Team sport
A team sport includes any sport where individuals are organized into opposing teams which compete to win. Team members act together towards a shared objective; this can be done in a number of ways such as outscoring the opposing team. Team members set goals, make decisions, manage conflict, solve problems in a supportive, trusting atmosphere in order to accomplish their objectives. Examples are basketball, rugby, water polo, lacrosse, cricket and the various forms of football and hockey. Team sports are practiced between opposing teams, where the players interact directly and between them to achieve an objective; the objective involves teammates facilitating the movement of a ball or similar object in accordance with a set of rules, in order to score points. The meaning of a "team sport" has been disputed in recent years; some types of sports have different rules than "traditional" team sports. These types of team sports do not involve teammates facilitating the movement of a ball or similar item in accordance with a set of rules, in order to score points.
For example, rowing, dragon boat racing, track and field among others can be considered team sports. In other types of team sports, there may not be an opposing team or point scoring, for example, mountaineering. Instead of points scored against an opposing team, the relative difficulty of the climb or walk is the measure of the achievement. In some sports where participants are entered by a team, they do not only compete against members of other teams but against each other for points towards championship standings. For example, motorsport Formula One. In cycling however, team members whilst still in competition with each other, will work towards assisting one a specialist, member of the team to the highest possible finishing position; this process is known as team orders and although accepted was banned in Formula One between 2002 and 2010. After a controversy involving team orders at the 2010 German Grand Prix however, the regulation was removed as of the 2011 season. Through the years, the popularity of team sport has continued to grow, positively influencing not just athletes, but fans and national economies.
All over the world, the impact of team sport can be seen as professional athletes live out their dreams while serving as role models, youth athletes develop life skills and follow in the footsteps of their role models, fans bond over the love of their teams while supporting their economies with their support. Traces of sprinting as a team sport extend back several thousand years - as evidenced in images in the cave in Lascaux in France which depict people running after animals or vice versa. Organized athletics in Greece traditionally date back to 776 BC, with ongoing activity recorded up to 393 BC; these ancient Olympic Games tested warrior skills and consisted of running, jumping or leaping and javelin throw. In the Bayankhongor Province of Mongolia, Neolithic-era cave paintings dating to 7000 BC depict a wrestling match surrounded by crowds. Prehistoric cave-paintings in Japan show a sport similar to sumo wrestling. In Wadi Sura, near Gilf Kebir in Libya, a Neolithic rock painting in the cave of swimmers shows evidence of swimming and archery being practiced around 6000 BC.
The term "athlete", according to mythology, derives from the name of Aethlius, the mythological first King of Elis in Greece. The practice of young athletes carrying flaming torches is traced to the King of Elis, under whose supervision the games took place. Before the start of the races gods were invoked by offerings of fruits and vegetables; the winner of the race was crowned with a wreath of olive or laurel and celery sticks were offered as a trophy. In subsequent years monetary attractions were introduced as prize money. However, the practice of offering celery sticks is still in vogue in the 100 m sprint in the Olympics; the present-day pattern of Olympic Games resembles the practice followed in ancient times. Sprint was the coveted event; the 200 m sprint is known in Greek as "short foot race". The 400 m race called diaulos in Greek. Seven team sports are on the program of the Summer Olympics. Cricket's inclusion in the 2024 Summer Olympics depends on the decision of the International Cricket Council and its members.
A cricket tournament formed part of the Summer Olympics in 1900, although only one match was played, between teams representing Great Britain and France. However, the British team was a club touring side and the French players were drawn from expatriates living in Paris. Ice hockey and curling are team sports at the Winter Olympics together with the bobsleigh competition where the men's event has classes for both two-man and four-man sleds, but the women's class is restricted to two persons only. All Olympic team sports include competitions for both women. Team sports portal Major professional sports teams of the United States and Canada Footnotes BibliographyBaofu, Peter; the Future of Post-Human Sports: Towards a New Theory of Training and Winning. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4438-6993-5. Barber, Gary. Getting Started in Track and Field Athletics: Advice & Ideas for Children and Teachers. Trafford Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4122-3847-2. Filppu, The Benefits of Team Sports, retrieved 13 November 2010 Dyer, William.
