Lurgantamry | townland

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Lorgain an tSamhraidh 'summer ridge'

The first element of Lurgantamry is clearly lorga fem., dative lorgain, a 'shin-shaped ridge'. The most obvious etymology is Lorgain an tSamhraidh 'ridge of the summer', referring to upland seasonal pasture. Other place-names with the element 'summer' seem to refer to summer pasture (Joyce iii 468-9). The map shows, bordered east and south by the Lagan, a ridge with a rath on it, probably a good viewing-point. The early Irish place-name element Temair, i.e. Tara, as in the Ards Peninsula (PNI ii 131), seems to mean 'hill with a view', and Lorgain Teamhraí 'Tara ridge' could also be suggested. Temair was originally a feminine i-stem, becoming a consonant-stem with dative singular Temraig (DIL sv.). For it to appear in this place-name one has to postulate that this could develop into a new a-stem, Temrach, dat. Temraig, gen. Temraige, which last would be Teamhraí in modern spelling. However the early forms for Tara in the Ards provide no evidence for such a change.