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Navan Fort, County Armagh
Photograph: Patrick Brown · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Province of Ulster

County Armagh

Ard Mhacha

“ard WAH-kha” · Macha's height, from ard (height) + Macha

Known as The Orchard County. For its apple orchards, which are old: Armagh has grown apples for centuries, and the Bramley is the crop it is known for.

Did you know? Navan Fort (Emain Macha), capital of the Ulaid, was deliberately burned and buried under a giant mound by its own people around 95 BC — a ritual no one has fully explained.
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Armagh by the numbers
Ulster province 194,394 people · 2021 census 1,327 km² · 27th of 32 by size County town Armagh -16% in the Famine · 232,393 people in 1841, 196,084 in 1851 8 baronies · 959 townlands 24 surnames 5 towns on the site 17,008 Irish speakers · 2021 Highest point Slieve Gullion, 573 m 2 senior All-Irelands 30 notable people born here Everything on the site about Armagh ↓
Carlow Cavan Cork Donegal Dublin Clare Galway Kerry Kildare Kilkenny Laois Leitrim Limerick Longford Louth Mayo Meath Monaghan Offaly Roscommon Sligo Tipperary Waterford Westmeath Wexford Wicklow Antrim Armagh Down Fermanagh Londonderry Tyrone

Open the atlas ↗

The history of Armagh

Before the 4th century Armagh was the land of the Ulaid, and Emain Macha — Navan Fort, just outside the city — was their capital, the seat of the Red Branch in the Ulster Cycle. The fort and the city are named after the goddess Macha. In the 4th century the Three Collas drove the Ulaid out, and their descendants ruled the territory of Airgíalla, or Oriel, for about eight hundred years; the chief families of the county, the O'Hanlons and MacCanns among them, traced themselves to the Collas, alongside the O'Neills of the Fews.

Patrick is counted the first bishop of Armagh, and the 9th-century Book of Armagh, now in Trinity College Dublin, holds early accounts of his life and his Confessio. In the 17th and 18th centuries the county was known for its rapparees — outlaws and cattle-raiders such as Count Redmond O'Hanlon. In the late 20th century south Armagh was a stronghold of the Provisional IRA, and in March 2009 Constable Stephen Carroll was shot dead in Craigavon, the first police officer killed in Northern Ireland since 1998.

Drawn from the History section of the Wikipedia article on County Armagh ↗, rewritten here and adding nothing it does not say; licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. The chronology above is this site's own; where the two differ, the article is the one to check.

The land — from Wikipedia

From its highest point at Slieve Gullion, in the south of the county, Armagh's land falls away from its rugged south with Carrigatuke, Lislea and Camlough mountains, to rolling drumlin country in the middle and west of the county. In the north it gives way to flatlands where rolling flats and small hills reach sea level at Lough Neagh.

County Armagh's boundary with Louth is marked by the rugged Ring of Gullion rising in the south of the county, whilst much of its boundary with counties Monaghan and Down goes unnoticed with seamless continuance of drumlins and small lakes. The River Blackwater marks the border with County Tyrone, and Lough Neagh otherwise marks the county's northern boundary.

Numerous uninhabited islands are located in the county's section of Lough Neagh: Coney Island Flat, Croaghan Flat, Padian, Phil Roe's Flat, and the Shallow Flat.

Read the full article ↗ · Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Clans & surnames of Armagh
Adams Mac Ádhaimh Ulster Scots / Gaelic · “son of Adam” Callan Ó Cathaláin Gaelic sept · “descendant of Cathalán, 'little battle-mighty one'” Devaney Ó Duibheamhna Gaelic sept · “descendant of Dubheamhain — dubh, 'black', with Eamhain, the old name of Navan Fort” Garvey Ó Gairbhith Gaelic sept · “descendant of Gairbhith, 'rough peace'” Hamill Ó hÁdhmaill Gaelic sept · “descendant of Ádhmall, 'quick, ready, active'” Hanlon Ó hAnluain Gaelic sept · “descendant of Anluan, 'great champion'” Hanratty Ó hAnrachtaigh Gaelic sept · “descendant of Anrachtach, 'unlawful'” Hughes Mac Aodha / Ó hAodha Gaelic sept · “son (or descendant) of Aodh, 'fire'” Langan Ó Longáin Gaelic septs (several) · “descendant of Longán, a diminutive of long, ‘tall’” Larkin Ó Lorcáin Gaelic sept · “descendant of Lorcán, 'fierce'” Loughran Ó Luchaireáin Gaelic sept · “descendant of Luchaireán, 'bright, glittering'” McAleer Mac Giolla Uidhir Gaelic sept / also Scottish · “son of Giolla Odhar, ‘the pale youth’” McCann Mac Cana Gaelic sept · “son of Cana, 'wolf cub' — a young warrior” McGuinness Mag Aonghusa Gaelic dynasty · “son of Aonghus” McNally Mac Con Allaidh Gaelic sept · “son of Cú Allaidh, 'the wild hound' — the wolf” Merrigan Ó Muireagáin Gaelic sept · “descendant of Muireagán, a diminutive of a name beginning Muir-” Mulgrew Ó Maolchraoibhe Gaelic sept · “descendant of Maolchraoibhe, 'chief of Craobh'” Murphy Ó Murchadha Gaelic sept · “descendant of Murchadh, 'sea-warrior'” O'Hagan Ó hAodhagáin Gaelic sept · “descendant of Aodhagán, a diminutive of Aodh, 'fire'” O'Hare Ó hÍr / Ó hAichir Gaelic sept · “descendant of Ír, 'long-lasting' — or of Aichear, 'fierce'” O'Neill Ó Néill Gaelic dynasty · “descendant of Niall (Glúndub)” Rogan Ó Ruadhagáin Gaelic sept · “descendant of Ruadhagán — from ruadh, red” Toner Ó Tomhrair Gaelic-Norse · “descendant of Tomhrar — a Norse personal name” Traynor Mac Thréinfhir Gaelic sept · “son of Tréanfhear, 'champion' — literally 'strong man'”

Tap a name for its full page — story, homeland map and neighbours. Or see all surnames from County Armagh, with the other counties each name is tied to.

