Mulhuddart
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mulhuddart (Mullach Eadrad in Irish) is a village in southwest County Fingal, Ireland, and is now effectively a suburb of Dublin city, being seven miles from the city centre. The River Tolka passes near the village, while the N3 dual carriageway now bypasses it. A kilometre or two away are the shops and housing of Blanchardstown, now also a suburb of Dublin. Mulhuddart essentially comprises a main street, which was the old Navan Road, on which there is a petrol station, a few shops and cafés and a school. The village has been bypassed by the new N3, however an underpass connects the main street to Blakestown on the other side of the motorway.
Located on the outskirts of the village is the Damastown Industrial Estate, one of Dublin's largest industrial estates which includes a large IBM Campus employing over 4,000 people. To the north is the village of Tyrrelstown encompasing a sizable housing development.
Contents |
[edit] Placenames in Mulhuddart
The origins and meaning of the name Mulhuddart are unknown. However a number of explanations are offered, the most likely being that the name came from the Irish "Mullach Eadartha" meaning "the hill of the milking place". In ancient Ireland, cows were driven out onto upland pastures during the summer months and special places were designated for their milking.
Many townland names surrounding the village owe their origins to Norman settlers who colonised the area after the Norman's capture of Dublin in 1170. Buzzardstown is so called after the family of William Bossard, and Tyrrellstown after a branch of the Tyrrells, who were created barons of Castleknock in 1173. The townland of Goddamendy is perhaps the townland in Ireland containing a prayer in its name. The story goes that when a priest arrived late for the anointing of a dying man, the dead man's relative cursed the priest, who replied "May God amend thee!"
The River Tolka is believed to owe its name to the Irish "tuillte" meaning floods. This is a particularly apt name for the river, which often bursts its banks in winter months.
[edit] The History of Mulhuddart
Today Mulhuddart is a busy suburb of Dublin, with much housing, retail and industrial development. As such it is often easy to ignore the once quiet village's long and interesting history.
There are a number of interesting antiquities and houses in the area. These include the ruins of the Church of Mary, Our Lady's Well, Mulhuddart National School and Parlickstown House. The Ordinance Survey of Ireland Sheet 50 map also shows a graveyard and burial ground at Clogran (Grid Reference: o 093 418). There are also many interesting stories and personalities from Irish History associated with Mulhuddart
Muluddart Church, the Church of Mary, stands above the village on a hill which up until recently, when housing development began to encroach, afforded fine views of the Wicklow Mountains. (The mountains are still there, just not as prominent)The church is stood on a curved mound, suggesting it was built on the site of an earlier church which was protected by an enclosure. The current ruins postdate the Anglo-Norman settlement of the area.
[edit] External link
- See also: List of towns in the Republic of Ireland
[edit] Sources
- Mulhuddart, A History of a Suburban Village-published as part of a larger book by the parish of Mulhuddart to commemorate the opening of its new Church in 1993.
