Ballakilpheric (Manx: Balley Keeill Pherick;[1] meaning "settlement of St Patrick's church") is a small village in the parish of Rushen (recently amalgamated with Arbory for administrative purposes) in the southwest of the Isle of Man, 1 kilometre (0.6 mi) northwest of the larger village of Colby, and 8 kilometres (5 mi) by road northeast of Port Erin. It is the main settlement on the B44 road. The small Colby River flows to the east of the village,[2] and forms the boundary with Arbory parish. Ballakilpheric Methodist Chapel lies at the top of the hill.
| Ballakilpheric | |
|---|---|
 Ballakilpheric. Looking down the road leading to Colby | |
  Ballakilpheric Location within the Isle of Man | |
| Crown dependency | Isle of Man |
| Post town | ISLE OF MAN |
| Postcode district | IM |
| Police | Isle of Man |
| Fire | Isle of Man |
| Ambulance | Isle of Man |
History
editThere were several Neolithic stones in the vicinity.[3] At the Ballakilpheric Standing stone site (grid reference 222716), in 1878 four stones were still standing together in a crescent, but by 1900 there were two, 10 ft (3.0 m) tall and 28 ft (8.5 m) apart and now there is just one.[4] An Early Bronze Age flat axehead was unearthed in a field near Ballakelly Cottage in the village in 1975; it is currently part of the Manx National Heritage Collection.[5] An archaeological find of early medieval artifacts in the area is known as the Ballakilpheric hoard.[6]
Landmarks
editBallakilpheric Methodist Chapel is situated at the top of a hill.[citation needed] There is a large white house called Burn Brae, past Ballakilpheric Farm,[7] and another large house called Belle Abbey House.[8]
Culture
editA traditional harvest festival is held at Ballakilpheric Methodist Chapel in September.[9] The Manx Gaelic language singing group Caarjyn Cooidjagh released a CD entitled Ballakilpheric. The album features traditional songs from the Isle of Man.[10]
References
edit- ^ Broderick, George (1984). "Glossary of Place-Names". A Handbook of Late Spoken Manx. Tübingen: Niemeyer. pp. 494–514.
- ^ "Ballakilpheric" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Annual Report of the Liverpool Marine Biology Committee, Volume 18". Liverpool Marine Biology Committee. 1904. p. 81.
- ^ "Ballakilpheric - Standing Stone (Menhir)". megalithic.co.uk. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Ballakelly Cottage, Ballakilpheric". imuseum.im. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ Naismith, Rory; Allen, Martin & Screen, Elina (28 December 2014). Early Medieval Monetary History: Studies in Memory of Mark Blackburn. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 478. ISBN 9781409456681.
- ^ Marsh, Terry (28 May 2015). Walking on the Isle of Man: 40 walks exploring the entire island. Cicerone Press Limited. p. 192. ISBN 9781783622153. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Belle Abbey House". cowleygroves.com. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Chapel harvest festival". IOM Today. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Ballakilpheric - Caarjyn Cooidjagh". manxmusic.com. Retrieved 21 March 2020.