Have you ever wondered how some of Derry's streets got their names and what those names mean?
By Kevin Mullan
Published 7th Oct 2022, 16:15 GMT
Updated 21st Mar 2023, 10:12 GMT
Since 1987 the Queen's University at Belfast has been developing the ‘Northern Ireland Place-Name Project’ and compiling an incredible database of names that sometimes date back over a thousand years.
In compiling the Derry city section the compendium draws heavily on John Bryson's seminal 'Derry's Streets'. Other sources, including George Vaughan Sampson's map of Co. Derry of 1814, are also cited.
Some of the meanings suggested in the database are open to interpretation and debate but make for fascinating reading.
Based in Queen’s University, the project works in collaboration with Land and Property Services in the Department of Finance in providing a free online database of our local place-names (www.placenamesni.org. This is accompanied by an interactive searchable map of historical names (townlands, parishes, baronies and counties) which is provided by LPS.
1. Heather Road (Bóthar an Fhraoigh Thoir). Named after the plant rather than the girls' name according to Bryson. There are two Heather Roads, one in Galliagh and one in Creevagh Lower/Upper (pictured).
Heather Road (Bóthar an Fhraoigh Thoir). Named after the plant rather than the girls' name according to Bryson. There are two Heather Roads, one in Galliagh and one in Creevagh Lower/Upper (pictured). Photo: Supplied
3. Kingsfort (Corrán Dhún Chonchobhair). There is King's Fort, a fine example of a rath in Kilhoyle townland, Balteagh parish, Co. Derry, which is likely to be the origin of this street name. "At Drumsurn near Limavady, one of the best preserved raths in Ulster stands, with a deep moat on the upper side and rills on the rath." (limavadytowns.com). The fort is mentioned several times in the Ordnance Survey Memoirs. "The earthen forts here are numerous. One of these, in the townland of Kilhoyle, is commonly called the King's Fort and by those speaking Irish Dún-chonchobhair. This fort was not improbably the seat of the family of O'Conor of Glen Given, from whose ancestor Kian the barony of Keenaght took its name." (OSM ix 19). It has been assumed the street is named after King's Fort in Balteagh, though it is possible it is named after a different fort, perhaps more local.
Kingsfort (Corrán Dhún Chonchobhair). There is King's Fort, a fine example of a rath in Kilhoyle townland, Balteagh parish, Co. Derry, which is likely to be the origin of this street name. "At Drumsurn near Limavady, one of the best preserved raths in Ulster stands, with a deep moat on the upper side and rills on the rath." (limavadytowns.com). The fort is mentioned several times in the Ordnance Survey Memoirs. "The earthen forts here are numerous. One of these, in the townland of Kilhoyle, is commonly called the King's Fort and by those speaking Irish Dún-chonchobhair. This fort was not improbably the seat of the family of O'Conor of Glen Given, from whose ancestor Kian the barony of Keenaght took its name." (OSM ix 19). It has been assumed the street is named after King's Fort in Balteagh, though it is possible it is named after a different fort, perhaps more local. Photo: Supplied