Inishbiggle

Inishbiggle

Native name: Inis Bigil
Geography
Location	Atlantic Ocean
Coordinates
Country
Ireland
Province	Connacht
County	Mayo
Demographics
Population	39

Inishbiggle (Inis Bigil in Irish) is a small inhabited island off the coast of Ballycroy in Co. Mayo. Its name in Irish means "Island of Fasting."

Geography

The island is situated between the northeast of Achill Island and the mainland, and is accessed by boat from either Doran's point at Ballycroy or Bullsmouth, Dooniver on Achill Island.The island is 2½ km x 1½ km, or 650 acres (2.6 km²) in area.

Description

The main activities are sheep and cattle farming, fishing and winkle picking. Facilities on the island included a school and a post office, both now closed. Plans to build a cable-car link across the very dangerous Bullsmouth Channel, one of the strongest currents in Europe separating the island from Achill had been under discussion since 1996, but have now been abandoned due to the high cost and the money was given towards the Achill bridge redevelopment. Unpredictable currents in the channel during winter months can render the island inaccessible, even though the passage during fair weather is about ten minutes in the traditional boat, the currach. Emergency access is by helicopter.

The population is now down to a few dozen, almost all elderly. All speak Irish Gaelic as their first and community language.

Demographics

The table below reports data on Inishbiggle's population taken from Discover the Islands of Ireland (Alex Ritsema, Collins Press, 1999) and the Census of Ireland.

Historical population
Year Pop. ±% 1841 67 —     1851 61 −9.0% 1901 135 +121.3% 1951 123 −8.9%	Year Pop. ±% 1996 48 −61.0% 2002 39 −18.8% 2006 24 −38.5% 2011 25 +4.2%
Source:

External links

• Discover Ireland - Inishbiggle