There’s been a lot said recently about place-names, but this piece focuses on what first drew many of us to the work: the research, the stories, and understanding the landscapes around us. Huge thanks to @dmarshall.bsky.social at the View for taking the time to explore the subject properly.

Bally… comes from the irish word ‘baile’ meaning farm, home, settlement Knock… comes from an irish word for hill Drum... has its origins in an Irish word for ‘back’ Dr Frances Kane explains the influence the Irish language has on our many of our place names today.

Dr Frances Kane explains the influence of Scottish & English language on place names in Northern Ireland. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Some word to look out for include; burn (the word for a river), brae (hill), and kirk (church) Watch more on BBC The View on BBC iPlayer www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis... skip to 13:40 for place-names 🤓

"Open Learning at Queen’s today offers a precious opportunity for both students and tutors to (re)discover the timeless, profoundly human pleasure of learning."—Prof Katy Hayward and Dr Cathal McManus , Queen's University Belfast. ▶️175 years of Open Learning at Queen's: https://go.qub.ac.uk/OLat175

Some spots left on our Open Learning Course 'Opening up the Map' qubuk.estore.flywire.com/products/OLE...

"There remain few better ways to find relief of mind than by opening it." Our latest Staff Blog, by Prof @katyhayward.bsky.social and Dr @cathalpmc.bsky.social, on 175 years of Open Learning at @qubelfastofficial.bsky.social. 👉 Read the blog: go.qub.ac.uk/OLat175 #LoveQUBstaff #lifelonglearning

Cutting through some of the noise today with a little reminder of how we do what we do at The Northern Ireland Place-Name Project franceskane.wordpress.com/2026/04/14/w...

After (almost) 10 wonderful years with NIPNP, I’ll be stepping away as our funding comes to an end and moving on to an exciting new role elsewhere in QUB. It’s been quite the ride! Obviously I'll be continuing my work on place-names in new places and new spaces. More details coming soon!

Read more here: Beltany: A Name Lit by Fire franceskane.wordpress.com/2026/05/01/b...

Beltany: A Name Lit by Fire franceskane.wordpress.com/2026/05/01/b...

Roger Casement is remembered as a revolutionary & humanitarian, but new research reveals a surprising side to him- a lifelong passion for zoology. He even has a hawkmoth named after him (Gnathothlibus casementi). Dr Aidan O’Hanlon’s new @rtebrainstorm.bsky.social piece www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2...

There are a number of townlands named Beltany, from Bealtaine (May) marking the beginning of summer. In early Ireland the year was divided into 2 halves, a distinction captured in the tale of Cú Chulainn’s wooing of Emer, where it is said that summer ran from Bealtaine to Samhain.

NIPNP has now reached the end of its current funding period. As a result, the team is in the process of winding down activities. We regret that we are no longer in a position to respond to requests for information or translations. We appreciate your understanding as we conclude this phase of work.

Just a month to go to our CPD event ‘Opening up the map’. Spaces are limited so get in touch quickly to secure a spot!

Today's name story is 'Tūn: From rustic fence to urban sprawl'. It is written by Nigel Suffield-Jones and Diana Whaley. For more information, see www.snsbi.org.uk/exploring-na...

Perfect timing! Versions of ‘tūn’ appear frequently in Belfast street names and area grey of example of something that we often choose NOT to translate. Think Newington, Arlington and Cliftonville. Read more in @drfranceskane.bsky.social latest blog here: franceskane.wordpress.com/2026/04/14/w...

It’s been a while but I’m revisiting my blog to share some work we have been doing with NIPNP. More case studies to follow in coming weeks but here’s a bit of ‘why we do what we do’… franceskane.wordpress.com/2026/04/14/w...

Poor effort on the latest graffiti find in our new house. 4/10 based only on the addition of the buzzy bee

New project loading……🎙️

The weather gods are out again for us for @niscifest.bsky.social Paddle Back in Time, launch imminent from Sketrick Island…..

Delighted to be at the inaugural panel meeting for Belfast Stories. Wearing both my @placenamesni.bsky.social and @irelandmapped.bsky.social hats of course 🤓

One from the archives this St. Patrick’s Day www.instagram.com/reel/C4n1j6X...

One big takeaway of the day was the need to shift away from the idea of identity being binary. Reminded me of these fantastic language silhouettes produced by newcomer primary school pupils that we worked with a few years ago 😊

This is the lived reality of precarity in academia. 9 years working at @qubelfastofficial.bsky.social and no less than 14 formal notices of pending redundancy 😞 it’s exhausting!

Such an encouraging morning in the Linenhall Library today hosted by Katy Radford and OICE who facilitated a super interesting discussion on cultural pluralism and identity. Looking forward to seeing what the new offices do in the coming years 🙌🙌🙌

Looking forward to a day of discussions on archiving conflict and reconciliation with The Quill Project 🤓

Another date for the diary over this years @niscifest.bsky.social showcasing our wonderful database with this exciting event @ulstermuseum.org nisciencefestival.com/event/mappin...

‘paddle back in time’ is back for @niscifest.bsky.social 2026! Join us at Nendrum or on the Quoile nisciencefestival.com/event/paddle...

📢The DRI December newsletter is out now! This month's updates include news of the 2026 Community Archive Scheme winner, several new collections in the Repository, and other #DigiPres news and events. Read the latest issue and subscribe: mailchi.mp/ria/dri-dece...

Our friends at @niscifest.bsky.social have been working on a new project and have now launched their website for 'Maps and Memories'. The project marks 200 years since the OS first mapping survey on Divis. Watch this space for exciting collaborations in 2026 nisciencefestival.com/programme/ma...

Had the pleasure today of getting up close and personal with some of John O’Donvan’s handiwork and his edits for the names of Tory Island with an excellent session hosted by the wonderful Crystal Bennes @ria.ie 😍

Writing for the OS memoirs, John O’Donovan comments “what a pit-y that the Irish were so fond of calling places after such pits as the pit of Queen Meve” 😂 @irelandmapped.bsky.social

Notoriously ‘cac’ was also applied as a derogatory nickname to King James II (Séamas an Chaca ‘James of the Excrement’) after his defeat at the Battle of the Boyne 💩

We are the Northern Ireland Place-Name Project, based in Irish & Celtic Studies at QUB since 1987. Funded by DfC since 2023, we research the origins and meanings of local names and support councils with Irish forms for signage. Explore our searchable corpus at placenamesni.org.

Dia dhaoibh, a chairde! The Northern Ireland Place-Name Project has just landed on Bluesky. We will be sharing stories, history and a few surprises behind our local place-names. Do you have ideas on what type of content you would like to see? Maps, archives or just fun facts? Let us know below 😀

I’m delighted to have been awarded an @ria.ie fellowship to explore Colonial cartographies and the politics of place-name collection in the academy. Looking forward to getting started!!

Four new fellowships will support research into the RIA’s historic ties to colonialism. Projects will explore museum collections, imperial knowledge networks, colonial cartography, and the Academy’s role in the spoils of empire. Find out more 👉 https://tinyurl.com/5bxknnkx ‬

It's that time of year again where we are thrilled to announce our call for the 2026 Community Archive Scheme! Key dates: 🗓️ Scheme opens: 27 August ❓ Information session: 2.00pm, 16 September 📩 Closing date: 7 November For more information visit dri.ie/community-ar... and watch the video below.

Inishowen (Inis Eoghain 'Eoghan's island') is named after Eoghan, son of Niall of the Nine Hostages. As the O'Neill's importance increased, their territory was named Tyrone (Tír Eoghain 'Eoghan's land'). The O'Neills were based at Aileach 'stony place' at Greenan above Derry.