Gaeltacht
Mhalainn 1901 .
A study of the state of the Irish language in the
Malin peninsula at the start
of the C20th based on
the returns of the 1901
census, with commentary.
Research by
Gerry Sóna
This study looks at the strength of the
Irish language on the Malin peninsula in 1901. Not much has been written about this former Gaeltacht area . The census of 1901 is one
source of easily obtained information in relation to the number of Irish
speakers in the area, but why the language disappeared so quickly after this
date is open to surmise. We know about outside pressures on the language and
can see how they might have applied here in Malin Head. The generations that
could have given us a better insight are unfortunately gone forever. Hopefully,
a new generation growing up in totally different circumstances will appreciate
the struggles of their grandparents to merely survive and why many reluctantly
decided to lock their children out of the Gaelic world which was dying before
their eyes.
Ardmalin is
the most northerly townland in Ireland, jutting out into the Atlantic and
commanding the Northern Approaches to the British Isles. This area was of
strategic importance to the British government who ruled Ireland at this time
,not only from a military point of view but from a commercial point of view as
well. Much of the trade with North America and Canada ,both outward and inward
bound passed Malin Head. Signal Towers, Lighthouses and Coastguard Stations
were part of the local scene. There was also a Royal Irish Constabulary presence
in the area. This meant that British officialdom had an influence on the area
and with British officialdom went the English language.
The name Ardmalin was also used for a
DED, or District Electoral Division. Although not as many people had the right
to vote then, there would have been enough voters in this Congested District to
make it important for those seeking power through a seat in parliament. The DED
was also used as the unit for taking the Census, usually every 10 years. For
this purpose the following townlands were part of Ardmalin DED; Ardmalin,
Ballygorman, Bree, Ballykenny, Culoort, Dunagard, Inishtrahull, Keenagh,
Knockamany, Knockglass, Umgall and Meedanmore.
The point of this article is to show
from the Census figures of 1901, that Ardmalin was still a Gaeltacht area at
the start of the C20th. There was some increasing interest in the Irish
language in Ireland, starting among academics but spreading rapidly after the
founding of Conradh na Gaeilge, or The Gaelic League by Douglas de hÍde, son of
a Church of Ireland clergyman and later to be President of Ireland. This
increasing enthusiasm for all things Irish did not apply to the British
Administration and the language of most of the west and south of Ireland was
ignored or worse in the application of the law, in schools and in all dealings
with officialdom. The Catholic Church was no help to the common culture at this
time either. When the centuries of Penal Laws were oppressing the majority
religion in Ireland, young men wanting to be priests had to flee to the many
Irish Colleges on the continent of Europe, especially in Belgium, France, Spain
and Italy. Here their language and culture were preserved and respected and
when they returned to Ireland to serve their people, they did so imbued with a
spirit steeped in the struggles of their people. The British eventually wised
up and ‘allowed’ a seminary for Catholic clergy to be set up in Maynooth. But
its express purpose was to anglicise the Irish clergy and to put down native
religious practises that had held the people together through the worst of
times. Irish was to be largely ignored. This has not changed much even to the
present day in parts of the Donegal Gaeltacht.
It is well known that further west in
Inis Eoghain, in the parish of Clonmany, there was a strong Gaeltacht at the
start of the C20th. Urris even had a Gaelic College for learners of the
language. Roger Casement, a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood visited
this place on his travels.John O Donovan, the great Gaelic scholar recorded in
his Ordnance Survey memoirs that the Irish he heard in Clonmany was the purest
he had met with in all Ireland. This was in the early 1830s. The book ‘The Last
of the Name’ edited by Brian Friel and told by Charles Mc Glinchey to a local
schoolmaster, Patrick Kavanagh has become a classic about traditional Irish
life in a very Gaelic parish. Songs, poetry, rhymes, prayers and stories in
Irish were part of everyday life at home,on the land and at sea. But as Charles
Mc Glinchey remarks in his tale, Irish almost disappeared in his own lifetime
‘like snow off a ditch’.The Education system,the Church, the State and
increasingly anyone involved in trade had no use for the language of the people
and language change was forced and encouraged by nearly all in a leadership
role.
There was a Church of Ireland minister
who served in Moville from 1936 till 1940. Although he had to serve his own
parishoners including the Montgomery family of New Park house, his heart lay in
the Irish language. His greatest service was to the whole population of Inis
Eoghain. Through his collection of the last Irish spoken in the peninsula from
the mouths of some elderly people in Clonmany parish, his work has recorded for posterity some of the tales
told around Inis Eoghain fireplaces for centuries. The book ‘Scian a caitheadh
le toinn’ by Aodh O Canainn and Seosamh Watson is Cosslett O Cuinns’ work
edited and produced for modern Inis Eoghain students of our local history.
Not so much has been written about
Irish in other part of Inis Eoghain although the language survived among an
older generation in many other parts into the C20th. Malin is only a stones’
throw across Trá Bréagach literally. It is therefore likely that the language
survived here too ,at least among the older generation in 1901. The rest of
this article is based on an analysis of the information recorded by the people on
the night of the census.It is worth bearing in mind that the census is only a
snapshot in time of a particular community. Many people born in this part of
Malin would have been found in America, Scotland or Australia rather than at
home. Emigration was in full flow and this area was no different from the rest
of Ireland. There was no work at home apart from being hired to wealthier
neighbouring farmers or on the ‘Lagan’ ie bigger farms along the Foyle Valley
and South Inis Eoghain. For women and girls there was one lifeline. The Derry
shirtmaking industry at this time was not completely mechanized and many little
jobs like attaching collars and cuffs had to be done by hand. Derrys’ pool of
cheap female labour was not large enough at this time so agents took work to
areas of the surrounding countryside where there was a large number of women
and girls who had few other options other than domestic service or emigration.
