Jim Devenney
East Donegal Ulster Scots Association |
Donegal is the most northerly county in Ireland and bounded by approximately 120 miles of Atlantic coastline with some of the most beautiful golden beaches in the country. Northeast Donegal has two substantial rivers running through it into the Atlantic Ocean namely the River Swilly and River Foyle. It was in this area that the first Scots settled when they arrived in Ulster at the beginning of the seventeenth century and this territory later became known as the Laggan Valley. The Scots settlers in the Laggan Valley were quickly fortified by the influence of the Stewart brothers and the Cunningham brothers and many events later influenced and shaped Irish history emanated from the Laggan Valley.
East Donegal Ulster Scots was founded in 2001 based on the establishment on The Language Body and Ulster Scots Agency as part of The Good Friday Agreement of 1998 by both sovereign governments of Great Britain and Republic of Ireland. The outcome of this presents an exciting challenge to all of us in Ireland and our distant cousins throughout the world especially the UK, America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand to establish how much of us we can trace back to the first Scots settlers in Ulster from the beginning of the seventeenth century.
Apart from many cultural, historical and language activities East Donegal Ulster Scots are involved in we thought it was important to highlight this region by the introduction of a tourist brochure and to develop a website so the next time you decide to holiday in Ireland why not consider the North West region and enjoy the tranquil beauty of the hills, valleys and coastline of Donegal were a yin hunnèr yin thoosan fair faa ye or céad míle fáilte awaits you. |
