Belmullet

The town

In Irish, the name is Béal an Mhuirthead. It means “mouth of the Mullet Peninsula.” Belmullet is a coastal Gaeltacht town on the Mullet Peninsula. It sits in the barony of Erris, County Mayo, Ireland. The population stands at 1,019.

This is the commercial and cultural heart of the barony of Erris. That wider area holds almost 10,000 people. Language use varies. According to the 2016 census, 50% of people in the town were able to speak Irish. Only 4% spoke it on a daily basis outside the education system.

The two bays

Two bays define the town. Blacksod Bay is on one side. Broadhaven Bay is on the other. Carter’s Canal runs through the middle, linking them.

That is the shape of Belmullet. The canal cuts through the town. A bay sits on each side. The isthmus is where the Mullet meets the mainland. Walking through Belmullet means crossing that isthmus and following the canal. The light on the water is best in the evening.

Belmullet is the gate to the Mullet. The peninsula runs out from here. The villages are a short drive on either side of the bays.

The name

The origin of the name Belmullet is not clear. It may have come from Irish Béal Muileat or Béal an Mhuileat. That translates as “mouth of the isthmus.”

Bernard O’Hara wrote about this in Mayo: Aspects of its Heritage. He suggests a change from “L” to “R” happened. That is quite common in Irish. It may have given Béal an Mhuireat. That became Belmullet. The name fits the geography. It is the mouth of the peninsula, where the Mullet meets the mainland.

Practical

Belmullet is at the isthmus of the Mullet. It is a drive from Westport. The canal and the two bays are right in the town.

The town works as the base for the Mullet and the Erris country. You can see the bays in the morning. The Atlantic is there in the evening. The town sits in between.