Ardmalin had large and small families in
1901. Many families may have been larger still if absent members were recorded
but they were not. Small households too may have consisted of elderly parents
or relatives who had no one left at home. Often whole families of children had
to go away to earn a living. The census then only tells us a small part of the story.
But nonetheless it is worth hearing.
There were many families with the typical
nuclear family makeup familiar to us today;ie parents and children in the one
household. But there were also many extended families where 3 generations or
more lived in the house. It was also quite common to find married sons or
daughters with their husband/wife and children living in a house with maybe an
aunt or uncle there as well. In small houses of the time there must have been
an overcrowding problem. This could partly explain why so many young boys and
girls in their early teens were hired out locally or further afield.
The economy of the area was based on
farming and fishing, with many women involved in doing ‘outwork’ for the Derry
shirt factories as seamstresses. Tradesmen like weavers, blacksmiths,
carpenters ,tailors and shoemakers are found. Much clothing and footwear would
have been locally made. What could not be got at home would be procured in the
nearest market town of Carndonagh. Farm produce and fish which was surplus to
the needs at home would be sold to travelling merchants, or else taken to
Carndonagh, Moville or Derry. The trip to Derry by horse and cart on poor roads
in 1901 would have taken a full day. Fish was difficult to preserve apart from
sun drying to turn it into stockfish. Ice was rarely used and salting was used
mainly for herring. Most fishing here was done by long-lining and complaints
were regularly made about trawlers from far away ports in Scotland, England and
the Isle of Man destroying set longlines by trawling through them. The
islanders on Inishtrahull sometimes sent their fish to Glasgow or Liverpool on
passing ships.
In 1901, the census clearly shows that
well over 90% of the people in this part of Malin were of the Roman Catholic
faith. Other religions were mainly Presbyterian and Church of Ireland. Irish
speaking here was exclusively found among the Catholic population although it
is possible that some of the Protestant faith had a working knowledge of Irish
to enable them to deal with their neighbours, especially the older generation
with poor English. This was unlikely to be recorded in the census.
The census figures in general show a
picture of a culture and language in decline due to the many forces
antipathetic towards that culture. Many households left the language column
blank, even when people of an age the same as other Irish speakers lived in the
household. They may not have bothered to record knowledge of Irish out of lack
of regard for the language of the ‘old ones’ or out of shame. By this stage in
many parts of Ireland, Irish had become associated with ignorance,backwardness
and poverty. Even political leaders like Daniel O Connell who spoke Irish,
refused to use the language in their public
life. It is easy to imagine ‘The Liberator’ on his visit to Malin addressing a
largely Irish speaking crowd in English that only a few understood.
Irish probably remained the language
of work, prayer and entertainment within the family circle where there was more
than one Irish speaker in the house. Quite a number of households still passed
on the language to all the children in the house. In other households there is
a clear divide between older people with Irish and children who had English
only. Even in the latter households it is probable that many children were
familiar with Irish and could understand it even if they could not speak it.
Outside of the family Irish had no status.
Mass was in English, the RIC spoke English, the Coastguard spoke English, schools
instructed in English only and nearly all incoming trade and information was
exclusively in English. For most of this area Irish was the language of the
generation going to their graves.Younger ones with Irish were going to have
little chance of using the language anywhere they went. They were unlikely to
pass it on to their own children.The last speakers of Malin Irish likely passed
away in the middle years of the C20th.The songs and stories of the people for
many centuries went into the grave with these final few. Cultural genocide had
won out in the end.
Ardmalin.
In the townland of Ardmalin in 1901, out of a
total of 129 households, 82 had Irish speaking members, although this number
may have been higher for reasons already mentioned. Of the 82 households, about
27 had only one Irish speaker. !5 households had two Irish speakers which meant
that at the very least some conversation was possible even if it was private.
Gaeltacht people I know often explain how older parents or relatives used Irish
for important and private matters thinking that the children did not
understand. 25 households had between 3 and 8 Irish speaking members. Here the
family possibly lived their lives completely in Irish inside the household.
These families would be the repository of song, story, prayer and folklore in
the area. But there was to be little appreciation of this culture outside the
home and no encouragement to preserve it.
49 of the households in Ardmalin had O
Doherty or Doherty as head of household. There were 7 McLaughlin households,8
Logues,7 Tolands, 6 Houtans(Houtons),4 Crampseys,4 Bonners, 2 Farrens,3
Glackins and 2 Quigleys. Other surnames occurring singly include O Callaghan,
McGonagle, Douglas, Dreenan, Gibbons, Toner, Mullan, McMackin, McConway, Kelly,
Gorman and Grant. The names of the RIC and Coastguard are not included here as
they were only temporary residents and were from different parts of Ireland and
England.
BALLYGORMAN.
The name of
this townland means ‘O Gormains’ town’. There were 46 households recorded here
for 1901. It was fairly densely populated and as it had a harbour or anchorage,
it had a focus on fishing greater than many other townlands in Ardmalin DED.
The family names here included 18 Doherty households, 3 McKeeney households, 3
Gallagher households, 2 McLaughlin households, 2 Deery households and two
Gorman households. It might have been expected that there would have been more
(O) Gorman families in this townland but the possibility is that they were
original inhabitants of this area before the plantations drove many other
families from better lands to the Atlantic fringes. As original inhabitants, the
family name stuck to their territory. Other names occurring singly in Ballygorman include Toland, Farren, Crampsie,
Donoghue, Mooney, Doyle, McCullagh, McDaid, Monagle, Houtan and Quigg.
38 of the heads of household
described themselves as farmers. 11 households here had members involved in
fishing and 6 had women or girls doing work as seamstresses. Life would have
been extremely difficult if there had not been these supplementary occupations.
1 head of household was a farmer/publican. Other occupations mentioned here
include a gunner in the Royal Artillery, a charwoman, a shoemaker, a tailor
eith several people calling themselves farm labourers. Most of the young were
either scholars, farm servants or domestic servants.
