There are two main hypotheses for the origins of the county name "Clare". One is that the name is derived fromThomas de Clare,[6] an Anglo-Norman peer and soldier from thede Clare family, who was deeply embroiled in local politics and fighting in the 1270s and 1280 and had acquired land in Kilkenny and Thomond that included the Castle of Clare. In 1590 County Clare was named after the castle, which is in a strategic location. An alternative hypothesis is that the county nameClare comes from the settlement of Clare (nowClarecastle), whose Irish nameClár (plank bridge) refers to a crossing over theRiver Fergus.[7][8][9]
Clare is north-west of theRiver Shannon covering a total area of 3,450 square kilometres (1,330 sq mi).[10] Clare is the seventh largest of Ireland's 32 traditional counties in area and the 19th largest in terms of population. It is bordered by two counties in Munster and one county in Connacht:County Limerick to the south,County Tipperary to the east, andCounty Galway to the north. Clare's nickname isthe Banner County.[11]
Bodies of water define much of the physical boundaries of Clare. To the south-east is theRiver Shannon, Ireland's longest river, and to the south is theShannon Estuary. The border to the north-east is defined byLough Derg which is the third-largest lake in Ireland. To the west is the Atlantic Ocean, and to the north isGalway Bay.Loop Head (Irish: Ceann Léime, meaning 'leap head') is the county's westernmost point of land.
County Clare containsThe Burren, a uniquekarst region, which contains rare flowers and fauna. At the western edge of The Burren, facing the Atlantic Ocean, are theCliffs of Moher. The highest point in County Clare isMoylussa, 532 m (1,745 ft), in theSlieve Bernagh[a] range in the east of the county.
The following islands lie off the coast of the county:
County Clare hosts the oldest-known evidence of human activity in Ireland. The patella of a bear, which was subject to butchering close to the time of death, was found in theAlice and Gwendoline Cave, near Edenvale House,Clarecastle. The bone features a number of linear-cut marks, and has been dated to circa 10,500 BC, from thePaleolithic era. This discovery, publicized in 2017, pushed back Ireland's occupation by 2,500 years—what was previously regarded as the oldest site of occupation was theMesolithic site ofMount Sandel,County Londonderry. This bear bone was discovered in 1903 during an archaeological excavation but was not studied until over a century later.[12]
There was aNeolithic civilization in the Clare area—the name of the peoples is unknown, but thePrehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancientdolmen: single-chambermegalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or moreupright stones. Clare is one of the richest places in Ireland for these tombs. The most noted one is inThe Burren area; it is known asPoulnabrone dolmen, which translates to "hole of sorrows".[13] The remains of the people inside the tomb have been excavated and dated to 3800 BC.[13]
Ptolemy created a map of Ireland in hisGeographia with information dating from 100 AD; it is the oldest written account of the island that includes geographical features.[14] Within his map, Ptolemy names theGaelic tribes inhabiting it and the areas in which they resided; in the area of Clare, he identified a tribe known as theGangani.[15] Historians have found the tribes on the west of Ireland the most difficult to identify with known peoples; however, historiansWilliam Camden andCharles O'Conor speculated a possible connection between the Gangani and theConcani,[16][17][18] one of the eleven tribes in the confederacy of theCantabri in the northern part of theIberian Peninsula.[19]
Fianna Fáil lost its overall majority on the council in 2004.[22] As of the2009 local election, Fianna Fáil is the largest party, with 13 of the 28 seats.
The county seat is at Ennis, which also serves as a major regional hub for County Clare. Among its emergency services, it contains theEnnis Hospital, the HQ of the Clare Divisional Garda, the Clare Fire Brigade and Civil Defence.
Since 1921, County Clare has been represented inDáil Éireann by the constituency ofClare, which currently has fourTeachtaí Dála (TDs). Since 2020, the whole of the county has been in the constituency.[25] At various times, portions of County Clare have been in other constituencies:Clare–South Galway (1969–1977),Galway West (1977–1981),Limerick East (1992–2011) andLimerick City (2011–2020).
