Leitir Ceanainn

Letterkenny derives its name from the Irish Leitir Ceanainn, meaning the hillside of the O'Cannons, an ancient sept descended from Cenél Conaill whose last chieftain, Rory O'Cannon, was killed by Godfrey O'Donnell in 1250. The town's strategic importance lay at the first reliable crossing point of the River Swilly estuary, whose tidal waters once extended almost as far as New Mills before gradu...