Athenry News & Views Summer 2026

Summer 2026

Funerals and an ageing population Death/funeral records begin in the 1920s. During that decade, 242 funerals were recorded. The numbers then generally rose over time: 290 in the 1930s, 309 in the 1940s, 315 in the 1950s, 298 in the 1960s, 358 in the 1970s, 418 in the 1980s, 509 in the 1990s and 564 in the 2000s. The year with the highest number of funerals recorded was 2012, when there were 89 funerals. This long-term rise suggests both population growth and an ageing population. Baptisms, gender and names The baptismal records contain the largest number of numbers of people documented in the registers. We can examine gender, first names, surnames, birth dates, baptism dates and changes in baptismal practice over time. Of the 10,381 baptism records from 1900 to 2025, 5,289 are male, 5,083 are female and 9 do not specify the sex of the child. Over 125 years, the parish register therefore shows a broadly balanced gender distribution among baptisms. In analysing the most numerous first names obvious variants of the same name were grouped, using the ‘First Name Variants Guide’ on www.rootsireland. ie; e.g. Mary/Maria/Maura were treated as variants of the name Mary. In earlier years traditional Irish naming patterns, where children were often named after grandparents, parents, aunts or uncles influenced the recurrence and frequency of names. In the early 20th century, the records were dominated by a relatively small pool of traditional Catholic and saints’ names. Across the full 1900-2025 baptismal dataset, after grouping variants, the most widespread male first names were John (517), Michael (423), Patrick (366), Thomas (311) and Martin (185). Among female names, Mary dominated with 809 occurrences, followed by Brigid (281), Margaret (238), Catherine (206) and Anne (201). By the late 20th century, names such as Michelle, Aoife, Elaine, Laura, Sarah, Niamh, Emma and Ciara had become more

Athenry Parish Church in the 1960s

prominent. In the 2000s and 2010s, names such as Jack, Adam, Daniel, Cian, Conor, Dylan, Emma, Sophie, Hannah and Emily became increasingly prevalent. The partial data for the 2020s suggest a further shift towards an even wider variety of names. One of the strongest findings is the rise in name diversity. Even allowing for variants, the baptismal records contain 74 different first names in the 1900s. By the 1970s this had risen to 260, 377 in the 2000s and 457 in the 2010s. This points to a movement away from traditional Catholic names towards a wider and more individualised naming culture, reflecting Irish language names, wider cultural influences and a more diverse parish population. The baptismal records also show a clear increase in surname variety over time, most likely as a result of population growth especially in the modern period. It supports the wider story told by the baptism figures: Athenry has moved from a relatively stable rural parish in the early 20th century to a more diverse and rapidly changing community by the early 21st century. From birth to baptism The baptismal register also shows a clear rise in the time period between birth and baptism. In the early 20th century, baptisms usually took place within four to five days of birth. This rose to 20 days in the 1970s, 31 days in the 1980s and 62 days in the 1990s. The increase becomes much larger in the 21st century: 108 days

in the 2000s, 180 days in the 2010s and about 320 days in the 2020s. Overall, the pattern shifts from immediate baptism after birth to a more delayed and planned practice. This likely reflects changes in religious practice and family life, including the fact that many family members now live abroad and baptisms are often organised to allow relatives to travel and gather for the occasion. What the registers reveal Taken together, the Athenry parish registers show both continuity and change. They reveal a stable rural parish in the early 20th century, a period of growth and transition from the 1970s, and dramatic expansion during the Celtic Tiger years. The baptismal records add a personal and cultural layer by showing how names changed, how the parish became more varied, and how baptism practice itself changed over time. The strongest historical story to emerge is the movement from a relatively stable parish community to a more diverse and rapidly changing parish. Through baptisms, marriages and funerals, the registers allow us to see that transformation not in abstract terms, but through the ordinary milestones of parish life: children born, couples married, lives remembered, and communities changing over generations. I gratefully acknowledge St Mary’s Roman Catholic Parish, Athenry for permission to consult and analyse the parish registers and database used in this article. B.H .

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