The population of Clare was 127,419 people at the 2022 census.[3] The main urban areas areEnnis with a population of 27,923 andShannon with 10,256.
The demographic profile for Clare in general is fairly young: 22% are under age 14, while 12% are over 65, compared to the national average of 20% and 11%, respectively.[28] There is a slightly higher percentage of males with 50.5%, while females number 49.5%.[29][needs update]
English is the main language spoken in Clare. The vast majority of the population areIrish people, accounting for 86%. Most immigrants are Europeans, totalling an additional 7,520; there is also a small African minority of 1,124 people, while other ethnic groups are very small in number.[30][needs update]
In addition, Clare had a largediaspora due to vast emigration during the 19th century. There are millions of people around the world who can trace their family background to Clare; such descendants are found mostly in North America, Great Britain, Australia, South Africa, Argentina and New Zealand.[31] Many people from the Irish diaspora visit the Clare area to trace their family roots and background.[31]
The great majority of the population followChristianity; at least 92% of the people in the area polled as part of theIreland Census 2006 identified as Christians.[34] There are numerousabbeys and priories in Clare. Some of the ruins of such structures, such asScattery Island, Bishop's Island, and Drumcliff monasteries, are ancient, dating to the sixth century when Christianity was first introduced to Ireland. The former was founded bySaint Senan, who was born locally near Kilrush in 488 and is counted amongst theTwelve Apostles of Ireland.[35]
As part of the local council's architectural conservation project, around eighty Christian churches have been designated as protected structures. Among the more notable structures are the ruins ofCorcomroe Abbey,Quin Abbey andDysert O'Dea Monastery.[39]
The largest religious minority is theChurch of Ireland, which is part of theAnglican Communion. It has just under 2,000 adherents[34] in Clare. The county is part of theDiocese of Limerick and Killaloe, one of the three cathedrals of the diocese being St Flannan's Cathedral in Killaloe.[40] Other religious communities in Clare are very small in comparison. In 2016, about 11% of the population reported no religion. Up from 5% in 2011[41]
The last remaining native speaker in Stonehall, next toShannon, was alive in the 1930s; in the 1870s, the region had been entirely Irish speaking.[42]
By the time of the secondCoimisiún na Gaeltachta in 1956, the decline in the number of Gaelic speakers had been such that West Clare was removed from the list. It remained covered by the Gaeltacht (Housing) Acts until 2001.
Close geographic proximity to theAran Islands (which were once part ofThomond) and local trade with fishermen from there meant that the language was used by residents ofFanore,Murroogh,Doolin andQuilty more than in other places. The last native Clare Irish speaker, theseanchaí Paddy Pháraic Mhíchíl Ó Sionáin (Shannon) of Fisherstreet, Doolin, died in the early 1990s.
In the early 21st century, the pressure groupCoiste Forbartha Gaeltachta Chontae an Chláir sought to restore the official status of West Clare as a Gaeltacht area.[43][44] They are encouraging immersion classes to revive use of the language.
Andy Irvine has written two songs celebrating County Clare: one is "West Coast of Clare" (recorded withPlanxty in 1973), in which he mentionsSpanish Point and Milltown Malbay. The other is "My Heart's Tonight in Ireland" (recorded on his solo albumRain on the Roof in 1996, and again onChanging Trains in 2005), in which he mentions several towns and villages in County Clare: Milltown Malbay,Scariff,Kilrush,Sixmilebridge, Kilkishen,Lahinch,Ennistymon,Liscannor andKilkee, and also makes two references to the music of Willie Clancy:
In the town of Scarriff the sun was shining in the sky When Willie Clancy played his pipes and the tears welled in my eyes Many years have passed and gone since the time we had there But my heart's tonight in Ireland in the sweet County Clare. ... Lahinch and Ennistymon, Liscannor and Kilkee But best of all was Milltown when the music flowed so free Willie Clancy and the County Clare I'm ever in your debt For the sights and sounds of yesterday are shining memories yet.
