Kilfinny (Irish: Cill na Fíonaí, meaning 'church of the wood')[1] is a civil parish and townland in County Limerick, Ireland.[2] It is close to Adare and Croom in the historical barony of Connello Upper.[3]

Kilfinny Castle, now in ruins, was besieged during the Irish Rebellion of 1641

Evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of fulacht fiadh, holy well and ringfort sites in the townlands of Commons, Ballynakill and Kilfinny.[4] Kilfinny Castle, an Elizabethan-era fortified house built on the site of an earlier tower house, was besieged during the Irish Rebellion of 1641.[5] The coordination of the castle's defence, during the siege, is historically attributed to Elizabeth Dowdall.[6][7]

The area's national (primary) school, known as Scoil Náisiúnta Ciarain or Kilfinny National School, had an enrollment of 53 pupils as of January 2024.[8] St Kieran's church is in the Roman Catholic parish of Croagh-Kilfinny in the Diocese of Limerick.[9] The current church is built on the site of an earlier late 18th-century chapel.[5] The local Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) club, Croagh-Kilfinny GAA, was founded in 1903.[10]

References

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  1. ^ "Cill na Fíonaí / Kilfinny". logainm.ie. Placenames Database of Ireland. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  2. ^ "Civil Parish of Kilfinny, Co. Limerick". townlands.ie. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  3. ^ Lewis, Samuel, ed. (1980). A History and Topography of Limerick City and County. A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland (1837). Dublin: Mercier Press. ISBN 0853425663. Kilfinny, a parish, is in the eastern division of the barony of Upper Connell[o], four miles south west from Adare, on the road from Croom
  4. ^ Record of Monuments and Places - County Limerick. Dublin: National Monuments and Historic Properties Service. 1997.
  5. ^ a b Bicentenary of Kilfinny Church, a local history (PDF), 1990, retrieved 12 April 2024 – via limerickcity.ie
  6. ^ Westropp, Thomas Johnson (1907). "The Principal Ancient Castles of the County Limerick: Part II Tudor Period". The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 37 (2): 162–163. JSTOR 25507604.
  7. ^ Dowd, Rev. James (1896). "Lady Dowdall's Defence of Kilfinny Castle, 1642 (Chapter XIV)". Round about the County of Limerick (PDF). Limerick: McKern & Sons. p. 240-252 – via limerickcity.ie.
  8. ^ "Directory Page - S N Ciarain". gov.ie. Department of Education. 22 January 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  9. ^ "Croagh-Kilfinny Parish". limerickdiocese.org. Diocese of Limerick. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  10. ^ "Croagh/Kilfinny GAA | Founded 1903". croaghkilfinnygaa.com. Retrieved 12 April 2024.

52°30′48″N 8°48′21″W / 52.5134°N 8.8057°W / 52.5134; -8.8057