Team Building: Proven Strategies for Improving Team Performance. San Francisco, Ca.: Jossey-Bass. ISBN
Mixed-sex sports
Mixed-sex sports known as mixed-gender or coed sports, are sports where the participants are not of a single sex. This can take the form of team sports involving people of different sexes. In organised sports settings, rules dictate the number of people required of each sex in a team; such rules account for the sex differences in human physiology, with males being larger and stronger than females on average. In informal settings, mixed-sex sports involves groups of friends and/or family engaging in sport without regard to the sex of the participants. Sports which are mixed-sex as standard are ones where the differences between the sexes do not affect the ability of the competitor, for example equestrian sports. Sports in which the sex of a competitor affects their ability to compete have single-sex divisions, with mixed-team variants comprising the mixed-sex element of the sport, for example mixed doubles tennis. Mixed-sex sports have been encouraged as a way of boosting female sports participation and improving social harmony between the sexes.
Mixed-sex play and sports is common among young children, among whom differences are less pronounced. It is uncommon in most organised sports to find individuals of different genders competing head-to-head at elite level, principally due to the differences between the sexes. In sports where these differences are less linked to performance, it is standard practice for men and women to compete in mixed-sex fields; these open-class sports prove accommodating to intersex athletes, who challenge the sex-defined rules of both single-sex sport and mixed-sex sports with defined male and female roles. In equestrian sports and female riders compete against each other in eventing and show jumping disciplines. Female jockeys compete alongside male ones in horse racing, though the former constitute a minority of jockeys overall. Beyond the athletes, the horses used for racing are a mixed of male and female, with a 60/40 split at the top level between colts and fillies. In snooker, the professional tour is open to men and women, although only one woman has competed on the tour for a full year, although others have played in individual tournaments.
There is a separate women only tour to encourage female participation in the sport. During an Ultimate game, teams of 7 players play in direct competition with each other, while most people of the same gender mark each other, it is not uncommon to see match ups between people of different gender. A common form of mixed-sex sports involves pairs with one female team member. Sports based on dancing have male/female pairings, such as pair figure skating, ice dancing, ballroom dancing and synchronised swimming duets. In these sports the male and female participants physically work together to produce an artistic and athletic performance. Mixed doubles involves two mixed-sex pairs competing against each other with all four competitors in open play; this is prominent in racket sports, including tennis, table tennis, badminton and racquetball. Mixed pairs and mixed teams events are organised in contract bridge. Pairs may compete in turn-based games, where men and women take turns alternately; this is found in more strategy-based sports, including mixed doubles curling, mixed golf, mixed bowling and mixed team darts.
Separate male and female performances may be combined to produce mixed team results in such sports as diving. Synchronised diving is found in mixed-sex format. Mixed tag team matches are found in professional wrestling, where wrestlers are not explicitly competing in a turn-based manner, but are obliged to only face their opponent of the same sex. In non-vehicular racing sports the physiological differences between the sexes preclude head-to-head competition between people of different sexes at the elite level; as a result, mixed-sex events are most held with a relay race format. In running, a 4 × 400 metres mixed relay race was introduced at the 2017 IAAF World Relays, will be added to the 2019 World Championships in Athletics and 2020 Summer Olympics. In cross-country running, a 4 × 2 km mixed relay race was added at the 2017 IAAF World Cross Country Championships. In swimming, mixed relay races were introduced at the 2014 FINA World Swimming Championships and the 2015 World Aquatics Championships.
