Result of vote on name for An Daingean due

Counting begins this morning in the vote among locals to establish their preferred name for the Co Kerry town of An Daingean.

Counting begins this morning in the vote among locals to establish their preferred name for the Co Kerry town of An Daingean.

Some 1,222 residents and ratepayers in the town are qualified to vote - excluding those from the hinterland where sentiment favours retaining the Irish version of the name.

The Irish Timesthis morning quoted returning officer Charlie O'Sullivan as saying voter turnout had been "very good".

Despite being within a gaeltacht area, residents in the popular tourist town did not want the name changed from Dingle in 2003, and it is likely they will vote in favour of a return to the English-language appellation.

READ MORE

The proposal in the referendum was to rename the town with a bilingual name: Dingle An Daingean Uí Chúis.

The Official Languages Act 2003 gave Irish-language names in Gaeltacht areas official status, and there is no legal provision for town to have official names in two languages.

The concern relates largely to the effect the change to An Daingean may have on tourism as Dingle disappears from maps, road signs and official literature.

Adding to the confusion is that a town called Daingean already exists in Co Offaly.

Although the plebiscite will strengthen the case for a return to the long-established name, Minister for Gaeltacht Affairs Éamon Ó Cuív has told Kerry county councillors that the vote outcome has no legal standing.