Milltown Malbay is home to Oidhreacht an Chlair, an institute for higher education in all aspects of Irish tradition, history and literature.[45]
TheClarehurling team has one of the best records of success in the country in recent years with many cups such as theLiam MacCarthy Cup having been won in 1914, 1995, 1997, 2013, and 2024, and also finalists in 2002. Clare won the Munster Final in football in 1992 beating Kerry. There is a strongGaelic Athletic Association (GAA) presence in County Clare with the founder of the GAA,Michael Cusack, having been born inCarron which is situated in the heart ofThe Burren in North Clare.
Clare is served by twonational primary roads—a classification referring to the major routes between major urban centresin Ireland.[46] This includes theN18 connectingLimerick toGalway, which passes through Ennis and by route of theN19—Shannon.[46] These two roads are part of the wider Western and Southern Corridor connecting many of the major settlements right across the island in these areas. There are also some significantnational secondary roads—across the coast, stretching fromBallyvaughan, throughEnnistymon andKilkee, before arriving atKilrush is theN67.[46] In addition to this theN68 connects Kilrush to Ennis, while Ennis is connected to Ennistymon via theN85.[46]
Mainland public transport is mostly limited to buses ran byIrish Government owned companyBus Éireann; there are around 25 buses running frequent routes which pass through the majority of large settlements in Clare.[47] Clare Bus, runs a limited number of "accessible buslines".[48] TheEnnis railway station operated by government-ownedIarnród Éireann is the most significant railway station in Clare today; it was opened on 2 July 1859.[citation needed] By route ofLimerick the trains run from Ennis toDublin and it generally takes 3 hours to complete the journey.[49][50] There was previously a far more extensive local railway network in Clare, laid while part of the United Kingdom, theWest Clare Railway was in existence from its opening in 1887 byCharles Stewart Parnell until 1961 covering much of the county.[51] It was quite inefficient, however, leadingPercy French to write the songAre Ye Right There Michael? about his experience. Much of it was dug up and dismantled by the Irish government from the 1950s to the 1970s after being deemed uneconomic; however, there remains localadvocacy groups who wish to conserve and restore parts of it.[52]
The third-busiest airport in Ireland is located in Clare with theShannon Airport, which officially opened in 1945.[53] Along withDublin Airport andCork Airport it is one of the three primary airports in the country, handling 3.62 million passengers in 2007. Shannon was the first airport in Ireland to receivetransatlantic flights.[53]Ryanair is the main airline handling flights with Great Britain and Continental European countries such as Spain, France and Germany as the primary destinations.[54] Much traffic from the United States is received, whichAer Lingus mostly handles; it is sometimes used as a military stopover which has caused some controversy in the country,[55] but nonetheless has generated significant revenue for the airport.[56] There are some localferry services as much of the county is surrounded by water; there is one from Killimer toTarbert Island in Kerry[57] and also fromDoolin to theAran Islands ofInisheer andInishmore.[58]
^Briggs, Keith (2009)."Clare, Clere, and Clères"(PDF).Journal of the English Place-name Society (41): 14.Archived(PDF) from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved4 March 2015.
^Falkiner, Caesar Litton (1902). "The Counties of Ireland: An Historical Sketch of Their Origin, Constitution, and Gradual Delimitation (1902–1904)".Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, Section C.24:184–5.JSTOR25502712.
^Spellissy, Sean (1 January 2003).A History of County Clare. Gill & Macmillan. p. 39.ISBN9780717134601.
^Mark Hennessy and Michael O'Regan (15 June 2004)."'A very bad performance' -Ahern".The Irish Times.Archived from the original on 11 October 2012. Retrieved20 February 2008.
^European Parliament Elections (Amendment) Act 2019, s. 7: Substitution of Third Schedule to Principal Act (No. 7 of 2019, s. 7). Enacted on 12 March 2019. Act of theOireachtas. Retrieved fromIrish Statute Book on 21 May 2022.
^Gratton-Flood, W.H. (1 March 1907)."The Twelve Apostles of Erin".The Catholic Encyclopedia.I. New York: Robert Appleton Company.Archived from the original on 7 April 2017. Retrieved9 February 2008.
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