Lahinch
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lahinch An Leacht |
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WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates:
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| Irish grid reference R134877 |
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| Statistics | ||
| Province: | Munster | |
| County: | County Clare | |
| Population (2006) | 607 | |
| Website: www.lahinch.org | ||
Lahinch or Lehinch (Irish: An Leacht or An Leacht Uí Chonchubhair, meaning The Memorial cairn of O'Connor) is a village on Liscannor Bay, on the northwest coast of County Clare, in northern Munster, Republic of Ireland.
The village is located in the now obsolete Barony of Corcomroe which is coextensive with the territory of Corco Modhruadh Iartharach which forms the western portion of the túath of Corco Modhruadh which itself is coextensive with the Diocese of Kilfenora. The village is a widely known seaside resort and is home to the world famous Lahinch Golf Club. There is a beautiful one-mile beach at Lahinch.
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[edit] Name
Lahinch is the anglicised form of Leath Inse and not related to Leacht Uí Chonchubhair. Recorded as Leith Innse by the Four Masters, which is a variant of the Irish word for a peninsula leithinis (meaning "Half Island"), the name describes the village's location between the Inagh river and the sea. The ancient name for LahinchLeacht Uí Chonchubhair, which is still commonly used in Irish instead of the shortened official name An Leacht, refers to the memorial cairn (Leacht) marking the burial place of the one of the O’Connor chieftains, who were the ruling clan of the district of Corco Modhruadh Iartharach. Nowadays. The town name is mostly spelt "Lahinch", but a selection of road signs in the area use the spelling "Lehinch". Pronunciation of the placename is somewhat between the two spellings.
[edit] Sport
Lahinch is home to Lahinch Golf Club, a world renowned links golf course, founded in 1892, which has often been described as the "St. Andrew's" of Ireland. The original links was laid out by Old Tom Morris. Alister MacKenzie, who also designed Augusta National Golf Club, redesigned the links in 1927 for a fee of £2000.
Lahinch Golf Club is home to the South of Ireland Championship, an amateur golf tournament which began in 1895. Notable winners of the "South" include J.B. Carr in 1969, Darren Clarke in 1989, Paul McGinley in 1991 and Graeme McDowell in 2000. Ireland's Padraig Harrington has finished runner up in the "South" on two occasions. [1]
Of late Lahinch has become renowned as one of the foremost surfing locations in Ireland, as well as other watersports including kitesurfing and windsurfing. However Lahinch has some of the most dangerous currents. Another danger is weever fish which hide in the sand of the beach. In summer when the water is warm, it is quite common to be stung. The surf is so good it attracts thousands of surfers all year round.
Lahinch beach became famous on May 14, 2006, when 44 surfers managed to ride one small wave, a new world record. [2]
[edit] Transport
- Lahinch was formerly served by the narrow gauge West Clare Railway, which linked Kilrush, Kilkee and Miltown Malbay with Ennis. The railway station opened on 2 July 1887; the entire line (including Lahinch station) closed on 1 February 1961.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Lahinch Golf
- ^ [http://timesonline.typepad.com/surf_nation/2006/06/lahinch_surfing.html Times Online
- ^ Lahinch station. Railscot - Irish Railways. Retrieved on 2007-10-28.
