Two-Mile Borris

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Two-Mile Borris (Buirios Leith in Irish) is a small village in County Tipperary, Ireland. The town is located on the N75 road at the junction with the Ballyduff Road, 12 km (7.5 miles) from Thurles town centre and 3 km (2 miles) from the N8 Dublin-Cork road. It has a primary school, post office, Catholic church, two pubs and two shops. There are a number of housing estates and the population (728 people, according to the census of 2002) is quickly growing due to improved transport links and economic growth in nearby Thurles.

The townland makes up an area of 23.91 square kilometres (Ref:[1]), most of which is given over to agricultural use. The village is located right at the edge of the Golden Vale and the Bog of Allen and so the quality of the land varies around the area, with most of the best farming land located to the west of the village. Parts of the land to the east are too boggy to be used, even for extracting turf. The village proper is bounded on the west by the Black River, a tributary of River Drish, which goes on to join River Suir. The approach to the village is dominated by a Norman tower-house.

As to the meaning of the place name, numerous theories abound. The name Borris is generally believed to have come from the Norman word for a borough, district or stronghold. The use of Leigh in the placename would seem to be related to the monastic settlement of Liathmore-Mochoemóg in Leigh, about a mile and a half to the north-east of the village. Those who prefer the older name of Buirgheas Dhá Mhíle say that the name refers to King Mile, ancestor of Niall of the Nine Hostages and numerous Irish Kings and heroes. A more modest definition by Douglas Adams in his book The Meaning of Liff states:

Twomileborris [noun] : A popular East European game in which the first person to reach the front of the meat queue wins, and the losers have to forfeit their bath plugs.