Lough Gowna (Loch Gamhna)

A wooded, island-strewn lake and the source of the River Erne.

Lough Gowna lies on the Longford-Cavan border at the head of the Erne system, its quiet bays and islands popular with anglers. Its name, 'lake of the calf', comes from a legend of a magical calf whose spring overflowed to flood the valley.

At a glance

• Source of the River Erne
• On the Longford-Cavan border
• 'Loch Gamhna': lake of the calf

In County Longford

Lough Gowna is in County Longford, An Longfort in Irish, which means “the fortress / encampment”.

More in Longford

• Lough Ree (Loch Rí): A great lake on the River Shannon, dotted with islands and bordering three counties.
• Ardagh (Ardach): A charming heritage village of stone cottages around a green.

Other places of this kind

• Lough Neagh (Loch nEathach): The largest freshwater lake in Ireland and the British Isles.
• The Lakes of Killarney (Loch Léin): Three beautiful lakes ringed by mountains and ancient woodland at the heart of Killarney National Park.
• Lough Erne (Loch Éirne): A vast island-studded lake system in County Fermanagh, dotted with early Christian sites.
• Lough Gur (Loch Gair): A horseshoe lake in County Limerick surrounded by one of Ireland's richest ancient landscapes.
• Strangford Lough (Loch Cuan): A vast sea lough of tidal islands and rich wildlife.
• Lough Corrib (Loch Coirib): The Republic's largest lake, dividing Galway city from Connemara.

The Irish name

The Irish form of Lough Gowna is Loch Gamhna. You can hear it spoken, and take apart names like it, in the Placename Explorer. The authoritative record for any Irish place-name is logainm.ie.