A causewayed enclosure discovered in 2003 at Maugheraboy is one of the earliest indications ofNeolithic farming activity on theCúil Irra Peninsula.[4] The nearby megalithic cemetery ofCarrowmore forms part of a huge complex ofStone Age remains connectingCarrowkeel in south Sligo to theOx Mountains, to the Cuil Irra Peninsula, where the passage tomb named after the legendaryQueen Maeve,Miosgán Médhbh, dominates the western skyline from the crest ofKnocknarea Mountain.
Under theLocal Government (Ireland) Act 1898, County Sligo was divided into therural districts of Boyle No. 2, Dromore West, Sligo, and Tobercurry, and the urban district ofSligo.[8] Unlike most urban districts, Sligo had retained its borough corporation. The rural districts were abolished in 1925.[9] Sligo Borough Corporation became a borough council in 2002,[10] before being abolished in 2014 in common with all borough and town councils in Ireland.[11]
This coat of arms was adopted bySligo County Council in 1980. The design on the black shield, which shows an open book on which there is a Celtic Cross and a red rose, represents collectively the literary and cultural history of Sligo. These refer to such early works as the Books of Ballymote and Lecan, while the rose was a significant theme in the poetry of W. B. Yeats. The escallop shells sprinkled on the shield refer to the origin of the word Sligeach – "a place abounding in shells". The boar's head refers to the "wild boar of Benbulben" in the Diarmuid and Gráinne myth. The colour scheme of the crest incorporates theSligo GAA colours of black and white.[13]
County Sligo is the setting for a large number of the texts in the Mythological Cycles. The story of Diarmad and Grainne has its final act played out on Ben Bulben. The Second Battle of Moytirra is associated with Moytirra in South County Sligo. Other texts include Bruidean Ceise Corann, set on Keash Mountain. The rich array of megalithic monuments in the area has been an inspiration to artists and writers such asSir Samuel Ferguson. The poet andNobel laureateW. B. Yeats (1865–1939) spent much of his childhood in northern Sligo and the county's landscapes (particularly the Isle of Innisfree, in Lough Gill) were the inspiration for much of his poetry. Yeats said, "the place that has really influenced my life most is Sligo". He is buried in North County Sligo, "Under Ben Bulben", inDrumcliff. W. B. Yeats's brotherJack, a painter, also was inspired by the Sligo landscape.
Sligo countryside andBen Bulben seen in the background
Sligo is the 22nd largest of Ireland's 32 counties in area and the 27th largest in terms of population.[15] It is the fourth largest of Connacht's 5 counties in size and third largest in terms of population. The County bordersCounty Mayo to the west,County Roscommon to the south and south-east andCounty Leitrim to the northeast.
^Danaher, E. (2007) Monumental beginnings: The archaeology of the N4 Sligo Inner Relief Road. NRA Scheme Monograph 1. Dublin: The National Roads Authority
^"Login".irishgeography.ie.Archived from the original on 23 December 2019. Retrieved20 June 2019.
^County of Sligo Local Electoral Areas and Municipal Districts Order 2018 (S.I. No. 632 of 2018). Signed on 19 December 2018. Statutory Instrument of theGovernment of Ireland. Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved fromIrish Statute Book on 31 October 2022.
^Lee, J. J. (1981). "On the accuracy of thePre-famine Irish censuses". In Goldstrom, J. M.; Clarkson, L. A. (eds.).Irish Population, Economy, and Society: Essays in Honour of the Late K. H. Connell. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press.
