About County Galway
County Galway is one of Ireland's largest and most varied counties, stretching from the lively university city on Galway Bay to the remote Connemara wilderness in the west, where Irish is still spoken as a first language. The county's landscape, bogland, mountain, sea inlet and island, is among the most dramatic in Ireland, and its cultural life is among the richest.
History
Galway city was one of the great medieval trading ports of western Europe, its wine trade with Spain and France making it remarkably prosperous. The Fourteen Tribes of Galway, the merchant families who ran the city, left their names across Irish-American communities. The west of the county, Connemara, remained one of the most purely Gaelic areas of Ireland, its people impoverished but culturally rich.
How Galway families left Ireland
Galway families left in catastrophic numbers during the Famine, Connemara was among the worst affected areas in all of Ireland. They departed through Galway port and through the nearby shores, many going directly to Boston and New York. The coffin ship crossing from Galway was among the most dangerous and deadly of all emigration routes.
Places worth visiting in County Galway
- Connemara National Park, the bogland and mountain wilderness at the heart of Irish-speaking Ireland
- Kylemore Abbey, the notable neo-Gothic castle turned Benedictine monastery
- The Aran Islands, three limestone islands at the mouth of Galway Bay, preserving ancient Irish culture
- Galway city, medieval lanes, Spanish Arch and the most lively traditional music scene in Ireland
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