14 households
here stated that they had Irish speaking members which is fairly low in
comparison with other townlands in the area. Perhaps the use of English in
buying and selling fish and fishing gear and regular contact with fishermen
from other ports led to more English being used here. But many houses here did
not complete the census column referring to language so the number could have
been higher. It is likely that many more of an older generation spoke and
understood Irish but had less chance to use it as English began to dominate in
the struggle to earn a living.
BALLYKENNY.
There were
21 households in this townland in 1901.All the inhabitants were Roman Catholic
and 16 at least put down farming as the main occupation of the head of
household. 5 of the houses had seamstresses and there was a shoemaker and two
wool spinners in the townland. 2 households had labourers as their head.
The surnames here included 8
Monagle households, 3 Doherty households, 3 McGowan houses, 2 McDaid houses and
McKinney, Bradley,McKeeney and Crampsey made up the rest. 18 out of 21
households here contained at least one Irish speaker.Interestingly, several
houses here had all members as Irish speakers so that the language was still
vibrant in some families at least. The older generation could work and play in
the Gaelic tongue but for younger members of these families the implication was
that only the English tongue was going to be accepted under the rule of
Brittania in the outside world.
BREE
This
townland had 25 households in 1901. 9 of the households here were either
Presbyterian or Church of Ireland with the rest being Catholic. The surnames in
the area had 9 O Doherty/Doherty households, 7 Boggs households with Grant,
Brittin, Brattin, Houtan, McDaid,McEleney, Duncan and Deery making up the rest.
Many of the Protestant households also contained Catholic boys and girls who
are described as farm or domestic servants. This was the ‘hiring fair’
operating on a local basis. 18 heads of household here described themselves as
farmers. Other occupations included General Merchant, Grocer, Carpenter, Wool
Weaver, Blacksmith, Seamstress and Fisherman.
13 of the households in Bree had
at least one Irish speaker at this time ,with 7 having more than one Irish
speaking member. Again, the language still clung on here as the family language
in many families but had little hope of survival in a hostile or unsympathetic
world outside of the home. It is safe to say that Irish was used and heard in
houses where more than one member had Irish. Life must have been strange and
lonely to say the least when you found yourself as the last speaker of Irish in
a house where nobody understood the language of your dearest thoughts and
memories.
CULOORT
50
households held the inhabitants of Culoort in 1901. 6 households were
Presbyterian and 1 Church of Ireland, the rest being Catholic. The family names
recorded here consisted of 15 Doherty/O Doherty households, 10 McLaughlin
houses, 5 Kelly houses, 4 Henderson houses, 2 Duncan houses, 2 Gallagher
houses, 2 Sheals houses with McKenna,Bradley, Molloy, Devanney, Merchant, Monagle
,Kearney, McDaid, Colhoun and Farren making up the rest.
41 of these households had heads
describing themselves as farmers. 2 household heads called themselves labourers
and 2 were fishermen. There was also a shoemaker and a wool weaver. 13 of these
households had one or more seamstresses in them and fishing was an occupation
among members of 6 other households. Other occupations among family members
included carpenter, stonemason, weaver and shopkeeper.
17 houses in Culoort had at least one
Irish speaker in them with 6 having more than one. Again, this is a relatively
low figure compared with other townlands and may indicate a lower recording of
Irish speaking for social reasons. This was on the main road into Malin village
where landlords and business people lived and whose language would be
exclusively English. More regular contact with English put Irish speaking
people at a disadvantage and the ‘shame’ factor may have led to a lower
admission of speaking Irish among some
families. The centuries of Gaeldom were definitely coming to an end in Culoort.
KNOCKAMANY
This
townland overlooks Trá Bréagach and across to Clonmany and the Urris Gaeltacht
as it then was. There were 6 households in this townland, 5 being Catholic and
1 Presbyterian. The family names were Doherty(2), Harkin, Duncan, Deery and
Stewart. 4 households were farmer/seamstress households, with 1 being labourer
only and 1 being seamstress only.
All of the Catholic houses here had
Irish speaking members. 3 houses had 2 Irish speaking members, 1 house had 6
Irish speakers and 1 house had a solitary Irish speaker. Irish was probably
used regularly among this little group of families in their day to day
activities and for prayer and fireside talk. Going outside of the little
townland required the use of English and of course all dealings with state
agencies made English compulsory. With the slightest of encouragement and a
more benevolent Education System, these little pockets of Gaeltacht could have
strengthened and held on to their native language. This was not to be.
KNOCKGLASS
There were 9
households in Knockglass,’the green hill’ in 1901, 8 being Presbyterian and 1
Catholic. The houses were Coulhoun(3), Platt(3) with 1 Stewart, 1 Campbell and 1 Doherty household.
All were farmers and seamstresses except the Doherty house who described the
head as a labourer, implying non ownership of land. The Dohertys were Irish
speaking parents. There was no Irish recorded for the other families.
MEEDANMORE
This
townland ‘the big meadow’ had 8 households in 1901. All the families or
households here were Catholic and 7 described themselves as farmers. There were
5 McLaughlin houses, 2 Doherty houses and 1 McGilloway house. 2 of the houses
had females who were seamstresses.
7 of the 8 households here had
Irish speakers with 2 families having 7 Irish speakers each. Two other houses
with 3 occupants each were all Irish speaking and the rest apart from 1 house
had Irish in them. This then was an almost ‘fíor Ghaeltacht’ in modern terms
where Irish was present in nearly every home. It must have been in use for day
to day activities for the young to pick it up. Sadly, it is also quite certain
that the National schools would change the attitude of these little children
towards the language they grew up with. It is also nearly certain that these
Irish speakers who would have been adults in the 1920s,30s and 40s would not be
raising their own children with Irish in most cases.
