Mayo's Lost Islands

The Inishkeas

Brian Dornan

The Inishkeas are low-lying islands a few miles off the coast of the Mullet peninsula in County Mayo. The past 4,000 years have seen several layers of settlement on the islands. This book focuses on the last 100 years in the life of the Inishkea community, ending in the 1930s. It uses documents, folklore records and reminiscences of islanders to examine all aspects of island life, including the land and its tenants; marriage patterns; the sea and fishing customs; housing, dress, religion, schooling and superstition; the whaling industry in the early twentieth century; place names and family names.