Off the west coast of Ireland at the mouth of Galway Bay stands the Aran Islands, which comprises three separate islands: Inishmore, Inishmaan, and Inisheer. The islands themselves have a beautiful landscape, characterized by limestone cliffs and stone walls, which has influenced the settlement patterns of the landscape and the islanders’ way of life. The history of the Aran Islands is shown through the study of settlement patterns, monuments, and the diverse livelihoods of its islanders, offering insights into the island’s cultural and historical background.
According to Laheen (2007), the geology of the island has significantly impacted on how the land was settled. It is characterized by horizontal beds of limestone, shale, and vertical fractures called joints. These geological landforms created freshwater pools at the base of limestone terraces, providing a great location for the settlement of villages and the practice of agriculture. The ancient baile unit was used to determine a land division system, which has continued through the centuries. Each baile is considered a separate settlement and is marked by dry-stone walls. These divisions on the islands divide it into distinct land types, which ensures that each fraction, or ceathruna, has access to various resources. This also contributes to the reason why the islands can be self-sustainable. While other settlements throughout Ireland had experienced famine eras, the Aran Islands were able to persevere because of their access to numerous resources.
Stone walls and unique architecture spread across the islands are important elements in telling the history that is seen in the landscape. Dún Aonghasa is one of the more well-known Irish monuments that is located on the Aran Islands. Initially, there were three stone walls that were constructed in the Bronze Age around 1000 BC. These walls were later improved in the early medieval period, adding upright stones outside of the middle wall. As time continued, houses were built, and people were buried in this area. In the 1990s, it was decided that Dún Aonghasa would be preserved as it was, embracing the changes that had occurred to it over several centuries (O’Sullivan & Downey, 2022).
The heritage of the Aran Islands stems from Irish and Gaelic traditions and relates to the islanders’ livelihoods. Fishing and farming are the main ways that people have made a living on the islands and continue to do so. Historically, the islands have been filled with a lot of farming activity, including cattle transfers. The islanders used boats called currachs, which are traditional Irish boats used for fishing and transportation. They are wooden-framed, lightweight, and covered with a layer of animal hide or canvas (Kennedy, 2023). This cultural heritage shows some of the day-to-day happenings of those that inhabited the islands and shaped the historical experiences on the Aran Islands.
The Aran Islands appear as an interesting landscape with unique geological features and cultural heritage. It is a mixture of Irish and Gaelic traditions, which is shown through the islanders’ livelihoods. The settlements are anchored in fishing and farming, which contributes to their self-sufficiency and adaptation to changing situations. These contribute to the history of the Aran Islands and those that inhabit them.
References
Kennedy, D. (2023). ‘Somewhere entirely different’ – Inisheer in the 1960s. History Ireland,
31(3), 46-48. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/27233709
Laheen, M. (2007). Among these stones is very sweet pasture. Building Material, 16, 16-21.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/29792302
O’Sullivan, M., & Downey, L. (2022). Monuments have lives. Archaeology Ireland, 36(4), 20-