Inishkea Islands

rdf:langString Inishkea Islands

rdf:langString The Inishkea Islands (Irish: Inis Cé) are situated off the coast of the Belmullet peninsula in Ireland. The islands are believed to be named after a saint that lived on the island called Saint Kea. There are two main islands - Inishkea North and Inishkea South. In the 19th-century, the islands were notable for the pagan religious traditions that were practiced there. One tradition involved a small terracotta statue of a saint known as the Godstone or Naomhóg in Irish, which was worshiped as an idol. It is possible that the remoteness of the islands somehow preserved some form of pre-Christian Celtic religion. In the early 1900s the islands were populated with more than 350 people, who were all monolingual Irish speakers but the island gradually depopulated after 48 fisherman tragically drowned at sea during a fierce storm in October 1927. There are currently two people who live on the island, although it increases to around fifteen during the summer months of May to September.