The event will debut at the 2020 Summer Olympics. In triathlon, the ITU Triathlon Mixed Relay World Championships mixed relay race has been held since 2009; the triathlon at the Youth Olympic Games has a mixed relay race since 2010. As in standard triathlons, each triathlon competitor must do a segment of swimming and running. In biathlon, a mixed relay race was first held at the Biathlon World Championships 2005 in Khanty-Mansiysk, it was added to the 2014 Winter Olympics; the mixed division is a staple of Ultimate, it is the only division, showcased at both the 2013 World Games and the 2017 World Games. Mixed-sex forms of ball sports involve set numbers of each sex per team, sometimes pre-defined roles in the team which people of that gender can play. Examples include korfball, coed softball and wheelchair rugby. Mixed-sex sport has a long history at the Olympic Games, dating back to the 1900 Summer Olympics, the first in which women participated. Two women competed against men in the equestrian, the croquet competition was mixed-sex, while Hélène de Pourtalès was the sole female sailor and first mixed-sex team champion, being part of a gold medal-winning
Penalty box
The penalty box or sin bin is the area in ice hockey, roller derby, rugby league, rugby union and some other sports where a player sits to serve the time of a given penalty, for an offence not severe enough to merit outright expulsion from the contest. Teams are not allowed to replace players who have been sent to the penalty box. Ice hockey has popularized the term "penalty box." In most cases it is a small isolated bench surrounded by walls on all four sides, with the side facing the ice having the access door. There are two penalty boxes: one for each team. In ice hockey a period in the box occurs for all penalties unless circumstances call for an ejection or a penalty shot. If three or more players are serving penalties at once, the team will continue playing with three on the ice but will not be allowed to use the players in the box until their penalties expire. Most leagues specify; this results in situations such as the power play, in which the opposing team outnumbers the penalized team, situations in which both teams must skate with one less player on the ice.
If a team scores a goal while one or more of the opposing team is serving a non-coincidental minor penalty, the penalty with the least time remaining is cancelled, the player serving that penalty may return to the ice. In the case of a double-minor penalty, the penalty is treated as two consecutive 2-minute penalties. If the opposing team scores, only the penalty being served is cancelled. A major or misconduct penalty must be served in full, regardless of the number of goals scored by the opposition. To keep play fair, coincidental minor penalties are served in full regardless of scoring. Goaltenders never go to the penalty box though they are assessed penalty minutes. Any penalties enforced against goaltenders or the bench are served by a teammate, with many leagues requiring that teammate to have been on the ice when the penalty occurred. In both codes of rugby, only penalties involving violent play, dangerous play, professional fouls or repetitive commission of a specific offence result in a sin binning, where the offending player must spend 10 minutes off the field.
In rugby union, the referee signals such infringements by displaying a yellow card. In Australian rugby league, the referee will raise both hands and spread his digits to indicate "10 minutes". If a team is committing one offence the referee will warn the captain that the next time they commit that offence, the player responsible will be sent to the bin. In the Super League and other UK based competitions, the referee will face the offending team and circle one arm towards them to signal a team warning. For the most serious offences and/or repeated misconduct, the referee may send off players, who take no further part in the game and leave their team a player short. Referees have the power to send team officials to the stands. In 1981 Australia's New South Wales Rugby Football League introduced the use of the sin bin and that year Newtown Jets hooker Barry Jensen became the first player sent to it. Use of a sin bin was introduced to rugby union in 2001. In the National Rugby League, there is no physical sin bin.
Players must serve their punishment in the dressing room. However, in the Super League and other UK based competitions, a player sent to the sin bin will sit on the bench and will wear a'bib'. In rugby union, a sin-binned or sent-off player may be replaced if he plays in the front row of the scrum and the team has a substitute available, capable of filling that player's position; this allows contested scrums to continue during the player's suspension. In this instance, the team must remove one player from another position for the duration of the suspension. In rugby union sevens, the sending-off period is 2 minutes, which despite being eight minutes shorter, is a more severe penalty for two reasons: a) a normal sevens match lasts only 14 minutes instead of the 80 used in 15-man union or 13-man league, meaning that the penalty lasts one seventh as opposed to one eighth of the match, b) during this time, the offender's team must play without one seventh of their team; the following sports use penalty boxes in some form: Bandy Field hockey Handball International Rules football Lacrosse Ringette Roller Derby Water poloThe hybrid sport of International Rules football presents a slight anomaly since penalty boxes are native to neither of the sports from which International Rules was conceived, namely Gaelic football and Australian rules football (although the Gaelic Athletic Association did experiment with the idea, before moving on to another experimental form
Tackle (football move)
Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. The primary and important purposes of tackling are to dispossess an opponent of the ball, to stop the player from gaining ground towards goal or to stop them from carrying out what they intend; the word is used in some contact variations of football to describe the act of physically holding or wrestling a player to the ground. In others, it describes one or more methods of contesting for possession of the ball, it can therefore be used as both a defensive or attacking move. In Middle Dutch, the verb tacken meant to handle. By the 14th century, this had come to be used for the equipment used for fishing, referring to the rod and reel, etc. and for that used in sailing, referring to rigging, equipment, or gear used on ships. By the 18th century, a similar use was applied to harnesses or equipment used with horses. Modern use in football comes from the earlier sport of rugby, where the word was used in the 19th century. In American football and Canadian football, to tackle is to physically interfere with the forward progress of a player in possession of the ball, such that his forward progress ceases and is not resumed, or such that he is caused to touch some part of his body to the ground other than his feet or hands, or such that he is forced to go out of bounds.
