A road-sign in County Antrim, noting that this part of the road lies within Teeshan townland

A (rare) townland boundary marker

A townland or bally (Irish: Baile Fearainn) is a small geographical division of land used in Ireland. The townland system is of Gaelic origin, pre-dating the Normans,^[1][2][3][4] with most townlands believed to pre-date the Norman invasion and many retaining their Gaelic names.^[2] Some townland names and boundaries however derive from Norman manors, plantation divisions, or later creations of the Ordnance Survey.^[5][6] There are currently 61,402 named townlands in Ireland, covering the whole island.^[7]

Background[link]

In Ireland, a townland is the smallest administrative division of land.^[8] Whilst the concept of townlands is based on the Gaelic system of land division, it was in the 1600s that they became mapped and defined by the English administration for the purpose of portioning the land for investors or grants.^[8] The first official evidence of the existence of this Gaelic land division system can be found in church records from before the 12th century.^[9]

Etymology[link]

The term "townland" in English is derived from the Old English word tun, similar to the Irish word tuath, denoting an enclosure.^[10] The term describes the smallest units of land division in Ireland. These are based upon various different kinds of Gaelic land division, many of which had their own names.

The term baile, anglicised as "bally", is the most dominant element used in Irish townland names.^[11] Whilst today the term "bally" denotes a town or urban settlement, its precise meaning in ancient Ireland is unclear, as towns had no place in Gaelic social organisation.^[11] The modern Irish term for a townland is baile fearainn (plural: balite fearainn). The term fearainn means "land, territory, quarter"—from a Proto-Indo-European root *wer- which is also related to the English word ware, a valuable commodity.^{[citation needed]}

The Normans despite not having a serious influence on townland names adapted some of them for their own use, possibly seeing a similarity between the Gaelic baile and the Norman bailey; both of which meant a settlement.^[12]

Historical land divisions and etymology[link]

Throughout most of Ulster, townlands were known as "ballyboes" (Irish: baile bó, meaning "cow land"^[13]),^[14] and represented an area of pastoral economic value.^[13] In County Cavan, similar units were called "polls", and in counties Fermangh and Monaghan they were known as "tates" or "taths".^[11][13][14] These names appear to be of English origin, however naturalised long before the 1600s.^[13] In modern townland names, the prefix pol- is widely found throughout western Ireland, with "hole" or "hollow" its accepted meaning.^[13] In County Cavan however (which contains over half of all townlands in Ulster with the pol- prefix) some of those should be translated as meaning "the poll of...".^[13] In regard to tates, the modern distribution of townlands with the prefix tat- is confined almost exclusively to the dicoese of Clogher (which covers counties Fermanagh, Monaghan, and Clogher barony in County Tyrone).,^[13] and it cannot be confused with any other Irish word.^[13]

In County Tyrone the following hierarchy of land division was used: "ballybetagh" (Irish: baile biataigh, meaning "victualler's place"); "ballyboe"; "sessiagh" (Irish: séú cuid, meaning sixth part of a quarter); "gort" and "quarter" (Irish: ceathrú).^[11] In County Fermanagh it was: "ballybetagh"; "quarter" and "tate".^[11] Further sub-divisions in Fermanagh appear to be related to liquid or grain measures such as "gallons", "pottles", and "pints".^[15]

In Ulster the ballybetagh was the territorial unit controlled by an Irish sept, typically containing around 16 townlands. The result of ballybetagh fragmentation saw the use of units consisting of four, eight, and twelve townlands. One of these fragmented units, the "quarter" (representing a quarter of a ballybetagh), was the universal land denomination recorded in the 1608 survey for County Donegal.^[16] In the early 17th century, 20% of the total area of western Ulster was under the control of the church. These "termon" lands consisted likewise of ballybetaghs and ballyboes, however were held by erenaghs instead of sept leaders.^[16]

Other units of land divisions used throughout Ireland include:

• In County Tipperary, "capell lands" and "quatermeers" were used. A "Capell land" consisted of around 20 great acres, of which an acre equalled 20 English acres.^[11]
• In the province of Connacht, "quarters" and "cartrons" (Irish: ceathrú mír; also anglicised as "carrowmeer") were used. A quarter being reckoned as being four cartrons, and each cartron being 30 acres.^[11] The quarter has also been anglicised as "carrow", "carhoo", and "caracute" (Irish: ceathrú cuid).^[11]
• In County Clare, as in Connacht, the most common land divisions were: "quarters"; "half-quarters" (Irish: leath-ceathrú); "cartrons" and "sessiagh". Here a "half-quarter" equated to around 60 acres, a "cartron" equated to around 30 acres, and a "sessiagh" to around 20 acres.^[11]

