Mizen Head ()
is traditionally regarded as the
most southerly point of mainland
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
although
Brow Head
Brow Head () is the most southerly point of mainland Ireland. It is in the rural townland of Mallavoge near Crookhaven in County Cork, Ireland. It is 3.8 km east of Mizen Head at latitude 51.43ºN.
History
Ptolemy's ''Geography'' (2nd cen ...
is the actual southernmost point. It is at the end of the
Mizen Peninsula Mizen (not to be confused with ) may refer to:
* Mizen Head, one of the extreme points of the island of Ireland
* Mizen potato, a potato variety
* Jimmy Mizen
Jimmy may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Jimmy'' (2008 f ...
in the district of
Carbery Carbery or Carbury may refer to:
;People:
* Brian Carbury (1918–1961), New Zealand fighter ace
* Douglas Carbery (1894–1959), British soldier and airman
* Ethna Carbery (1864–1902), Irish writer
* James Joseph Carbery (1823–1887), Irish ...
in
County Cork
County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...
.
Geography
Mizen Head is one of the
extreme points of the island of Ireland and is a major tourist attraction, noted for its dramatic cliff scenery. One of the main transatlantic shipping routes passes close by to the south, and Mizen Head was, for many seafarers, the first (or last) sight of Europe.
The tip of the peninsula is almost an island, cut off by a deep chasm, now spanned by a bridge; this gives access to an old
signal station
A signal station is a form of Navigational aid, Aids to Navigation that is defined by the International Hydrographic Organization, IHO simply as "A signal station is a place on shore from which signals are made to ships at sea". While this broad de ...
, a
weather station
A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasting, weather forecasts and to study the weather and clima ...
, and a
lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Ligh ...
. The signal station, once permanently staffed, is now a museum housing displays relating to the site's strategic significance for transatlantic shipping and communications, including the pioneering efforts of
Guglielmo Marconi
Guglielmo Giovanni Maria Marconi, 1st Marquess of Marconi ( ; ; 25 April 1874 – 20 July 1937) was an Italian electrical engineer, inventor, and politician known for his creation of a practical radio wave-based Wireless telegraphy, wireless tel ...
. The "99 steps" which formed part of the original access route have been supplemented by a series of paths and viewing platforms, and a full range of visitor facilities is available at the entrance to the site. The villages of
Ballydehob
Ballydehob () is a coastal village in the southwest of County Cork, Ireland. It is 13 km west of Skibbereen and 13 km south of Bantry.
History
During the Bronze Age (2200-600 B.C.), copper was mined on Mount Gabriel, just west of the ...
,
Crookhaven
Crookhaven () is a village in County Cork, Ireland, on the most southwestern tip of the island of Ireland. With an out-of-season population of about sixty, it swells in the summer season to about four hundred, when the occupants of the seasonal ...
,
Goleen
Goleen () is a small rural village in County Cork on the south-western tip of Ireland. Farming, tourism and construction work are among the main occupations of the local people.
Location
Goleen is located towards the south-western end of the ...
, and
Schull
Schull or Skull ( ; or ''Scoil Mhuire'', meaning "Mary's School") is a town on the south-west coast of County Cork in Ireland.
Located on the southwest coast of Ireland in the Municipal district (Ireland), municipal district of West Cork, ...
are located on the peninsula to the east.
Nearby
Brow Head
Brow Head () is the most southerly point of mainland Ireland. It is in the rural townland of Mallavoge near Crookhaven in County Cork, Ireland. It is 3.8 km east of Mizen Head at latitude 51.43ºN.
History
Ptolemy's ''Geography'' (2nd cen ...
, also on the Mizen Peninsula and a short distance to the east, is several metres further south than Mizen Head. Nevertheless, geography books have long measured the length of Ireland, diagonally northeast-to-southwest, as "from
Fair Head
Fair Head or Benmore (; The Great Cliff) is a long, high, mountain cliff, close to the sea, at the north-eastern corner of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The cliff's sheer and vertical high dolerite rock face is shaped into distinctive vert ...
to Mizen Head" or north-to-south "from
Malin Head
Malin Head () is the Extreme points of Ireland, most northerly point of mainland Ireland, located in the townland of Ardmalin on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal. The head's northernmost point is called Dunalderagh at latitude 55.38ºN ...
to Mizen Head".
