Tydavnet
Tydavnet (Irish: Tigh Damhnata, meaning "house of Davnet") is a small village and townland in northern County Monaghan, Ireland, and also the name of the civil parish in which the village sits. Both the Church of Ireland and Catholic church have Tydavnet named as a parish and in both cases, the geographical area is almost identical. The village is located on the R186 regional road.
Tydavnet
Tigh Damhnata | |
---|---|
Village | |
Pub in Tydavnet | |
Tydavnet Location in Ireland | |
Coordinates: 54°17′45″N 7°00′56″W | |
Country | Ireland |
Province | Ulster |
County | County Monaghan |
Time zone | UTC+0 (WET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (IST (WEST)) |
Origins
The origin of the name is from that of a 6th-century Irish Saint Damnat, who is thought to have founded a church in the area (generally considered to have been located in the graveyard of the current village Catholic church). The village contains one of the three existing Catholic churches in the parish, the others located in Urbleshanny, near Scotstown and in Corlat. The Tydavnet Catholic church was originally erected in 1730, then rebuilt in the early 1900s and the interior renovated in the 1990s.
The village is linked with Geel in Belgium which also has a connection to Saint Dymphna. Tydavnet/Monaghan and Geel were officially twinned in 1992.
The Tydavnat gold discs, two Bronze Age gold discs dating from 2000 BC, are on permanent display in the National Museum of Ireland.
Transport
Local Link bus route M1 links the village with Monaghan several times daily Mondays to Saturdays inclusive.
Amenities
Tydavnet has two public houses - 'Jacks' and 'The Rock Inn'.
Tydavnet Community Centre, originally a National School, is now used to host local events, local elections and drama. The community centre is managed by Tydavnet Village Community Centre Ltd.
St. Dymphna's National School is the primary school situated on the north end of the village.
Community and sport
Tydavnet has also won Monaghan County Council's "Tidy Towns" competition.
The local Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) club is primarily involved in Gaelic football. Though the team represents the entire parish of Tydavnet the club is named after one of its villages - Scotstown.
Notable people
- Terry Cavanagh, creator of computer games such as VVVVVV and Don't Look Back, was born in Tydavnet.
- Caitriona Balfe, actress and model, known for the Outlander television series, grew up in Tydavnet.[1]
References
- "Monaghan native Caitriona Balfe tells why she made the right move". Irish Independent. 19 October 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
Balfe, who grew up in a family of seven in the tiny village of Tydavnet...