that has been
>passed down through aural or even written family legend and they
>are unable to locate that name anywhere, if indeed, that name
>might be one of these field names.

>Terry

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