"Cartrons" were also sometimes called "ploughlands" or "seisreagh" (Irish: seisreach, meaning a team of horses yoked to a plough).^[11]

Thomas Larcom, the first director of the Ordnance Survey of Ireland, made a study of the ancient land divisions of Ireland and summarised the traditional hierarchy of land divisions as being:^[8][11]

10 acres - 1 Gneeve; 2 Gneeves - 1 Sessiagh; 3 Sessiaghs - 1 Tate or Ballyboe; 2 Ballyboes - 1 Ploughland, Seisreagh or Carrow; 4 Ploughlands - 1 Ballybetagh, or Townland; 30 Ballybetaghs - Triocha Céad or Barony.

This hierarchy did not apply uniformly across Ireland for example a ballybetagh or townland could contain more or less than four ploughlands.^[8] Further confusion arises when it is taken into account that whilst Larcom used the general term acres in his summary, terms such as 'great acres', 'large acres', and 'small acres' were also used in records.^[8] Writing in 1846, Larcom remarks that the 'large' and 'small' acres had no fixed ratio between them and that there were various other kinds of acre in use in Ireland, for example: the Irish acre; English acre; Cunningham acre; plantation acre and statute acre.^[8][11] The Ordnance Survey maps used the statute acre measurement.^[8] The quality and situation of the land affected the size of these acres.^[11] The Cunningham acre is given as being a medium between the Irish and English acre.^[11]

Many of these land division terms have been preserved in the names of modern townlands, for example: the term "cartron" in both its English and Irish form has been preserved in the townland names of Carrowmeer, Cartron, and Carrowvere, whilst the term "sessiagh" in those of Shesia, Sheshodonell, Sheshymore, and Shessiv.^[11] The terms "ballyboe" and "ballybetagh" tend to be preserved in the truncated form of "bally" as a prefix for some place names. Lesser known land division terms may be found in other townland names such as Coogulla (Irish: Cuige Uladh, "the Ulster fifth"), Treanmanagh (Irish: an train meánach, "the third middle"), and Dehomade (Irish: an deichiú méid, "the tenth part").^[11]

A problem with the term "bally" in some place names is that it can be difficult to distinguish between the Irish term baile meaning "townland" or béal átha meaning "approach to a ford". An example of the latter would be Ballyshannon, County Donegal, which is derived from Béal Átha Seanaidh.^[17]

Size and value[link]

Townlands vary in size from the smallest, of less than an acre (Old Church Yard, Carrickmore, parish of Termonmagurk, County Tyrone), up to 7,012 acres (28.38 km²) or 28.3 km² (Sheskin, parish of Kilcommon, County Mayo).^[5] Typically 200 to 400 acres (1.6 km²) is a reasonable average.^[18]

The ballyboe (a townland unit used in Ulster) was described in 1608 as containing sixty acres of arable land, meadow, and pasture, however this was misleading as the size of townlands under the Gaelic system varied depending upon their quality, situation, and economic potential.^[11][14] This economic potential ranged from the extent of land required to graze cattle to the land required to support several families.^[14] The highest density of townland units recorded in Ulster in 1609 corresponds to the areas with the highest land valuations in the 1860s.^[14]

It seems that many moorland areas were not divided into townlands until fairly recently. These areas were "formerly shared as a common summer pasturage by the people of a whole parish or barony".^[19]

Irish Ordnance Survey and standardisation[link]

During the 19th century, an extensive series of maps of Ireland were created by the Irish division of the Ordnance Survey for taxation purposes, which documented and standardised the boundaries of the more than 60,000 townlands in Ireland. This process often involved dividing or amalgamation of existing townlands, and defining townland boundaries in areas such as mountain or bog land that had previously been outside the townland system.^[9]

Current use[link]

A typical road-sign in County Tyrone, noting that this part of the road passes through the townland of Cavanreagh

