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'''Connacht''' or '''Connaught''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɒ|n|ɔː|t|,_|ˈ|k|ɒ|n|ə|(|x|)|t}} {{respell|KON|awt|,_|KON|ə(kh)t}};<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20190126220734/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/us/Connacht "Connacht"] (US) and {{Cite dictionary |url=http://www.lexico.com/definition/Connacht |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200211073158/https://www.lexico.com/definition/connacht |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-02-11 |title=Connacht |dictionary=[[Lexico]] UK English Dictionary |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|Connacht|access-date=January 11, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite American Heritage Dictionary|Connacht|access-date=11 October 2019}}</ref> {{lang-ga|Connachta}} {{IPA-ga|ˈkʊn̪ˠəxt̪ˠə|}} or {{lang|ga|Cúige Chonnacht}} {{IPA-ga|ˌkuːɟə ˈxʊn̪ˠəxt̪ˠ|}}), is one of the four [[provinces of Ireland]], in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major [[Gael]]ic kingdoms ([[Uí Fiachrach]], [[Uí Briúin]], [[Uí Maine]], [[Conmhaícne]], and [[Delbhna]]).
Between the reigns of [[Conchobar mac Taidg Mór]] (died 882) and his descendant, [[Aedh mac Ruaidri Ó Conchobair]] (reigned 1228–33), it became a kingdom under the rule of the [[Uí Briúin]] Aí dynasty, whose ruling [[sept]] adopted the surname Ua Conchobair. At its greatest extent, it incorporated the often independent [[Kingdom of Breifne]], as well as [[vassal]]age from the lordships of western [[Mide]] and west [[Leinster]]. Two of its greatest kings, [[Tairrdelbach Ua Conchobair]] (1088–1156) and his son [[Ruaidri Ua Conchobair]] (c. 1115–1198) greatly expanded the kingdom's dominance, so much so that both became [[High King of Ireland]].
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The Kingdom of Connacht collapsed in the 1230s because of civil war within the royal dynasty, which enabled widespread [[Hiberno-Norman]] settlement under [[Richard Mór de Burgh, 1st Baron of Connaught]], and his successors. The Norman colony in Connacht shrank from c. 1300 to c. 1360, with events such as the 1307 battle of Ahascragh (see [[Donnchad Muimnech Ó Cellaigh]]), the 1316 [[Second Battle of Athenry]] and the murder in June 1333 of [[William Donn de Burgh, 3rd Earl of Ulster]], all leading to Gaelic resurgence and colonial withdrawal to towns such as [[Ballinrobe]], [[Loughrea]], [[Athenry]], and [[Galway]]. Well into the 16th century, kingdoms such as Uí Maine and [[Tír Fhíacrach Múaidhe]] remained beyond English control, while many Norman families such as de Burgh, de Bermingham, de Exeter, de Staunton, became entirely [[Gaelicised]]. Only in the late 1500s, during the [[Tudor conquest of Ireland]], was Connacht [[shire]]d into its present [[Counties of Ireland|counties]].
Connacht's population was 1,418,859 in 1841.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The National Cyclopaedia of Useful Knowledge, Vol IV |date=1848 |publisher=Charles Knight |location=London |page=858}}</ref> Then came the [[Great Famine (Ireland)|Great Famine]] of the 1840s, which began a 120-year decline to under 400,000. The province has a population of just under 590,000 according to the preliminary results of the [[2022 census of Ireland|2022 census]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Geographic Changes |website=Central Statistics Office|date=23 June 2022 |url=https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-cpr/censusofpopulation2022-preliminaryresults/geographicchanges/|access-date=2023-01-03|language=en}}</ref>
British [[cultural imperialism]] was weaker in the west of Ireland, and Connacht today has the highest number of [[Irish language]] speakers among the four Irish provinces. Currently, the total percentage of people who consider themselves as Irish speakers in Connacht is 39.8% (more than 202,000 persons).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cso.ie/px/pxeirestat/Statire/SelectVarVal/saveselections.asp|title=Percentage of Irish Speakers and Non-Irish Speakers Aged 3 Years and Over 2011 to 2016 by Sex, County and City, Statistical Indicator and Census Year|website=Central Statistics Office|access-date=2018-10-31|archive-date=10 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170710165025/http://www.cso.ie/px/pxeirestat/Statire/SelectVarVal/saveselections.asp|url-status=live}}</ref> There are [[Gaeltacht]] areas in Counties [[County Galway|Galway]] and [[County Mayo|Mayo]].