In any such case, the ball becomes dead, the down is over, play ceases until the beginning of the next play. A tackle is known as a quarterback sack when the quarterback is tackled at or behind the line of scrimmage while attempting to throw a pass. A tackle for loss indicates a tackle that causes a loss of yardage for the opposing running back or wide receiver; this happens when the quarterback is sacked, when either a rusher or a receiver is tackled behind the line of scrimmage, or when the ball is fumbled behind the line of scrimmage and was picked up by an offensive player who does not manage to move past the line before being tackled. When a player who does not have the ball is taken down, it is referred to as a block. Tacklers are not required to wrap their arms around the ball carrier before bringing him to the ground. Tackles can be made by grabbing the ball carrier's jersey and pulling him to the ground; as mentioned above, the referee can declare that a play is dead if the ball carrier's forward progress has been stopped if he has not been taken to the ground.
To protect players from catastrophic injury, there are some restrictions on tackles and blocks. At no time may a defensive player tackle an offensive player by grabbing the facemask of their helmet. Although spear tackles are allowed in gridiron football, a player may not use his helmet to tackle an opponent as the technique can cause serious injury to both players and warrants a 15-yard penalty as well as a fresh set of downs if committed by the defending team. A similar penalty is assessed to any player attempting to make contact with his helmet against another opponent's helmet, known as a helmet-to-helmet collision. Grabbing a ball carrier by the pads behind his neck and pulling him down is known as a "horse collar", a method, made illegal at all levels of American football, it is illegal to tackle a player who has thrown a forward pass after he has released the ball. However, in the NFL a player can continue forward for one step, which means that a player, committed to attacking the quarterback will still make a tackle.
Place kickers and punters are afforded an greater protection from being tackled. Once the play is ruled complete, no contact is permitted. Blocks that occur in the back of the legs and below the knees, initiated below the waist, or clotheslines are generally prohibited and players who use them are subject to much more severe penalties than other illegal tackles. However, a player who plays on the line can block below the knees as long the block is within five yards of the line and the player they block is in front of them and not engaged by another blocker. In the National Football League, tackles are tracked as an unofficial statistic by a scorekeeper hired by the home team. Though the statistic is cited, the league does not verify that the counts are accurate. Unlike other codes, tackles in association football have to be predominantly directed against the ball rather than the player in possession of it; this is achieved by using either leg to wrest possession from the opponent, or sliding in on the grass to knock the ball away.
A defender is permitted to use their body to obstruct the motion of a player with the ball, this may be part of a successful tackle. Pulling a player to the ground in the style of tackle common to other codes is absent from the game. Although some contact between players is allowed, the rules of association football limit the physicality of tackles, explicitly forbidding contacts which are "careless, reckless or excessive force
Goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by intercepting shots at goal. Such positions exist in hurling, association football, Gaelic football, international rules football, field hockey, rink bandy, floorball, roller hockey, ice hockey, water polo, lacrosse and other sports. Special rules apply to the goalkeeper that do not apply to other players; these rules are instituted to protect the goalkeeper, being an obvious target for dangerous or violent actions. In certain sports like ice hockey and lacrosse, goalkeepers are required to wear special equipment like heavy pads and a face mask to protect their bodies from the impact of the playing object. In some sports, goalkeepers may have the same rights as other players. In other sports goalkeepers may be limited in the actions they are allowed to take or the area of the field where they may be. Goalkeepers are the tallest players on the field.