History
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; , ; ; – 160s/170s AD) was a Greco-Roman mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were important to later Byzantine science, Byzant ...
's ''
Geography
Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...
'' (2nd century AD) referred to the point as the "southern headland" ().
The headland's Irish name, ''Carn Uí Néid'', means "
cairn
A cairn is a human-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the (plural ).
Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, t ...
of
Néid's grandson". This refers to
Balor
In Irish mythology, Balor or Balar was a leader of the Fomorians, a group of malevolent supernatural beings, and considered the most formidable. He is often described as a giant with a large eye that wreaks destruction when opened. Balor takes ...
, a leader of the
Fomorians
The Fomorians or Fomori (, Modern ) are a supernatural race in Irish mythology, who are often portrayed as hostile and monstrous beings. Originally they were said to come from under the sea or the earth. Later, they were portrayed as sea raider ...
in
Irish mythology
Irish mythology is the body of myths indigenous to the island of Ireland. It was originally Oral tradition, passed down orally in the Prehistoric Ireland, prehistoric era. In the History of Ireland (795–1169), early medieval era, myths were ...
. In a tale dating from at least the 12th century, the god
Lugh
Lugh or Lug (; ) is a figure in Irish mythology. A member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, a group of supernatural beings, Lugh is portrayed as a warrior, a king, a master craftsman and a saviour.Olmsted, Garrett. ''The Gods of the Celts and the I ...
defeats Balor in combat and chases him to Mizen Head. There, Lugh beheads Balor and sets the severed head on a large rock, which then shatters.
Gallery
Image:MizenHead IMG 2699 (2).jpg , View of the coast
Image:Feb1987. Mizen Head Bridge aka Droichead Cheann Mizen, County Cork, Ireland 01.jpg, Mizen Head Bridge in 1987
Image:Feb1987. Mizen Head Bridge aka Droichead Cheann Mizen, County Cork, Ireland 09.jpg, Foggy weather in 1987
See also
*
Carbery's Hundred Isles
Carbery's Hundred Isles are the islands along the coast of the Baronies of Carbery West and Carbery East, successors to the medieval Barony of Carbery, on the Celtic Sea, in the far south-west of Ireland. It is a term which includes those island ...
*
Malin to Mizen
*
Mount Gabriel
Mount Gabriel () is a mountain on the Mizen Peninsula immediately to the north of the town of Schull in County Cork, Cork, Ireland. The Gaelic name, ''Cnoc Osta'' translates as 'hill of the encampment'.
Mount Gabriel is 407m high and is th ...
*
Wild Atlantic Way
The Wild Atlantic Way () is a Scenic route, tourism trail on the west coast, and on parts of the north and south coasts, of Ireland. The 2,500 km (1,553 mile) driving route passes through nine Counties of Ireland, counties and three Provinces ...
References
Sources
*Mizen Journal, Archaeology Paddy O'Leary, No 11, 2003 ISSN 1649-203X
*''Archaeological Inventory of
County Cork
County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...
'', Vol 1
West Cork
West Cork () is a tourist region and municipal district in County Cork, Ireland. As a municipal district, West Cork falls within the administrative area of Cork County Council, and includes the towns of Bantry, Castletownbere, Clonakilty, Du ...
, Office of Public Works, 1992
*''BHAS Journal'' vol 2 p.106-119,
Townlands
A townland (; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a traditional small land division used in Ireland and in the Outer Hebrides, Western Isles of Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Middle Ages, medieval Gael ...
Donal Fitzgerald ISSN 0791-6612
*Northside of the Mizen, General reading, Patrick McCarthy & Richard Hawkes
External links
Mizen Head Pictures and Travel Guide
{{Irish lighthouses
Headlands of County Cork
Tourist attractions in County Cork