UMGALL
The 1901
census records 16 households for Umgall. The surnames recorded for heads of
household were Mooney(4), Doherty/O Doherty(4), Crowe(2) Brattin/Brittin(2)
with McLaughlin, Simpson and Colhoun having 1 each. The Colhoun household was
Presbyterian, the Crowe, Brattin/Brittin and Simpson households were Church of
Ireland and the rest were Catholic. Other names occurring here were Henderson
and Scott who married into these households or acted as servants.
The major occupation here was farming and
some of the households had seamstresses. One house had a wool spinner. Children
were scholars or servants.
3 of the 4 Mooney households were made
up of members who were all Irish speaking or rather capable of speaking Irish,
6 in one household,7 in another and 9 in the other one.One of the O Doherty
households recorded 12 members as capable of speaking Irish. In total all but 2
of the Catholic families here had Irish speaking members. The numbers here
alone made Umgall a mini Gaeltacht in 1901, although the households of a
protestant persuasion had no one capable of speaking Irish or if they did,it
was not recorded.
DUNAGARD
This
townland had 6 households, all Catholic and the families recorded were O
Donnell(4), Mc Gonagle 1 and Monagle 1. All described themselves as farmers
with one adding on wool weaver as another occupation. 3 of the households had
all members capable of speaking Irish and three others had at least one member
with Irish. This townland could also be described as a Gaeltacht townland based
on numbers alone.
KEENAGH
There were
18 households here in 1901. 2 of these households were Presbyterian with the
rest being Catholic. The head of household surnames were recorded as follows;
Doherty (5),Deery (4), Collins (2) and 1 each of Falkner,Sheals, McLaughlin,
Mullen, Colhoun, Harkin and Toland. 15 heads of household described themselves
as farmers, 1 as a shoemaker, 1 as a butcher and 1 with no occupation
mentioned. 9 of these households had seamstresses earning a supplementary
income. Other occupations recorded were teacher, dressmaker and retired nurse.
11 of the families here had Irish
speaking members with at least 7 having more than 1 Irish speaker. It is
probable that in many of these households Irish was an every day language
within the family and even those recorded as non-Irish speakers were familiar
with it and probably understood much of the conversation going on even if they
were discouraged from using the language themselves. This negative attitude
towards the language meant that many children fron Irish speaking families
would be incapable of passing the language on to another generation. These
families therefore were to be the final link between Gaelic Ireland and the new
English speaking communities cut off from their cultural past.
What disappeared when the language went? All
the centuries of song and story about the Celtic heroes, the local history of
saints and scholars, family genealogy so carefully encapsulated in the Irish
language, prayers and curses, ghosts and the ‘gentle’people, placenames and names
of plants , flowers, seaweeds,fish, birds and insects. A whole world of
knowledge was to be forced into oblivion in the name of
‘education’,’civilization’ and ‘progress’.
INISHTRAHULL.
This little former Gaeltacht island lies
a few miles to the north of Malin Head. Like many other islands off the Irish
coast it now lies abandoned to nature. Most islands off the coast of Ireland
that were inhabited had little clusters of houses facing the mainland to the
east and trying to make use of any shelter provided by higher ground to the
west. Usually the landing port faced the mainland as well because this was the
shortest sea crossing in most cases. The Irish name for this island used by
Irish speakers in the west of the county was ‘Inis Trá Thuathail’, or ‘the
island of the beach opposite’. This was because islanders here had to make
their way around to the ‘opposite’ or north side of the island to land their
goods on most occasions. There was a smaller landing facing the mainland which
could not be used except in the calmest seas and this was rare on this coast.
The census took place on Sunday 31st
March 1901 on the island. On this particular weekend there were 65 people
recorded on the island. Other family members may have been away at work or on
the mainland and are not recorded. It had become usual that for some families
the island was a summer residence and in winter some members lived on the
mainland in Malin or Glengad. Family members engaged in fishing may also have
been away on this particular night.
All of the residents apart from Lighthouse
staff were Roman Catholic in faith. The Lighthouse/Signal Station staff
described their religion as ‘brethern’. These workers were from Cork, Wicklow
and Kerry. It is hard to decide what religion the Smiths put on their census
form.
The surnames recorded for heads of
household on the night in question were McGonagle(2), McLaughlin(4)
Houton(3),Doherty (1) and the staff on light or signal duties were O Reilly,
Smith and Jeffers.
All the native families were engaged in
farming and fishing. For such a small island with little land of good quality
farming would have been barely subsistence. A few cows provided milk and some
potatoes and corn may have been attempted although regular storms and salt
spray would have made this a very tenuous enterprise. Fishing would have been
the mainstay of the people,providing a lot of their own food and earning a few
shilling whenever marketing opportunities allowed. It is recorded that the
islanders were not shy about doing a little ‘smuggling’. This meant trading
fresh fish or other produce in exchange for tobacco unbeknownst to the Revenue
authorities. Fresh fish was also sent to markets in Glasgow and Liverpool using
passing vessels as a means of fast transport. More can be read about life on
Inis Trá Thuathail in Edward McCarrons’ ‘Life in Donegal 1850-1900’.
All of the island families except one
contained Irish speaking members. But, tragically, the pattern that was very
clear on parts of the mainland was appearing here also. Parents who were Irish
speakers were not passing the language on to the younger generation in most
cases. What was happening on Inis Trá Thuathail and in Malin was happening in
many other parts of Donegal. A quote
from the aforementioned Edward McCarron sums up what was happening in certain
parts of the county.
“Irish was the prevailing language spoken in
that part of the country but a prejudice had grown up against it in those early
days and though my father and mother conversed in it-it was their common
conversation language- I never learned to speak it but of course I understood
it”.
This process was exactly what was
happening all over the Malin peninsula at this time. Some families were passing
their oral culture on to the next generation and some were not. But the outside
agencies of the state had no place for Irish and the ancient language, one of
the oldest in Europe with a rich culture of song and story, was being wilfully
ignored and extinguished in this early 20th century generation.