In football, each team's goalkeeper defends his/her team's goal and has special privileges within the game. The goalkeeper's main job is to stop any penetration of the ball into the goal; the goalkeeper is the only player in the side who may use his or her hands and arms to catch and save the ball, but only within his/her own penalty area. Goalkeepers are required to wear a distinctive color jersey, separate from the referee's jersey color and either team's regular jersey color, so the referee can identify them. There are no other specific requirements, but goalkeepers are allowed to wear additional protective gear such as padded clothing. Most goalkeepers wear gloves to protect their hands and enhance their grip of the ball. Like every player on the pitch, they are required to wear shin guards; the goalkeeper is allowed to catch the ball, is allowed to punch or deflect the ball away from the goal. The goalkeeper has a significant advantage on a ball high in the air, as he or she can raise their arms and play the ball before an attacker can attempt a header.
When the keeper picks up the ball, they are allowed to kick it or throw it, or to place it on the ground and play it with his feet. The official Laws of the Game stipulate that once the goalkeeper has picked up the ball, he or she must redistribute it within six seconds. Once the keeper establishes possession of the ball, opposing players are not allowed to attempt to play the ball and must give the goalkeeper room to attempt a kick. If a ball is in the air and both the goalkeeper and a field player of the opposing team are challenging for the ball, advantage goes to the goalkeeper because he or she is not able to protect themselves. Though the goalkeeper is allowed to use their hands in the penalty box area, they are not allowed to use their hands on balls that have been intentionally kicked to them by a teammate. In such situations, the goalkeeper can not pick the ball up; the rule applies only to a ball, kicked. A ball, headed or otherwise not kicked may be picked up by the goalkeeper without penalty.
An infringement of this rule results in an indirect kick to the opposing team. The referee has some discretion in making this call. For example, a ball, deflected by a teammate may still be picked up by the goalkeeper; the "back-pass" rule has been followed in international football and in most professional and amateur leagues since the early 1990s, but leagues for younger players may choose not to enforce the rule. The back pass rule is listed in Law 12 of the Laws of the Game; as the goalkeeper is the team's only player who can see the entire field, they act as the organizer of the team when it is defending, such as on a free kick or a corner kick. This means the goalkeeper needs to be loud, with a voice that can project over the defensive area of the pitch. In turn, the players on their team need to be able to listen and respond to directions called to them. In field hockey, the goalkeeper wears extensive protective equipment including helmet and neck guards and leg padding, arm or elbow protectors, special gloves, lower leg guards and shoe covers.
The gloves and kickers are always made of special high density foam material that both protects the goalkeeper and has excellent rebound qualities. He or she is equipped with a stick. Specialist goalkeeper sticks must conform to the same dimensional limitations as field players' sticks but are designed for optimal use with one hand and for blocking rather than hitting the ball. From 2007 teams may elect to play with 11 field players, no-one has the privileges of a goalkeeper. If a goalkeeper is used, they fall into one of two categories: a equipped goalkeeper must wear a helmet, unless they are nominated to take a penalty stroke against the opposing goalkeeper, wear a different colored shirt and at least foot
Ireland
Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, St George's Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, the twentieth-largest on Earth. Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland, which covers five-sixths of the island, Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom. In 2011, the population of Ireland was about 6.6 million, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain. Just under 4.8 million live in the Republic of Ireland and just over 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland. The island's geography comprises low-lying mountains surrounding a central plain, with several navigable rivers extending inland, its lush vegetation is a product of its mild but changeable climate, free of extremes in temperature. Much of Ireland was woodland until the end of the Middle Ages. Today, woodland makes up about 10% of the island, compared with a European average of over 33%, most of it is non-native conifer plantations.