Townlands form the building blocks for higher-level administrative units such as parishes and District Electoral Divisions (in the Republic of Ireland) or wards (in Northern Ireland). Before 1972, townlands were included on all postal addresses throughout the island. However, in 1972 Royal Mail decided that the townland element of the address was obsolete in Northern Ireland.^[9] Townland names were not banned but were deemed "superflouous information" and people were asked not to include them on addresses.^[9] They would be replaced by house numbers, road names, and postcodes.^[9] In response, the "Townlands Campaign" emerged to protest against the changes. It was described as a "ground-level community effort". Taking place in the midst of "The Troubles", the campaign was a rare example of unity between Catholics and Protestants, nationalists and unionists.^[9] Townlands and their names "seem to have been considered as a shared resource and heritage".^[9] Those involved in the campaign argued that, in many areas, people still strongly identified with their townlands and that this gave them a sense of belonging. Royal Mail's changes were seen as a severing of this link.^[9]

At the time, the county councils were the government bodies responsible for validating such a change. However, as local government itself was undergoing changes, Royal Mail's decision was "allowed ... to become law almost by default".^[9] County Fermanagh is the only Northern Ireland county that managed to resist the scheme completely.^[9] Nevertheless, most road signs in Northern Ireland continue to show townland names (see picture on the right). In 2001 the Northern Ireland Assembly passed a motion requesting government departments to make use of townland addresses in correspondence and publications.

In the Republic of Ireland, townlands continued to be used on addresses. However, in 2005 the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources announced that the postcode system is to be introduced (see Republic of Ireland postal addresses). In 2012 postcodes are still not in use in Ireland and townland remains the predominant address identifier in rural areas.

A useful source of information on townlands (with an emphasis on the northern parts of Ireland) is the Federation for Ulster Local Studies. Its publications include Every Stony Acre Has a Name: Celebration of the Townland in Ulster by Tony Canavan, and Townlands in Ulster: Local History Studies, edited by W.H. Crawford & R.H. Foy.

Other townland like systems[link]

England[link]

England had similar pre-medieval land divisions to that used in Ireland, however unlike the Irish system it has failed to survive into the 20th century. In England the system included: vills (from which we get the term villages); trefs; towns; townships; baileys; and shires.^[12]

Scotland[link]

In Scotland, townland boundaries were generally disregarded and lost during 19th century agricultural improvements.^{[citation needed]} Townlands were called also fermlands and many names remain identifiable in farmstead names which include the word Mains, and "Bal-" (Baile) in placenames, such as Balerno or Balmoral.

Townlands in Scotland were often in contradistinction to kirktouns (Clachan), which were settlements with a church, sometimes of ecclesiastical origin.^{[citation needed]}

See also Township (Scotland) for the crofting context.

Isle of Man[link]

There may be similarities between the notion of townlands in Ireland and the traditional land divisions of treens (c.f. the Irish word trian, a third part) in the Isle of Man. Treens are subdivided into smaller units called quarterlands.^[20]

See also[link]

• Lists of townlands in Ireland by county

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Discussion of traditional Gaelic units of land measurement
• Celebrating Ulster's Townlands Exhibition (Ulster Placename Society)

External links[link]

All island

• Mapviewer (Ordnance Survey Ireland) historical townland, civil parish and barony boundaries (select Historic 6-inch (1830s) or Historic 25-inch (c.1900) layers)
• Logainm.ie (Placenames Database of Ireland) search/browse by parish/barony/county, English and Irish names
• IreAtlas townland database (John Broderick) searchable database derived from the Index to the 1851 Census
• Townland indexes to pre-1921 censuses, digitized from command papers for EPPI: Index to 1841,1851 censuses, Index to 1871 census, 1881 supplement to 1871 index, Supplement for the 1911 census
• 1911 Census details (National Archives of Ireland) Arranged by County>DED>Townland>Household

Republic

• Envision (Beta) Environmental Protection Agency map tool (select Operational Layers>General Administrative>Townlands)
• Categories of Disadvantaged Areas Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Excel spreadsheet (per county) giving area in hectares, electoral division, and agricultural category of each townland

Northern Ireland

• Northern Ireland Place-Name Project Searchable using both maps and lists, with information about placename origins
• Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland:
  • Mapviewer (select Subjects>Townland)
  • Six Inch Series (select Map Contents>EHS/SixInchSeries>Townland)

By county

• Parishes of County Mayo (Mayo County Library) list of townlands by parish, with maps and other data
• Index of Townlands of County Kildare (Kildare Council Library's local studies department) IreAtlas data updated to 1911

Uncle Fester, or Fester Addams, is a member of the fictional Addams Family and the antagonist of the crossover films. He was played by Jackie Coogan in the original television series, by Christopher Lloyd in the first two feature films, and by Patrick Thomas in the third, Addams Family Reunion. Finally, Michael Roberds played Fester in The New Addams Family. In the Broadway musical, the part was originated by Kevin Chamberlin, with Brad Oscar taking over on March 8, 2011.