Carthage DED.
Carthage
District Electoral Division is part of the Malin peninsula and is made up of
the townlands of Balleaghan Lower, Balleeghan Lower. Balleghan Upper, Carthage
and Glengad. The difference in spelling is historical. Ireland and the Irish
had to accept the official spelling of their placenames decided on by the
Ordnance Survey, which was originally a part of the British military. In
Scotland , the highland placenames have been mostly faithfully recorded in
Gaelic and not anglicised. This is because so many young Highlanders had few
employment opportunities apart from joining highland regiments in the British
army. When sent to do Ordnance Survey work they worked in their native tongue
and thus we have Scottish maps that are true to the Gaelic names of places.
This did not occur in Ireland. Most Officers of the Ordnance Survey in Ireland
were English and few bothered to learn Irish when recording the names of our
hills, mountains, rivers ,glens and shores. Many of our current names of places
in Ireland bear little relation to the original Irish name. This is merely
another curse of colonisation and the sad part is that our so called ‘native
governments’ have done little to rectify the situation.
BALLEAGHAN LOWER
It is as well
to clarify at the start that Balleeghan townland, regardless of spelling ,is
divided into several parts and this is reflected in the census returns. The
first Balleaghan Lower had 29 households in 1901. The heads of household here
had their surnames as follows; Doherty(7), McGuinness(4), McGonagle(4),
McCarron(3), Farren(3), Crampsey(2) with McCallion, Bonner,Harkin, Logan, O
Donnell and Mulhern having one each.
Other surnames occurring as servants ordomectics within families are Ferris, Graham,
McDaid and Keane.
Among the 29 households, 28 had
farming as an occupation for one or more persons in the house. 13 of these
families had at least one person involved in the work of seamstress. 2 houses
had spinners and other occupations among the families here were carpenter(1),
road contractor(1), labourer(2) with the rest being scholars or servants.
Irish speakers were present in 13
households here with at least 5 having more than one Irish speaking member. Of
course there were families who did not complete the language question for their
own reasons and we can assume that Irish was at least understood by many other
family members.
BALLEAGHAN LOWER
This part of
Balleghan Lower had 16 households, all of them Catholic. Surnames of heads of
household here break down as follows; McLaughlin (3), Molloy (3), Harkin (2),
Farren (2), McCole (2), with one each for Doherty, Quigley, Keane and McKeague.
All of the households here were engages
in farming with three houses having seamstresses and one a shoemaker.
Irish was found in at least 10 of the
houses here with 6 houses recording more than one Irish speaker. One house had
8 Irish speakers, indicating that some families were transmitting the language
across the generations. In most other cases here it was the ‘scholars’ who did
not have the language. This applies so commonly in the Malin peninsula that it
seems that the schooling available to the children of Malin and nearby areas
was hostile to the language of the people. When a message of negative attitudes
towards a language are inculcated in a young generation then the language in
question does not have a bright future. We are always brought back to think of
Padraig Pearses’ famous essay on ‘The Murder Machine’ , or the work being
carried out by the national schools at this time to destroy any pride in
anything Irish. The Irish language was the chief victim of this system.
BALLEGHAN
UPPER
The
households here contained the following surnames as heads of family; Doherty
(9), Mc Laughlin (8), McGonagle (6), Kelly (5), McCallion (4), Collins (4),
Quigley (3), McCallion (3), Farren (2), Clingian (2), Logue (2) with the rest
of these names having one household; Harkin, McKinney, Nelson, Lynch, McCole,
McDaid, Monagle, Bonner and Courtney. The number of households was 59 and 56 of
these included farming as an occupation. 21 of the households here had
seamstresses with some houses having 3 or more at this activity. The other
occupations found in this townland, which is divided into several parts, were
tailor (1), blacksmith (1)and wool spinner (1). There were others like teacher,
grocer/shoemaker and ‘herd’. This term was applied to young children whose main
duty was to keep an eye on the cattle and prevent them wandering onto the crops
or land of neighbours. The word ‘cowboy’ also occurs in some of the census
returns in this area. One family here used the term ‘shirtmaker’ as opposed to
seamstress.
Irish was spoken by members in 36 of
the households here, with 18 recording 2 or more Irish speakers. Two families
here even recorded 6 members with the ability to speak Irish. Other families here
with members in an older age group did not bother to complete this section of
the census form and there is every likelihood that there were other Irish
speakers among them. Irish was probably confined to home usage for prayers and
stories around the fireside but was not going to be often heard in the streets
of Culdaff. As in other areas,many parents had privatised their Irish by
keeping it from their children. Some may have felt that Irish was the badge of
poverty and despised by those ‘doing well’ in life so that letting it slip away
into oblivion was the only way to progress.
CARTHAGE
There were
at least 76 households in this townland close to Culdaff, but still on the
Malin peninsula.Surnames of heads of households occurred in the following
numbers; McLaughlin (11), Doherty (9), Houten (6), Crampsey (5), Douglas (4), McGonagle (3),
McColgan (3), Knox (3), Bradley (2) and Monagle (2). These other surnames of
heads of household occur once. Kelly, Collins, McDermott, McKinney, Mills,
Fleming, Cassidy, O Donnell, McSheffrey, Canny, Colhoun, Davenport, Brattin,
Shiels, Farren, Kane, McDaid and Diver. The names of those employed in the
coastguard were Prouse, Tracey, Otland and Cooke.
58 of the households had farming as an
occupation. There were seamstresses in 19 of the houses here with several
daughters engaged in this activity in some houses. Two houses had dressmakers
and there was one wool spinner and one wool weaver in other households. A
Justice of the Peace lived locally. Other occupations in this area included 2
carpenters, a mason, 2 grocers, 2 ploughmen and a shoemaker. This clearly
indicates that people did not travel far to find clothing and shoes. Local
skills made everything necessary to protect a body from the elements.