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The name comes from the medieval ruling dynasty, the ''Connacht'', later [[Connachta]], whose name means "descendants of Conn", from the mythical king [[Conn of the Hundred Battles]]. The name of the province in the Irish language is ''Connachta''.<ref name=foclóir /> Originally ''Connacht'' was a singular [[collective noun]], but it came to be used only in the plural ''Connachta'', partly by analogy with plural names of other dynastic territories like [[Ulaid]] and [[Laigin]], and partly because the Connachta split into different branches.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=O'Rahilly|first=T. F.|year=1942|title=Notes, Mainly Etymological|journal=Ériu|publisher=Royal Irish Academy|volume=13|page=157|jstor=30006811}}</ref> Before the Connachta dynasty, the province (''cúige'', "fifth") was known as [[Cóiced Ol nEchmacht]]. In Modern Irish, the province is usually called ''Cúige Chonnacht'', "the Province of Connacht", where ''Chonnacht'' is plural [[genitive case]] with [[Irish initial mutations#Lenition|lenition]] of the ''C'' to ''Ch''.
The usual English spelling in Ireland since the [[Gaelic revival]] is ''Connacht'', the spelling of the disused Irish singular. The official English spelling during English and British rule was the [[anglicisation]]
== Geography and political divisions ==
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=== Largest settlements ===
{{Largest population centres
| country = Connacht in 2022
| stat_ref = <ref name="F1015">{{cite web|url=https://data.cso.ie/table/F1015|title=Census 2022 Profile 1 - Population Distribution and Movements|publisher=[[Central Statistics Office (Ireland)|CSO]]}}</ref>
| list_by_pop =
| div_name =
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| city_1 =Galway
| div_1 = County Galway
| pop_1 =
| img_1 = The Tribes of Galway, Eyre Square.jpg
| city_2 = Sligo
| div_2 = County Sligo
| pop_2 =
| img_2 = Sligo Harbour 2020.jpg
| city_3 = Castlebar
| div_3 = County Mayo
| pop_3 =
| img_3 = Castlebar large view from above.jpg
| city_4 = Ballina, County Mayo{{!}}Ballina
| div_4 = County Mayo
| pop_4 = 10,
| img_4 = Fly fishing, River Moy, Ballina, Mayo, Ireland.jpg
| city_5 = Tuam
| div_5 = County Galway
| pop_5 =
| city_6 =
| div_6 = County
| pop_6 = 6,
| city_7 =
| div_7 = County
| pop_7 =
| city_8 =
| div_8 = County
| pop_8 = 6,
▲| img_8 = Westport (2409320233).jpg
| city_9 = Loughrea
| div_9 = County Galway
| pop_9 =
| city_10 = Oranmore
| div_10 = County Galway
| pop_10 =
| img_10 = Oranmore Castle.jpg
| city_11 =
| div_11 = County
| pop_11 = 4,
| city_12 = Athenry
| div_12 = County Galway
| pop_12 = 4,
| city_13 =
| div_13 = County
| pop_13 =
| city_14 =
| div_14 = County Mayo
| pop_14 = 3,
| city_15 = Boyle, County Roscommon{{!}}Boyle
| div_15 = County Roscommon
| pop_15 = 2,915
| city_16 = Gort
| div_16 = County Galway
| pop_16 = 2,870
| city_17 = Ballyhaunis
| div_17 = County Mayo
| pop_17 = 2,773
| city_18 = Ballaghaderreen
| div_18 = County Roscommon
| pop_18 = 2,387
| city_19 = Castlerea
| div_19 = County Roscommon
| pop_19 = 2,348
| city_20 = Barna{{!}}Bearna
| div_20 = County Galway
| pop_20 = 2,336
}}
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By the reign of [[Áed in Gai Bernaig]] (1046–1067), Connacht's kings ruled much what is now the province. Yet the Ó Conchobair's contended for control with their cousins, the Ua Ruairc of [[Uí Briúin Bréifne]]. Four Ua Ruairc's achieved rule of the kingdom – [[Fergal Ua Ruairc]] (956–967), [[Art Uallach Ua Ruairc]] (1030–1046), [[Áed Ua Ruairc]] (1067–1087), and [[Domnall Ua Ruairc]] (1098–1102). In addition, the [[usurper]] [[Flaithbertaigh Ua Flaithbertaigh]] gained the kingship in 1092 by the expedient of blinding King [[Ruaidrí na Saide Buide]]. After 1102 the Ua Ruairc's and Ua Flaithbertaigh's were suborned and confined to their own kingdoms of Bréifne and [[Iar Connacht]]. From then until the death of the last king in 1474, the kingship was held exclusively by the Ó Conchobair's.{{Citation needed|date=February 2020}}
The single most substantial sub-kingdom in Connacht was [[Uí Maine]], which at
Though the Ó Ceallaigh's were never elevated to the provincial kingship, Uí Maine existed as a semi-independent kingdom both before and after the demise of the Connacht kingship.
