placenamesMonkstown
Baile na Manach
Monkstown’s historic civil parish encompassed a wider coastal landscape, connecting monastic property, fishing places and the development of Dunleary’s harbour.
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
- Baile na Manach · Irish · main form · validated name
- Monkstown · English · main form
Place & story
A parish wider than the village
Francis Elrington Ball’s 1902 history traced Monkstown parish through three divisions shown in the 1657 Down Survey: Monkstown, Newtown on the Strand and Bullock. These included places later known as Dunleary, Glasthule, Glenageary, Seapoint and Stradbrook. The civil parish therefore preserves an older geography extending beyond the present village centre. [2]
Newtown on the Strand
The Seapoint and Templehill lands formed part of Stillorgan before Raymond Carew granted them to Saint Mary’s Abbey in the early thirteenth century. Ball identified this addition to the abbey’s Carrickbrennan property as completing Monkstown’s civil parish. The former estate name survives in the historical designation Newtown on the Strand. [2]
Dunleary before the great harbour
The old Dunleary creek accommodated fishing vessels and occasional travellers crossing to England. A parliamentary grant in 1755 supported a new pier, but silting limited its usefulness. The much larger harbour project followed in the nineteenth century: its East Pier foundation stone was laid in 1817, with granite brought from Dalkey Hill. [2]
Building Saint Patrick’s
The construction contract for Saint Patrick’s Catholic Church was signed with Dublin builder Michael Meade on 30 December 1863. The agreed price was £5,450, excluding the spire. When the church opened in September 1866, the altar and pulpit were temporary and the spire remained unfinished, illustrating how worship began before every part of the building was complete. [3]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Monkstown. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Parish of Monkstown, A History of the County Dublin, volume 1, 1902 · Francis Elrington Ball
- History and Construction: Saint Patrick’s Church · Monkstown Parish; historical note assisted by Gerard Hyland
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2024-06-28. How this page was prepared.