Character[link]

Uncle Fester is a particularly shy man when it comes to seeing someone he likes and he is a completely hairless, hunched, and barrel-shaped man with dark, sunken eyes and often a deranged smile. He always wears a heavy, full-length fur coat. Fester was derived from a character drawn by cartoonist Charles Addams, although these were single page cartoons, with no stories or character names. Nevertheless, the character is recognizable in a number of cartoons, both by his appearance (bald, stooping, sunken eyes) and behavior (e.g. turning the shower to a special "scalding" setting, feeding his garden plants on blood plasma, or releasing an eagle on the neighbor's homing pigeons). However, he is almost never seen in the same cartoons with the rest of the family, even for family celebrations like pouring boiling oil on carol singers (though he was in one cartoon with the two children—going fishing with dynamite). It may be that he was introduced to the family at the time of the sitcom for dramatic convenience. It is known that the name "Fester" was chosen by Addams for the sitcom.

Fester has a strange ability to conduct electricity. He would often demonstrate this by putting a light bulb in his mouth, which would illuminate, accompanied by a loud, crackling noise (in the TV series the bulb's wire is sometimes clearly visible). He claims to possess 110 watts of power in one episode of the sitcom, while in another episode he demonstrated his "magnetic" quality by levitating a metal paperweight up to his hand. When struck directly on the head by a fired cannonball, he appears only mildly dazed, while the cannonball bounces off his head.

He also often appears happy to suffer from a severe migraine that can only be relieved by putting his head in a screw press and tightening it to levels that normal people would not be able to withstand. Other times, he seems to do it for mere fun.

In the original sitcom of the 1960s, Fester is said to be Morticia's maternal uncle, but in all other filmed and animated content he is Gomez's brother, making him uncle to Wednesday and Pugsley. He is known as "Tío Lucas" in Spanish-speaking countries. In Brazil, he has two names: "Tio Chico" (original series and cartoon), and "Tio Funéreo" (movies).

Live action TV series[link]

In the 1960s television series, Fester (played by Jackie Coogan) is uncle to Morticia Addams. In one episode, he became perplexed when asked his last name, suggesting that he has none or has somehow forgotten it. In several episodes, Fester refers to the Addams lineage as if it were his own, but the flashbacks in the episodes "Morticia's Romance, Parts 1 and 2," clearly establish him as Morticia's uncle, brother of her mother, Hester Frump, a.k.a. Granny Frump (Margaret Hamilton). Perhaps, lacking a last name of his own, Fester was all the more dedicated to upholding the honor of another. In various episodes, he was a partner in typical sitcom schemes with Gomez, Morticia, or Grandmama Addams, indicating no real preference for any family member over others.

Fester's known ancestry dates back to his Great-Grandfather Blob (not to be confused with Gomez's Cousin Blob, a two-headed ghost), who received the gift of a sacred ruby after he had pried it from the head of a Hindu (whom it was giving a terrible headache). The ruby remained in the family until Fester unthinkingly used his slingshot to hurl it at a yowling stray cat. "It was the only rock in the house!" he said in his defense.

Per the 1960s sitcom, little is known of Fester's childhood, save that his father (Morticia's maternal grandfather) was an excruciatingly strict man who severely disciplined him, paddling him even when he was good and paying him to stay out of public (Fester considered this to be experience in "public relations"). He refused to allow Fester to even touch a battleaxe (a treasured toy among people with the Addams's macabre tastes) until he was eight. As an adult, Fester defended his father's strictness, pointing to his own character as proof of its effectiveness: "I didn't become what I am by accident! I had upbringing like no other!"

Fester has also offered contradictory information about his educational background. In the sitcom's first episode, he notes that he never went to school ("And look how [well] I turned out!"), but he later claims to have failed recess three times. As an adult, Fester took correspondence courses in various subjects, and his educational endeavors occasionally formed an episode's main plot. It may be from one such course that he obtained his fraternity paddle, which he once threatened to use on Wednesday in imitation of his father's punishment style; however, like many an uncle, Fester proved to have more bark than bite in dealing with the children. When he suspects someone of maligning, cheating, or otherwise mistreating anyone in the family, Fester is ever ready with his blunderbuss "Genevieve", eager to "shoot 'em in the back!" However, he is far less eager in meeting a malefactor in a face-to-face duel; he was briefly enthusiastic about a pistol duel with a enemy until he asked, somewhat timidly, "Does he get one too?...Loaded?"

