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County

Offaly

Uíbh Fhailí

Offaly’s older county and town names are practical search tools, while the Shannon and canal connect its settlements to wider routes.

Recorded locationOffaly53.17062° N · 7.63917° WInteractive map supplied by OpenStreetMap.
Recorded place location · Logainm.ieOpen in OpenStreetMap ↗

The name

Ó

These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.

An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.

Recorded forms

  • Uíbh Fhailí · Irish · main form · validated name
  • Offaly · English · main form

Place & story

Use the historical county name

Lewis files the county as King’s County in 1837 and places the Shannon along parts of its western edge. Older archives and indexes can retain that county label even when a modern search uses Offaly. The names should be linked with their dates rather than treated as separate places. His discussion of Offallia and earlier territories also extends beyond later county bounds, so an old regional reference is not automatically a precise modern county address. A barony, civil parish and townland should remain attached to a dated property reference, because each narrows the location at a different scale. [2]

Changing administrative centres

The Tullamore entry records the transfer of assizes and county business from Philipstown in 1833, alongside growth connected with the Grand Canal. These institutional and transport changes explain why records from different periods may be centred in different towns. A county office’s later location does not prove that earlier business was always conducted there. Preserve Philipstown, Tullamore and other historical settlement forms exactly when an original document supplies them. [3]

Birr and Parsonstown beyond the town

Offaly Archives links Birr with Parsonstown and records a Poor Law Union extending into Tipperary. A union record therefore does not prove residence in Birr town or King’s County. Preserve its townland and electoral division, then compare the original home locality with the institution where the document was created. [4]

Geographic information

Place type
County
County
Offaly
Coordinates
53.17062, -7.63917
Mapped area
2,000.99 km²
Logainm ID
100031 ↗

People & family history

Census figures refer to the matched historical census area for each year. Boundaries and spellings can change over time.

Explore this county

Up to 50 places per page, ordered by name.

Sources & further reading

  1. Logainm.ie — Offaly. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
  2. King’s County, historical county article for Offaly — A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland (1837) · Samuel Lewis · 1837
  3. Tullamore — A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland (1837) · Samuel Lewis · 1837
  4. Birr place term and Parsonstown Union records · Offaly Archives
  5. Boundary geometry retains its source attribution and licence in the downloadable geographic record. Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2026-09-19. How this page was prepared.