There are twenty-six extant mammal species native to Ireland. The Irish climate is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean and thus moderate, winters are milder than expected for such a northerly area, although summers are cooler than those in continental Europe. Rainfall and cloud cover are abundant; the earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10,500 BC. Gaelic Ireland had emerged by the 1st century AD; the island was Christianised from the 5th century onward. Following the 12th century Norman invasion, England claimed sovereignty. However, English rule did not extend over the whole island until the 16th–17th century Tudor conquest, which led to colonisation by settlers from Britain. In the 1690s, a system of Protestant English rule was designed to materially disadvantage the Catholic majority and Protestant dissenters, was extended during the 18th century. With the Acts of Union in 1801, Ireland became a part of the United Kingdom. A war of independence in the early 20th century was followed by the partition of the island, creating the Irish Free State, which became sovereign over the following decades, Northern Ireland, which remained a part of the United Kingdom.
Northern Ireland saw much civil unrest from the late 1960s until the 1990s. This subsided following a political agreement in 1998. In 1973 the Republic of Ireland joined the European Economic Community while the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland, as part of it, did the same. Irish culture has had a significant influence on other cultures in the field of literature. Alongside mainstream Western culture, a strong indigenous culture exists, as expressed through Gaelic games, Irish music and the Irish language; the island's culture shares many features with that of Great Britain, including the English language, sports such as association football, horse racing, golf. The names Éire derive from Old Irish Eriu; this in turn comes from the Proto-Celtic *Iveriu, the source of Latin Hibernia. Iveriu derives from a root meaning'fat, prosperous'. During the last glacial period, up until about 10,000 BC, most of Ireland was periodically covered in ice. Sea levels were lower and Ireland, like Great Britain, formed part of continental Europe.
By 16,000 BC, rising sea levels due to ice melting caused Ireland to become separated from Great Britain. Around 6000 BC, Great Britain itself became separated from continental Europe; the earliest evidence of human presence in Ireland is dated at 10,500 BC, demonstrated by a butchered bear bone found in a cave in County Clare. It is not until about 8000 BC, that more sustained occupation of the island has been shown, with evidence for Mesolithic communities around the island; these Mesolithic communities lived as hunter-gatherers across the island until about 4000 BC. Some time before 4000 BC, Neolithic settlers arrived introducing cereal cultivars, domesticated animals such as cattle and sheep, large timber building, stone monuments; the earliest evidence for farming in Ireland or Great Britain is from Co.. Kerry, where a flint knife, cattle bones and a sheep's tooth were carbon-dated to c. 4350 BC. Field systems were developed in different parts of Ireland, including at the Céide Fields, preserved beneath a blanket of peat in present-day Tyrawley.
An extensive field system, arguably the oldest in the world, consisted of small divisions separated by dry-stone walls. The fields were farmed for several centuries between 3500 BC and 3000 BC. Wheat and barley were the principal crops; the Bronze Age – defined by the use of metal – began around 2500 BC, with technology changing people's everyday lives during this period through innovations such as the wheel. According to John T. Koch and others, Ireland in the Late Bronze Age was part of a maritime trading-network culture called the Atlantic Bronze Age that included Britain, western France and Iberia, that this is where Celtic languages developed; this contrasts with the traditional view that their origin lies in mainland Europe with the Hallstatt culture. During the Iron Age, a Celtic language and culture emerged in Ireland. How and when the island became Celtic has been debated for close to a century, with the migrations of the Celts being one of the more enduring themes of archaeological and linguistic studies.
The most recent genetic research s
County Kerry
County Kerry is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster, it is named after the Ciarraige. Kerry County Council is the local authority for the county and Tralee serves as the county town; the population of the county was 147,707 at the 2016 census. Kerry is the fifth-largest of the 26 counties of the 15th-largest by population, it is the second-largest of Munster's six counties by area, the fourth-largest by population. Uniquely, it is bordered by only two other counties: County Limerick to the east and County Cork to the south-east; the county town is Tralee. The diocesan seat is Killarney, one of Ireland's most famous tourist destinations; the Lakes of Killarney, an area of outstanding natural beauty are located in Killarney National Park. The Reeks District is home to Carrauntoohil, Ireland's highest mountain at 1,039m; the tip of the Dingle Peninsula is the most westerly point of Ireland. There are nine historic baronies in the county.