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[[File:Rory O'Connor Stone Carving.jpg|thumb|Stone carving of Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair from [[Cong Abbey]] ]]
Under kings [[Tairrdelbach Ua Conchobair]] (1088–1156) and his son [[Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair]] (c. 1120–1198), Connacht became one of the five dominant kingdoms on the island. Tairrdelbach and Ruaidrí became the first men from west of the [[River Shannon|Shannon]] to gain the title ''Ard-Rí na hÉireann'' ([[High King of Ireland]]). In the latter's case, he was recognised all over the island in 1166 as ''Rí Éireann'', or [[King of Ireland]].
Tairrdelbach was highly innovative, building the first stone castles in Ireland, and more controversially, introducing the policy of [[primogeniture]] to a hostile Gaelic polity. Castles were built in the 1120s at [[Galway]] (where he based his [[Naval fleet|fleet]]), [[Dunmore, County Galway|Dunmore]], [[Sligo]] and [[Ballinasloe]], where he dug a new six-mile canal to divert the river Suck around the castle of Dun Ló. Churches, monasteries and dioceses were re-founded or created, works such as the Corpus [[Missal]], the High Cross of [[Tuam]] and the [[Cross of Cong]] were sponsored by him.
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A [[population growth|population explosion]] in the early 18th century was curbed by the [[Irish Famine (1740–1741)|Irish Famine]], which led to many deaths and some emigration. Its memory has been overshadowed by the [[Great Famine (Ireland)]] one hundred years later.
=== The Famine to World War
Connacht was the worst hit area in Ireland during the [[Great Famine (Ireland)|Great Famine]], in particular, counties Mayo and Roscommon. In the Census of 1841, the population of Connacht stood at 1,418,859, the highest ever recorded. By 1851, the population had fallen to 1,010,031 and would continue to decline until the late 20th century.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.libraryireland.com/articles/DeclinePopulationThom1861/index.php|title=1861 Census: Decline of the Population in Ireland (Famine, Disease and Emigration)|website=www.libraryireland.com|access-date=2020-02-09|archive-date=28 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200128064110/https://www.libraryireland.com/articles/DeclinePopulationThom1861/index.php|url-status=live}}</ref>
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=== Rugby union ===
Connacht is represented by [[Connacht Rugby]] in the [[
Connacht-based teams who have played in the [[All-Ireland League (rugby union)|All-Ireland League]] include [[Buccaneers RFC]], [[Galway Corinthians RFC]], [[Galwegians RFC]], [[Ballina RFC]] and [[Sligo RFC]].
=== Other sports ===
Some other sports are overseen by provincial bodies, including in association football, where the [[Connacht Football Association]] is the governing body for a number of [[Connacht Senior League (association football)|Connacht league]] and [[Connacht Senior Cup (association football)|cup competitions]]. Traditionally there have been two main senior men's teams from the province that compete on a national level, [[Galway United F.C.]] and [[Sligo Rovers F.C.]] Both clubs have won various domestic honours.
[[Cricket]] is a minor, but growing, sport within the province. The [[Connacht Cricket Union]], founded in 2010, is the governing body for cricket in the province.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/cricket-ireland-expands-into-the-west-1.1248946|title=Cricket Ireland expands into the west|date=2010-11-08|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|access-date=2018-10-26|archive-date=12 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412141453/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/cricket-ireland-expands-into-the-west-1.1248946|url-status=live}}</ref> There are cricket clubs based in Ballaghaderreen, Ballyhaunis, Galway, and Sligo. Connacht does not currently enter a team into the [[Cricket in Ireland#Domestic cricket|provincial competitions]]. == See also ==
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