5 of the houses here were affiliated to
the Church of Ireland but the members of the coastguard described themselves as
Church of England members. Despite the village of Culdaff being a Plantation
village, 43 of the households here still had Irish speaking members. 23 had two
or more Irish speakers and 8 had 4 or more members with the ability to speak
Irish. It was mostly the young who were attending school who were locked into
the English speaking world and
unfortunately locked out of the Gaelic world of their forebears.
GLENGAD
This area
had 96 households in 1901 which clearly placed it in the category of ‘congested
district’. Of all the townlands on the malin peninsula, Glengad was the most
Gaelic. Irish speakers were present in at least 92 of the 96 households. It is
hard to imagine how the few houses who did not record Irish speakers would not
admit to having an understanding of the language of most of their neighbours.
But they did not have to complete the question about Irish in any case so they
may well have known at least enough Irish to deal with their more elderly
neighbours.
The surnames of the heads of
households recorded break down in this way; McLaughlin (24), Doherty (24),
McGonagle (7), Kelly (5), McKinney/McKenny
(5), McDaid/McDevitt (6), McDermott (4), Lafferty (4), Farren (3),
Harkin (2), Bradley (2), McColgan (2), Crossan (2), with the following having
one each Crampsey, Duffy, McKinley, Douglas, McGeoghegan and McKenna.
82 of the households mention farming
as an activity although the hilly and rocky nature of the land here make this a
precarious existence even if you did own more than a few acres. The occupation
of seamstress occurs in at least 39 households with some others recording
occupations as ‘shirt finishers’ or ‘shirt makers’. 23 households here had
members engaged in fishing. The poor nature of the land and the extent of sea
all around makes fishing a very likely occupation. But it must have been a hard
task to try to make a living from the sea here. The fishing grounds were rich
right enough but the vessels available and the gear was simple. Port facilities
were poor and regular storms were always a threat to both boats and fishing
gear. Weather was not the only problem. While researching a different story
around the start of the Millenium, I came across some newspaper reports about
fishermen from Malin, Inistrahull and Greencastle complaining to the
authorities about trawlers from other places trawling through their longlines
and destroying their gear. They were also taking away small fish which were the
future stock for fishing in this area.
This was happening over 110 years ago!
Probably little was done by those in
authority. Loss of life at sea was a regular occurrence and the number of heads
of household who were widows in this area alone is amazing. Outside agencies,
government or otherwise, could not even understand the language of the people.
Education in the English tongue must have seemed a necessity for these brave
people living on the edge, both of the ocean and the English world around them.
Other occupations in Glengad were
wool spinners (10), tailors, carders (of wool), shopkeepers, carpenters, a
blacksmith and a ‘pensioner US Navy’. Some younger members of families were
described as ‘hurd’ or ‘herd’ and the term ‘cowboy’ even occurs here. Did
American terminology even reach this part of the world?
Although Irish was present in nearly
every house and although many families had all members as Irish speakers, a
trend was apparent in Glengad also. In some families Irish was spoken among the
parents/grandparents and older siblings but the younger members who were
attending school were recorded as speaking English only. These youngest
children would have few prospects at home and would most likely be taking ‘an
bád bán’ or the emigrant ship from nearby Moville. Most destinations for Irish
emigrants were in British colonies or former British colonies and despite the
fact that hundreds of thousands of Gaelic speakers from Ireland and Scotland
were forced out of their homelands, their language was to have no place in the
New World. Many Highland Scots who settled in Nova Scotia, particularly Cape
Breton Island kept their language alive even to the present day. Most Irish
ended up in the big cities and their native tongue was soon all but forgotten.
With the internet and other means of learning today it is surprising how much
demand there is from America for teachers of Irish and Irish lessons online.
Things do go in circles and maybe one day with a competent Irish government we
can realise the dream of Pearse and Connolly for a ‘free and Gaelic Ireland.
MALIN DED.
The
remaining townlands on the Malin peninsula lie within the Malin DED. These
townlands as recorded in 1901 were Ballagh, Ballycrampsey, Carrowmore, Balleelaghan,
Drumavohy, Drumcarbit, Drumnaskea, Drung, Goorey, Killin, Lag, Lougherbraghy,
Magheryard, Norrira, Tullybeg, Tullymore and Urbalreagh. Some of these
townlands faced the Atlantic and others huddled along the shores of Trá
Bréagach.
BALLAGH.
There were
27 households in Ballagh in 1901 made up of families whose heads had the
following surnames; McLaughlin(6), Doherty (6), Deery (3),Collins (2), Campbell
(2) with one each of McDaid, Gallagher, Farren, Duncan, Henderson, Brittan,
Kelly and Monagle. Three of these households were affiliated to the Church of
Ireland, two were Presbyterian and the others were Roman Catholic.
23 of the households had farming as an
occupation for one or more members. 7 households had one or more seamstresses
in them with one dressmaker recorded. A Catholic curate lived in one of the
households as a lodger. 2 heads of household described themselves as farm
labourers. Apart from these occupations the other residents were either
scholars or live in servant boys and girls.
18 of the Ballagh households had Irish
speaking members with 11 of them having three or more Irish speakers including
one with 10, one with 8 and three with 6. Irish then was still a living
language among many families in Ballagh. As in other townlands, those with no
Irish were mostly the young going to school or members of the Protestant
faiths.
CARROWMORE.
This
townland which comprises the area around Malin village had a number of
households or houses occupied by more
than one family. A look at the actual census shows a pattern of multiple
occupancy of residences. There were 33 households approximately in Carrowmore and
the heads of household had these surnames;
McLaughlin (6),Doherty (4), Farren (3), Quigley (2), Toner (2), McClean
(2) and Kelly (3). The other surnames with one household each were Ralph, Grant,
Britten, Henderson, Thompson, Robinson, McFarland, Lindsay, Lamb, Marrett,
Boggs, Scott, McIntyre, Brookes, McCorkell, Young, Elliott, Sproule, Colhoun,
Clooney, Collins and Starrett. Few of these names are native to Inis Eoghain
and reflect the extent of the Ulster Plantation in a locality.
