placenamesKillinchy
Cill Dhuinsí
Killinchy’s religious history reaches from seventeenth-century Scottish settlement to a failed Atlantic voyage and surviving churches of different traditions.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Cill Dhuinsí · Irish · main form · validated name
- Killinchy · English · main form
Place & story
John Livingston and the Atlantic attempt
John Livingston came from Scotland to minister at Killinchy in 1630. His nonconformity brought him into conflict with the established church authorities, and he eventually lost the ministry. In 1636 he joined the unsuccessful Eagle Wing expedition to America, returning after the ship encountered severe Atlantic weather. The Ulster Historical Foundation later developed an exhibition for Killinchy’s Livingston Centre, connecting this local ministry with the family’s subsequent history on both sides of the ocean. [2] [3]
The Presbyterian church at Balloo
Killinchy Presbyterian Church stands near Balloo crossroads, west of the village. Built in 1714 through the efforts of the Reverend James Reid, it appears to have acquired its cross-shaped plan in 1739 as the congregation grew. The official building survey records later Victorian improvements, including heating, pews and the boundary wall. External stairs formerly gave access to the galleries; their removal in the mid-twentieth century changed how the building was entered. [4]
The parish church on the older site
The Church of Ireland parish church opened for worship in 1830 on the site of a medieval predecessor. This is a different building from the Presbyterian church at Balloo, and the earlier church on its site belonged to the landscape of Livingston’s ministry. In 1928 Killinchy became the name of a united parish when Kilmood and Tullynakill were joined to it, extending the institution’s reach beyond the village itself. [5] [2]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Down
- Barony
- Dufferin
- Civil parish
- Killinchy and Islands
- Coordinates
- 54.46592, -5.67080 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 1413246 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Killinchy. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- The Livingston Centre, Killinchy, County Down · Ulster Historical Foundation, exhibition creators
- Livingston, John · Dictionary of Irish Biography
- Killinchy Presbyterian Church, HB24/17/020 · Department for Communities, Historic Environment Division
- Killinchy, Kilmood and Tullynakill · Diocese of Down and Dromore
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2019-10-15. How this page was prepared.