The Hill of Allen (Almhain)

A lone hill rising from the Bog of Allen. In legend it was the seat of the warrior Fionn mac Cumhaill.

The Hill of Allen (Almhain) rises from the flat Bog of Allen in County Kildare. In Irish legend it was the great seat and stronghold of Fionn mac Cumhaill, leader of the Fianna, the band of warriors whose adventures fill the Fenian Cycle of tales.

A 19th-century tower now crowns the hill, but its fame rests on its place in myth as the home of Ireland's greatest legendary hero.

At a glance

• A lone hill rising from the Bog of Allen, Co. Kildare.
• In legend, the seat of Fionn mac Cumhaill and the Fianna.
• Central to the Fenian Cycle of Irish myth.

In County Kildare

The Hill of Allen is in County Kildare, Cill Dara in Irish, which means “church of the oak”.

More in Kildare

• The Curragh (An Currach): A great open plain of grassland, the historic home of Irish horse racing.
• Maynooth (Maigh Nuad): A university town home to Ireland's national seminary and a Norman castle.

Other places of this kind

• The Cliffs of Moher (Aillte an Mhothair): Sea cliffs located at the southwestern edge of the Burren region.
• Newgrange (Sí an Bhrú): A prehistoric monument in County Meath, older than Stonehenge and the Pyramids.
• The Giant's Causeway (Clochán an Aifir): Around 40,000 interlocking basalt columns on the Antrim coast, a UNESCO site wrapped in the legend of Finn McCool.
• Glendalough (Gleann Dá Loch): A beautiful glacial valley of two lakes, home to one of Ireland's most important early monastic settlements.
• The Rock of Cashel (Carraig Phádraig): A dramatic outcrop crowned with medieval buildings, once the seat of the kings of Munster.
• Clonmacnoise (Cluain Mhic Nóis): A great early monastery on the banks of the Shannon, once a renowned centre of learning.

The Irish name

The Irish form of The Hill of Allen is Almhain. 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.