22 of the houses or residences here have
2,3 or 4 different surnames living in them. 9 of the households had Church of
Ireland as their faith with 8 Presbyterian households. The other heads of
household here were Catholic. Only 13 households here had Irish speaking
members and it is mostly recorded as one member. Living in such an environment
where the majority of the trades people and businesses were English speaking
only may have led to a more rapid decline in Irish speaking near to the village
of Malin.
24 of the households still had farming as
an occupation for some members. 6 households had seamstresses or dressmakers.
There were three ‘grocers’ and one publican. Other occupations in Malin village
and surroundings were ;mail car driver, doctor, rector, priest, 3 teachers,
carrier,nailor, butcher, miller, car driver, petty sessions clerk, laundry
mistress, shoemaker, blacksmith, mason and retired coal miner. There were also
4 members of the RIC in barracks with 2 more living locally. Malin village also
had a postboy.
BALLEELAGHAN
There were
15 households in Balleelaghan in 1901. The surnames for the heads of household
here were; McLaughlin (2), Collins (2), Kelly (2), Henderson (2) and one
household each for Monagle, Doherty, Fulton, Colhoun, Gilmore, Starrett and
Crampsey.14 of these households mention farming as an occupation. Only three
house here mentions a seamstress, but there was a doctor living here as well. 6
of the households were Presbyterian and the rest Catholic.
Irish speakers were present in 7
households at least with only one recording a single speaker. Two of the households had 6 or more Irish
speakers so that the practice of passing on the language had not fully ceased
here. Like other townlands, it was the very young or those going to school who
were not going to have the gift of their native language.
BALLYCRAMPSEY.
There were 7
households in this townland in 1901. Strangely for Malin, they were all of the
Protestant faith except one. The surnames recorded for heads of households
were; Davis, Gillespie, Short, Scott, McIntyre, Baird and Colhoun. All of the
households had an interest in ‘farming’ and 2 of them had seamstresses . Other
surnames that occur here include Doherty, Fulton, Gillespy and Smyth, mostly
hired as servants.
Only one household here recorded Irish
speakers and in this case the whole family of 9 were able to speak the language.
DRUMAVOHY.
This small townland had 3 households, two
McLaughlin and one Doherty. All were ‘farmers’ and 12 out of the 16 recorded
inhabitants were able to speak Irish.
DRUMCARBIT.
There were
27 households here in 1901. The census records the following surnames as heads
of household. Kelly (8), Doherty (3), Harkin (2), Campbell(2) and the rest of
the names had one household per surname as follows; McLaughlin, Horwill, Logan,
Miller, Canning, Fullerton, Henderson, McCandless, Wilson, Stewart, Boggs and
Mulloy. The religious persuasion here included 7 Presbyterian households, 5
Church of Ireland households and the rest were Catholic.
25 out of the 27 households stated that
farming was a chief occupation. Seamstresses were found in 7 households and
there was also a shoemaker, a carpenter, blacksmiths, a cook, a dressmaker, a
butcher amongst the rest of the inhabitants. There were of course servants and
scholars in many of the households.
Proximity to Malin and on the
main hard road to Carndonagh this was an area of better land. Irish was rapidly
disappearing from these areas where trade and commerce would be entirely
conducted in English. The subtle message was that if you wanted to ‘get on’ in
life then Irish was a hinderance at worst or an unneccesary luxury at best. It
was easy to stop using it altogether. English prosperity depended on you
knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing. Parents who were
Irish speakers felt themselves at a disadvantage in such a world and they did
not want their children to suffer the same disadvantage. Irish had no friends
and had to go.
DRUMNASKEA
There were 4
households in this townland, all Catholic. The surnames here were 3 McLaughlin
houses and one Molloy. One family of 8 were all Irish speakers whilst another
family of 8 had only one. Two of the latter were born in America. The other
households were all Irish speaking. The only occupation recorded here was
farming or else at school.
DRUNG
There were 4 households here on the shores of
Trá Bréagach. The surnames were Doherty (2), and one each for McLaughlin and Kelly.
All were involved in farming , two as farm labourers and 3 of the houses had
seamstresses.Irish was present in 3 of the 4 houses , one house having 5 Irish
speakers, one 2 Irish speakers and one house with a solitary Irish speaker. All
were Catholic.
GOOREY
The 7
households here faced on to Trá Bréagach bay.
All seven were involved in farming and the religious mix was 3
Presbyterian households and 4 Catholic households. One house had a seamstress
and one a dressmaker. The surnames of the heads of household were made up of 4
McLaughlin households and one each of Henderson, Starrett and Davis.
Irish speakers were to be found in all the
McLaughlin households, two of them having all members as Irish speakers with
three in each house an another had 5 Irish speakers out of six in the
household. Among this little group of Catholic families ,Irish speakers were a
clear majority in Goorey although English would be necessary for any dealings
with their Protestant neighbours.
KILLIN
All 5 households here were Presbyterian and
all were involved in farming. 2 houses had seamstresses and one had a drapers
assistant. The surnames here were Starrett (2), Stewart, McElhinney and
Colhoun.
No Irish was spoken in the townland
of Killen as far as the census records show.It is probable that some members of
the Protestant faith picked up some Irish in their day to day labours among
Irish speaking neighbours although this was unlikely to be encouraged.
LAG
Lag had one Catholic household with
Quigley as head and Doherty and McLaughlin members as servants. Farming was the
only occupation mentioned but they were so close to the sea that it must have
played some part in supplementing the diet if not the pocket. All in this house
were Irish speakers so that we can surmise the language was used in all daily
chores. Irish would have been spoken on the other side of Trá Bréagach on the
Isle of Doagh and Rasheeny at this time.
