Dingle, whose current Irish name is An Daingean, is a fishing village in County Kerry. In 2005, the government ruled that since this was an Irish-language (Gaeltacht) area, it had to have a Gaelic name. Unfortunately, no-one could remember what Dingle’s Irish name was. The government simply invented one: An Daingean which means “The Fortress.” While 90% of the residents prefer Dingle, officially the area is An Daingean.
Dingle’s economy was traditionally based on fishing and sheep, but today tourism is a major economic component. Tourism has been boosted by movies and by the increasing interest in Heritage Tourism.
Pubs:
Stream:
Ships:
Dingle is a fishing port and so here are some photos of some of the ships.
Fungie:
In 1984, a bottlenose dolphin was spotted by Dingle’s lighthouse keeper as it escorted the fishing boats out to sea and then back again at the end of their voyages. The sailors named him Fungie and he quickly became a harbor feature. The fishermen then began to take their children out to swim with Fungie and he seemed to enjoy the human contact. At the present time, Fungie is a tourist attraction and Dolphin Tours come out regular to let the tourists photograph him.