While baronies continue to be defined units, they are no longer used for many administrative purposes. Their official status is illustrated by Placenames Orders made since 2003, where official Irish names of baronies are listed under "Administrative units". Clanmaurice – Clann Mhuiris Corkaguiny – Corca Dhuibhne Dunkerron North – Dún Ciaráin Thuaidh Dunkerron South – Dún Ciaráin Theas Glanarought – Gleann na Ruachtaí Iraghticonnor – Oireacht Uí Chonchúir Iveragh Peninsula – Uíbh Ráthach Magunihy – Maigh gCoinchinn Trughanacmy – Triúcha an Aicme Coolgarriv – An Chúil Gharbh Aghadoe – Achadh Deo Maglass Ard na Caithne Sliabh Luachra Corca Dhuibhne Bounard Kerry faces the Atlantic Ocean and for an Eastern-Atlantic coastal region, features many peninsulas and inlets, principally the Dingle Peninsula, the Iveragh Peninsula, the Beara Peninsula; the county is bounded on the west on the north by the River Shannon. Kerry is one of the most mountainous regions of Ireland and its three highest mountains, Carrauntoohil and Caher, all part of the MacGillycuddy's Reeks range.
Just off the coast are a number of islands, including the Blasket Islands, Valentia Island and the Skelligs. Skellig Michael is a World Heritage Site, famous for the medieval monastery clinging to the island's cliffs; the county contains the extreme west point of Ireland, Dunmore Head on the Dingle Peninsula, or including islands, Tearaght Island, part of the Blaskets. The most westerly inhabited area of Ireland is Dún Chaoin, on the Dingle Peninsula; the River Feale, the River Laune and the Roughty River flow into the Atlantic. The North Atlantic Current, part of the Gulf Stream, flows north past Kerry and the west coast of Ireland, resulting in milder temperatures than would otherwise be expected at the 52 North latitude; this means that subtropical plants such as the strawberry tree and tree ferns, not found in northern Europe, thrive in the area. Because of the mountainous area and the prevailing southwesterly winds, Kerry is among the regions with the highest rainfall in Ireland. Owing to its location, there has been a weather reporting station on Valentia for many centuries.
The Irish record for rainfall in one day is 243.5 mm, recorded at Cloore Lake in Kerry in 1993. In 1986 the remnants of Hurricane Charley crossed over Kerry as an extratropical storm causing extensive rainfall and damage. Kerry means the "people of Ciar", the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county; the legendary founder of the tribe was son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective describing a dark complexion; the suffix raighe, meaning people/tribe, is found in various -ry place names in Ireland, such as Osry—Osraighe Deer-People/Tribe. The county's nickname is the Kingdom. On 27 August 1329, by Letters Patent, Maurice FitzGerald, 1st Earl of Desmond was confirmed in the feudal seniority of the entire county palatine of Kerry, to him and his heirs male, to hold of the Crown by the service of one knight's fee. In the 15th century, the majority of the area now known as County Kerry was still part of the County Desmond, the west Munster seat of the Earl of Desmond, a branch of the Hiberno-Norman FitzGerald dynasty, known as the Geraldines.
In 1580, during the Second Desmond Rebellion, one of the most infamous massacres of the Sixteenth century, the Siege of Smerwick, took place at Dún an Óir near Ard na Caithne at the tip of the Dingle Peninsula. The 600-strong Italian and Irish papal invasion force of James Fitzmaurice Fitzgerald was besieged by the English forces and massacred. In 1588, when the fleet of the Spanish Armada in Ireland were returning to Spain during stormy weather, many of its ships sought shelter at the Blasket Islands and some were wrecked. During the Nine Years' War, Kerry was again the scene of conflict, as the O'Sullivan Beare clan joined the rebellion. In 1602 their castle at Dunboy was taken by English troops. Donal O'Sullivan Beare, in an effort to escape English retribution and to reach his allies in Ulster, marched all the clan's members and dependants to the north of Ireland. Due to harassment by hostile forces and freezing weather few of the 1,000 O'Sullivans who set out reached their destination. In the aftermath of the War, much of the native owned land in Kerry was confiscated and given to English settlers or'planters'.
The head of the MacCarthy M