LOUGHERBRAGHY
This
townland was situated on the north coast near Glengad and contained 13
households, all of them Catholic. Heads of household surnames were; Doherty
(6), McGilloway (3), Gallagher (2) with one McLaughlin and one McDaid
household. 11 households here mention farming as an occupation with one wool
spinner and one seamstress being the only occupations in two of the houses.
There was a weaver in one house and seamstresses occurred in two other houses
as well.
11 of the 13 households here recorded
Irish speakers with most of them having two or more members able to speak Irish.
One Irish speaker in a family group would not have had much opportunity to use
the language apart from meeting other neighbours at the ‘céilí’ house for
playing cards, telling stories and singing the remaining Gaelic songs passed
down the generations. These last Gaelic speakers were witnesses to an old world
passing away before their eyes. There must have been an air of sadness at the
passing away of each of these last inheritors of Inis Eoghain culture. How
great our cultural loss is we will never know but centuries of tradition were
disappearing with these last speakers of Malin Irish.
MAGHERYARD
Magheryard
was also situated on the north coast where Irish was the strongest and the land
the poorest. There were 7 households here at the time and they were all
Catholic. The heads of household here were; Gallagher (3), McLaughlin (2) with
one Molloy and one Doherty household. Five of them mention farming as an
occupation with a farm labourer and a carpenter as the chief occupations of the
other two houses. 3 houses in total had
seamstresses and there was also a shoemaker here.
All houses had Irish speakers with none less than two members able to speak
the language. Two families had all members able to speak the language and in
the rest the pattern of the young not knowing the language had begun to appear.
People who were not very fluent in the English tongue would still have to use
lots of Irish words in their mode of speech for the simple reason that they
would not have had the vocabulary to name birds, fish and other things in their
environment. Any angler fishing out of Malin or Glengad waters even up till
recent years would have heard many Irish names of fish in common usage ;eg
Glaisín, Síleog, Gliomach, Partan etc. It would be good if this rich cultural
heritage was researched and preserved as part of the gift previous generations
were denied the right to pass on to their descendants of today.
NORRIRA
This townland also faces Trá Bréagach
and was inhabited by 11 households in 1901. Five of the households were
Presbyterian , two were Church of Ireland and the other four were Catholic. 7
of the houses here mention farming as an occupation. One house had three ‘masons’ and another
house had three carpenters. The parish priest of Malin lived here and was from
County Tyrone. He was an Irish speaker and he could either be one of the few
enthusiasts who learned Irish in Maynooth or he may have come from one of those
areas in Tyrone where Irish was still clinging on. There were 2 seamstresses in
one other house. The heads of household here had the following surnames; Boggs, Doherty, Colhoun, Harvey, Smyth,
Foulton, Dykes, Campbell, McCullagh, Callan and Houton.
Although Irish was only present in
three houses here, one house had 9 Irish speakers and 2 in another. It would be
interesting to know if the parish priest used his Irish for mass, confessions
or visiting the sick and elderly on his rounds.
TULLYBEG
This little townland as its’ name
implies (An Tulach Beag) was in an inland location. It had only 3 households,
Callaghan (2) and Monagle. All were involved in farming and no other
occupations are mentioned. Two of these families were Church of Ireland with
one Catholic family.
There were 4 Irish speakers out of a
family of 10.
TULLYMORE
This
slightly larger townland had 7 households, all Catholic. Six of the families
here were engaged in farming and there were seamstresses in 5 of the houses,
one house having 4 engaged in this activity. One family also had a shoemaker.
The numbers able to speak Irish here contrasts sharply with Tullybeg. One
household had 8 Irish speakers, 3 had six Irish speakers , one had 4 and
another 3. Irish was probably the most used language among the neighbouring
households in this little townland. But again, those who fell into the English
only category were the youngest and probably attending school to be ‘educated’.
The surnames for heads of household here
were; Monagle (4), Rudden (2) and Farren (1).
URBALREAGH
Urbalreagh is situated on the northern
side of the Malin peninsula. 17 households were recorded for the 1901 census.
15 of these families were engaged in farming as a household occupation. Only 3
of the households record members engaged as seamstresses. There were 2 national
school teachers, husband and wife, and their family in another house. Although
the husband indicates Fermanagh as his place of birth, he still had the Irish
language. Again, would they have used Irish in school in their official duties?
Two members of another household were blacksmiths.
The surnames occurred in these
numbers; McLaughlin (5), Doherty (3), Mooney (2) with one each for Monagle,
Logue, Irvine, McGilloway, Houtan, Marriott and Doyle. Two of the families
attended the Church of Ireland and the rest were Catholic.
Irish was present in 15 of the 17
households and all of them apart from one had two or more members able to speak
Irish. In fact we find 5 in one family,
6 in another, and 7,8 and 9 in other families here able to speak Irish. One
family had a grand-daughter born in America who also spoke Irish. Sheer numbers
here indicate that Urbalreagh was a fairly strong Gaeltacht area in 1901.
The
Irish language was to be found in other townlands on the north coast of Inis
Eoghain including the strong Gaeltacht areas around Urris and parts of
Clonmany. Further east an older generation were the last speakers but most of
the young and middle aged here were already living in the English speaking
world imposed on them by unrelenting pressures from every agency of the State.
In many cases the English spoken was greatly influenced by the language of the
previous generation and in literary circles this was to become known as
Anglo-Irish. Although it produced many writers, poets and playwrights of
national and international importance, the loss of Irish leaves us with feeling
that a whole world of song, story, folklore and local history went into the
clay of Inis Eoghain with the passing of this early C20th generation, our
grandparents in many cases. This loss is apparent in the dearth of local lore
in our present generations. Loss of language on its own is a tragedy but when
it is enforced it can be described only as cultural genocide.
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