Termon (Irish: An Tearmann, meaning 'place of sanctuary')[1] is a village in the north of County Donegal, Ireland.
Geography
Termon is located eight miles from Letterkenny, Donegal's main town and seven miles from Creeslough. Termon is made up of many townlands including Currin, Doon, Drumlaurgagh, Gortnalaragh, Drumbrick, Drumoughill, Cloncarney, Terhillion, Gortnalaragh, Clonkilly, Knocknabollan, Fawans, Drumdeevin, Drumfin, Barnes, Stragraddy, Ballybuninabber, Letterfad, Goal and Gurtin, Loughaskerry.
There are several hills close to Termon, including Lough Salt (469m), the hills of Barnes-Crockmore (the "Resting Bishop") at 324m, 349m & 307m respectively, and Stragraddy mountain (285m). All the hills have views along Donegal's Atlantic coast line or into the higher mountain country of Muckish (666m) and Errigal (749m).[citation needed]
Rivers and Loughs
The Lurgy runs through Termon.(Irish - An Lorgaigh)
Clonkillymore Lough
Clonkillybeg Lough
Doon Lough
Cloncarney Lough
Lough Darragh
Lough Askerry
Lough Mnafin
Lough Acrappin - Top of Drumfin
Lough Acrabane - Barnes Gap
Sport
Termon Gaelic Athletic Association was founded in 1963. All age groups play and train at the local pitch "The Burn Road"[2] The Termon GAA adult team plays in the Donegal Senior Championship. The Termon minor GAA team were 2019 Donegal minor Champions and were defeated on 1 January 2020 by a single point by Lavey Derry in the Ulster Minor final in Belfast. Termon LGFA adult team were crowned Tesco Club All-Ireland Champions in 2014, defeating Mournabbey of Cork in the Final. Termon LGFA have won two Ulster Club Championships one in 2010 and one in 2014 beating Donaghmoyne of Monaghan in both finals. The Termon Ladies team were 2019 Donegal champions making them senior county champions for a sixth time they competed in the 2019 Ulster Final being defeated by Donaghmoyne of Monaghan by a single point. Termon currently fields 23 teams at all age groups male and female and schools teams.[3]
Standing Stones 2 (Grid ref C109241) - Barnes townland (Ogham standing stones) - these are thought to be the original boundaries of 'An Tearmann' denoting sanctuary, as those seeking it were thought to be within the Kilmacrenan Abbey.See local history below-Frank Mc Gettigan
Cillin 1 (Grid ref C109240) - Barnes townland
Cillin 2 (Grid ref C125206) - Clonkilly townland
Ring Fort (Grid ref C121216) - Drumbrick townland, situated at the top of Drumbrick hill, visible from the Burn road
Religious sites
Several sites around Termon are significant to the Roman Catholic faith in Donegal.
Termon Roman Catholic Church
Doon Well
Doon Well (Irish: Tobar an Dúin) was established by Lector O'Friel sometime around the 1670s. Doon Well's origins are pre-Christian:
A 'tóchar' (ancient wooden road) runs underneath the bog adjacent to Doon Rock
Bronze Age artefacts have been found near the well
The water used in the inauguration ceremony of the O'Donnells would have been carried from the well. Stations and rosary are still 'walked' from St. Columba's chapel to Doon Well on Hogmanay (New Year's Eve) and May eve.
Mass Rocks
Mass rocks (Irish: Carraig an Aifrinn) were used during the religious persecution of the Catholic Church in Ireland that began under Henry VIII and ended only with Catholic Emancipation in 1829. There are thought to be several more in the Termon area and were generally in areas were people could meet, practice their faith and post a look out to warn the congregation. Priests usually said Mass under pain of death, if they were caught, the priest hunters would put their quarry into a barrel of nails and throw him off the nearby cliff still called 'Binn an tSagairt' or Hill of the Priest. There is also a mass rock in the Terhillion townland of Termon, Terhillion (Tirkillin) means place of little huts or churchyard. The town land of Fawans has a mass rock which is high up in the townland.
While describing how Red Hugh O'Donnell was inaugurated on 3 May 1592, Timothy T. O'Donnell has written, "The inauguration of the O'Donnell as King of Tyrconnell was both civil and religious in nature. The ceremony took place on the great Rock of Doon which is one mile west of Kilmacrenan, from which one is give a breathtaking view of the surrounding country. It began with the religious rites in the church of the nearby monastery and holy well singing Psalms and hymns in honor of Christ and St. Columba for the success of the Prince's sovereignty. Standing on the Rock surrounded by nobles and his clansmen, the Prince received an oath in which he promised to preserve the Church and the laws of the land. The Prince also vowed to deliver the succession of the realm peacefully to his Tanist (his successor). O'Ferghil, the hereditary warden and abbot of Kilmacrenan, performed the religious ceremony of the inauguration of The O'Donnell. O'Gallagher was the Prince's Marshal and O'Clery was the Ollamh, or scholarly lawyer who presented to him the book containing the laws and customs of the land and the straight white wand symbolizing the moral rectitude demanded of his judgments and rule." Then, in honour of the Holy Trinity, Hugh would have surveyed his Clan lands as he walked three times sunwise around the peak of Rock of Doon, after which all the Irish clans present loudly acclaimed him as "O'Donnell!"[4]
Termon is served by St. Columba's Chapel (1854–present). The parish priest is Fr Patrick McHugh.[5]
Ethne's Well
Ethne's Well (Irish: Turas an Ri), in the Barnes townland, is named after Columba's mother. Ethne is strongly associated with the area. This holy well had stations performed on 9 June for nine nights.[citation needed]
St. Glassan
St. Glassan (Irish: Glasán)[citation needed] is a saint of the parish of whom little is known. The "Martyrology of Donegal" gives his feast day as 1 October. The grave of Father Glasán (Frater Cassians) is thought to be in the Stragraddy townland of Termon.[citation needed]
^ Timothy T. O'Donnell (2001), Swords Around the Cross: Ireland's Defense of Faith and Fatherland 1594-1603, Christendom Press. Pages 48-49.
^Maguire, Stephen (31 August 2012). "Duffy funeral told Donegal win would honour memory". The Irish Times. Retrieved 31 August 2012. Among the 1,500 mourners at yesterday's funeral at St Columba's Church were Donegal GAA players Michael Murphy, Karl Lacey, Mark McHugh and Brendan Boyle. [...] Members of Mr Duffy's club Termon provided a guard of honour to and from the funeral Mass, as did a number of other clubs including Glenswilly and Gaoth Dobhair.