Towns, saints and legends of Armagh

Towns. Armagh Ard Mhacha (16,438, 2021), Tandragee Tóin re Gaoith (3,543, 2021), Lurgan An Lorgain, Portadown Port an Dúnáin, Keady An Céide. What every town name means →

Saints. St Patrick (17 March), St Moninne (6 July), St Oliver Plunkett (1 July), St Malachy (3 November).

Legends set here. Emain Macha — the Red Branch · Emain Macha — Macha's curse · Emain Macha — Deirdre of the Sorrows · Slieve Gullion — the Cailleach's lake. On the atlas →

First names that belong here. Deirdre, Neasa, Blinne, Conchobhar, Pádraig, Fearghas, Naoise, Ardghal, Ceallach, Colla, Eochaidh, Macha.

Irish in Armagh today

At the 2021 census, 17,008 people in Armagh aged 3 and over said they could speak Irish, and 9,803 could speak, read, write and understand it. 5,743 speak it daily, and for 564 it is their main language.

NISRA, Census 2021, Flexible Table Builder (county geography, built by NISRA from Data Zones; Belfast is split between Antrim and Down). All six counties →

The top of Armagh

Slieve Gullion (Sliabh gCuillinn), 573 metres, in the Ring of Gullion.

Rivers and loughs: River Bann, River Blackwater, Fane River, Lough Neagh.

MountainViews, via Wikipedia. Every county's highest point → · Rivers and loughs →

Armagh in the All-Ireland

Hurling: no senior title.
Football: 2 senior titles (2002, 2024); 3 finals lost.

Every county's All-Ireland titles →

Born in Armagh

From Wikidata: people whose recorded birthplace is in the county, who have a Wikipedia article and are no longer living, with dates shown only where the article confirms them, ordered by how many languages Wikipedia covers them in. Traditional birthplaces of early saints are as Wikidata records them. Dates are left off where the sources disagree.

People in Armagh, census by census

Armagh had 232,393 people in 1841 and has 194,394 now (-16%). Its peak was 232,393 in 1841; its low point 108,815 in 1937, -53% of 1841. It has never regained the population it had before the Famine.

18211831184118511861187118811891190119111926193719511961196619711981199120012011
197,427220,134232,393196,084190,086179,260163,177143,289125,392120,291110,070108,815114,154117,594125,164133,969133,230141,585162,957174,792

Census returns as tabulated in the county's Wikipedia article. All 32 counties, 1821 to today →

Hidden Armagh — the places the buses miss
  • Navan Fort (Emain Macha)
    Capital of the Ulaid and stage of the Ulster sagas — where a huge timber temple was built, filled with stones and deliberately burned around 95 BC.
  • The Yellow Ford
    August 1598: Hugh O'Neill destroys an English army marching to relieve the Blackwater fort — the worst defeat England ever suffered in Ireland.
On the ground in Armagh

Every pin is placed by its documented coordinates. All the monuments of Ireland →

Everything on the site about County Armagh

The county

History

Monuments and heritage

Coast and country

People and culture

Quick answers
What is the Irish name for County Armagh?

Ard Mhacha. Armagh is one of the 9 counties of Ulster (Cúige Uladh).

Who ruled County Armagh in the Middle Ages?

Around 1014 it was held by Airgíalla (Oriel); by 1450, O'Neill of Tír Eoghain. The full era-by-era chronology is on this page.

What surnames come from County Armagh?

Names historically associated with Armagh include Adams, Callan, Devaney, Garvey, Hamill, Hanlon, Hanratty, Hughes, among others.

What does Ard Mhacha mean?

Ard Mhacha, said “ard WAH-kha”, means Macha's height — from ard (height) + Macha. Macha is the goddess of the Ulster Cycle who cursed the men of Ulster; Emain Macha lies two miles west.

What is the population of County Armagh?

194,394 at the 2021 census, against 232,393 in 1841, before the Famine.

What is the county town of Armagh?

Armagh. County Armagh covers about 1,327 km², which makes it the 27th largest of the 32 counties.

Who are famous people from County Armagh?

Among the best-known people born in Armagh are George William Russell, John Dill, Jimmy Jones, Tomás Ó Fiaich, Owen Roe O'Neill, Wilbur Cush. The full list, with their birthplaces, is on this page.

What did the Famine do to County Armagh?

The census counted 232,393 people in Armagh in 1841 and 196,084 in 1851: a change of -16% in ten years, through death and emigration.

Sources for this page

A clean copy for school projects or the family file; collapsed sections print in full.

The chronology of who held the county is this site's own reading of the standard histories onto today's county borders, and says so where the fit is rough. Quoted passages are marked and licensed. Spotted an error? Say so — corrections are credited.

Trace your ancestors in Armagh

Free, from the holding institutions. How to begin: the six-step guide → · Spotted an error on this page? Suggest a correction.