Another prized possession was his cannon, "Old Reliable", which he normally kept in his bedroom. Fester maintained a treehouse in the Addams yard and frequently retreated to his closet to think. After receiving the gift of a motorcycle in the episode "The Addams Family Meets a Beatnik", Fester often drove it through the living room, inevitably crashing in the conservatory (Several episodes used identical footage of this scenario.). Fester also collects three-dollar bills.

The 1998 live-action series continues the tradition of having Fester (played by Michael Roberds) as Gomez's biological brother, yet between this version and the 1960s series this is the only visible difference.

Animated TV series[link]

This article may be confusing or unclear to readers. Please help clarify the article; suggestions may be found on the talk page. (February 2009)

In the first animated series by Hanna-Barbera, Jackie Coogan reprised his role as Fester. In the second animated series by Hanna-Barbera, Fester was voiced by Rip Taylor. In this series, Fester is perhaps the most loving of self-inflicted injury. He would allow other members (usually Lurch) to harm him anyway they can, but his greatest fondness was blowing himself up. As a running gag, Fester would never believe Grandmama's predictions until she predicts something that causes him great harm (or in his case, great joy). Fester also is very fond of the Addamses' next door neighbour, Norman Normanmayer, a boring person controlling an underwear empire, who hates Fester (and the whole Addams family) for his strangeness (on an occasion, Fester comes on a visit through the sewer pipes). Fester seems quite oblivious to the matter that Norman hates him and, possibly due to the Addams family nature, thinks that all the angry, aggressive outbreaks are a sign of affection.

This Fester also introduces himself, through his self-made comic books, as "Festerman", a gothic hero with a weakness to chimneys, who gives his flying cape to enemies upon request—so as to fall and would bring villains to their knees...simply by enjoying all the harm they would give him to the point of wearing them out. During this series, he is given a musical-type episode about the "Fester Way", his own, strange way of life.

Film[link]

In the movie, The Addams Family, Fester (played by Christopher Lloyd) is the long-lost brother of Gomez Addams. He was believed to have been lost in the Bermuda Triangle for twenty-five years. A grifter named Abigail Craven (Elizabeth Wilson) conspires to steal the Addams' fortune using her son, Gordon, who displays an eerie resemblance to the missing Fester. On the night that the Addamses hold a séance to contact Fester's spirit, Gordon shows up at their door, posing as Fester. Although he is baffled and horrified by the Addamses at first, Gordon begins to take a liking to the family and their eccentric ways. In the end, he disobeys his mother and helps Gomez and his family get their house back. It is later discovered that Gordon is actually Fester, and that Abigail found him after his accident in the Bermuda Triangle, suffering from amnesia.

In Gomez's home movies from their childhood, Fester is shown to be hairless as a child (although, as Gordon Craven, he is seen shaving his head). At the end of the movie, it is revealed that Fester acquires his ability to conduct electricity after being electrocuted by lightning, which also restores his memory.

Fester also appears in the film's sequel (again played by Lloyd), Addams Family Values. This film centers around Fester's marriage to Debbie (Joan Cusack), the recently hired nanny who wishes to murder Fester and inherit his share of the Addams fortune.

Fester again appears in the direct-to-video film Addams Family Reunion, here played by Patrick Thomas. He is portrayed as a mad scientist reminiscent of old Grade-B horror films. He creates a dog named "Butcher" as a birthday present for Pugsley -- a dog that mutates into a hair-devouring brute whenever someone says "good boy." At the end, Butcher attacks Cousin Itt -- who is, understandably, quite nervous around him.

Musical[link]

In the musical, Uncle Fester, who has been played by Brad Oscar and Kevin Chamberlin is, as aforementioned, shy around people he likes; in this case, he's in love with the moon. Fester serves as the narrator, and interacts more with the audience than with the rest of the family. The subject of love is apparently his "specialty," and he is able to play the banjo, shown when he sings a love song to the moon.

Video games[link]

Uncle Fester has appeared in several Addams Family video games, frequently as the player character or a playable character. He is the star of his own Nintendo Entertainment System game titled Fester's Quest and the main playable character in the Addams Family Values Super Nintendo Entertainment System game. He is also the main character in "Electrifying" arcade machine, where simulated "electrical shocks" are passed through the player as they hold on to 2 handles. He also appeared as an antagonist to Heavy Metal 2000: The Videogame.

References[link]