Baile na nGall is a
Gaeltachtis the Irish language word meaning an Irish-speaking region. In Ireland, the Gaeltacht, or an Ghaeltacht, refers individually to any, or collectively to all, of the districts where the government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant language, that is, the vernacular spoken at home...
villageA village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in the
Ard na CaithneArd na Caithne , meaning height of the arbutus or strawberry tree, known as Smerwick in English, in the heart of the Kerry Gaeltacht is one of the principal bays of Corca Dhuibhne. It is nestled at the foot of An Triúr Deirfiúr and Cnoc Bhréanainn, which at is the highest mountain in the Brandon...
region of the
Dingle PeninsulaThe Dingle Peninsula is the northernmost of the major peninsulae in County Kerry. Its ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of Ireland.-Name:...
of County Kerry, Ireland. As the
2003 Official Languages ActThe Official Languages Act 2003 is an Act of the Oireachtas of Ireland. The Official Languages Act sets out rules regarding use of the Irish language by public bodies, establishes the office of An Coimisinéir Teanga to monitor and enforce compliance by public bodies with the provisions of the...
revoked the status of the
English languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
name "Ballydavid", this community's only official name is "Baile na nGall".
The village is home to
Gallarus CastleGallarus Castle is a four-story rectangular tower house in Baile na nGall, County Kerry, Ireland and is notable as one of the few fortified structures preserved on the Dingle Peninsula....
, a 15th century
towerA tower is a tall structure, usually taller than it is wide, often by a significant margin. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires....
built by the
Knight of KerryKnight of Kerry, also called the Green Knight, is one of three Anglo-Irish hereditary knighthoods, all of which existed in Ireland since feudal times. The others are the White Knight and the Knight of Glin...
, the holder of a hereditary knighthood belonging to the
Geraldine DynastyThe surname FitzGerald is a translation of the French-Norman fils de Gérald, or son of Gerald . Variant spellings include Fitz-Gerald and the modern Fitzgerald. The name can also be used as two separate words Fitz Gerald...
. It is now an
Irish heritage siteThe Office of Public Works , together with the National Parks and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government are responsible for the heritage sites of Ireland...
and stands about 1 km away from the better known (and more historically significant)
Gallarus OratoryThe Gallarus Oratory is believed to be an early Christian church located on the Dingle Peninsula, County Kerry, Ireland...
.
RTÉ Raidió na GaeltachtaRTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta , abbreviated RnaG, is the Irish-language radio service of the public-service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann. The station is available on FM in Ireland and via satellite and on the Internet.- History :...
has a broadcast studio located in Baile na nGall. The radio tower is also a transmission site for
RTÉ Network LimitedRTÉ Transmission Network Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Raidió Teilifís Éireann which runs Ireland's principal terrestrial television and radio broadcast signal transmission networks. They operate 10 main sites, and over 100 smaller relays and transposers, which carry either television,...
.
Ballydavid Head, a "
MarilynA Marilyn is a mountain or hill in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland or Isle of Man with a relative height of at least 150 metres , regardless of absolute height or other merit...
" in this area, has a relative height of 247 metres.
See also
- List of towns and villages in Ireland