The fi rst historical ref erence to Odhbha is in Annals of Ulster 612 A.D. : Bellum Odbae..." The battle of Odba. The English " Navan " was a sixteenth century development. The fi rst occurrence we could trace was in 1529 - " The Abbott of Navanne ". The change may have been influenced by the tendency in Northern I rish to replace " ó " with " á ". A twelf th century monastery adopted its name - ( 'n )Odhbha ( n ) - as " Novan ", and this became the recognised name of the nearby town in Latin and English, changing to " Navan ".

Navan etimology

History of County Meath

The territory of Meath was already f requented by prehistoric peoples and Celtic f or

over 2,000 years, as evidenced by many archaeological sites.

An area known as Meath (Midhe), which included this county in addition to

Westmeath, Longf ord, and parts of Cavan, Kildare and Off aly, was f ormed by Tuathal

(in about 130) in a kingdom that served as a place of f easting and residence staff

dell'Ard Ri (the supreme King of I reland). The King of Meath reigned until 1173, but

the title was claimed until the late fi f teenth century their descendants until Hugh de

Lacy obtained the lordship of the region by Henry I I of England. The Meath was then

shrunk considerably and became part of the "Pale".

However acquired the status of a county in the reign of Edward I in 1296, and

became the property of the descendants of the Crown, beginning in the person of

Edward I V, and at that time was regularly defi ned the boundaries. I n 1543 the

county was divided to f orm the Westmeath, a county apart, albeit to 1598 anyone

still regarded as a province which included Westmeath Meath, East Meath, Longford

and Cavan. I t was in the early part of the seventeenth century, which was f ormally

established as a county, and was never considered as the fi f th province of I reland.

The County of Meath is

one of 32 counties of

Ireland. It is the county

near Dublino.

The county town is

Navan.

Its nickname is

“The Royal County”.

The city is at the

confluence of the rivers

Boyne and Blackwater,

located on the road N3

National Primary is the

ninth largest city in the

nation and the fastest in

terms of population

growth, according to data

from the national census

of 2002 showed an

increase of 51.6% since

1996.

Hystory of N avan

From the 17th century onwards the town’s importance as a commercial and market centre increased, helped by the opening of the Boyne Navigation Canal about 1790 and fi f ty years later by the construction of railways. At the end of the 18th century there were eight corn mills in operation, powered by water and steam, and the largest of these were allied with extensive distilleries. Other products of the town were paper, linen, sacking, leather, bacon, soap, candles, nails and machinery, while there were many small home industries. Agricultural produce and livestock were sold in great quantities at the markets and f airs. I n the present century many of the older industries have died out owing to changing conditions, and new ones have arisen, adapting the old mills beside the rivers to their needs in some cases. I n the past 150 years the population has remained f airly constant, but the appearance of the town has greatly altered for the better with the disappearance of the old walls, the demolition of many old buildings, and the erection of new housing areas around it. Churches, convents, halls, schools and hospitals have been built or reconstructed and some fi ne new f actories have sprung up. Since1922 Navan has become the most important administrative industrial, commercial, educational and public health centre in County Meath, and one of the chief centres for the manufacture of f urniture and carpets in the county.

1) The Solstice Arts Centre

2)Academy Street/John Boyle O’Reilly In the past

At the present

3)Meath County Infirmary

4)Old Court House

5)Athlumney Castle

6)Athlumney Church & Graveyard

7)The ramparts & Ruxton’s Bridge

8)Poolboy Bridge

9)St.Mary’s Roman Catholic Church

Irish cuisine is known for soups and stews, meats, fish and a solid tradition of home bakery for bread.

The Irish Stew, is surely one of

the most known traditional Irish

dishes; it is simple and perfect to

eat during the cold days. The

Irish Stew is prepared with

mutton, potatoes and vegetables.

A cake prepared with plenty of

Irish coffee, mixed with

whiskey. Ice with double cream

and garnished with toasted

hazelnuts. Served hot with a

cherry and cream.

The Dublin Coddle is a very

ancient dish of Dublin and is

usually cooked when there are

funerals because it can be

stored for long periods of time.

When neighbors visit the dead,

then is offered Dublin Coddle.

The fish can be both fresh and

smoked, usually cod fillets or

salmon and then again haddock

(haddock) and mackerel. The

fish pie fish (sometimes

enriched with previously fried

mushrooms and boiled eggs

crumbled) is covered with a

potato crust, a crust of

potatoes, boiled, mashed and

seasoned with butter.

LEISURE ACTIVITIE

S

NAVAN OFFERS LOTS TO DO at visitors and local people.

In the meandering rivers of Boyne and Blakwater and pictoresque landscapes with their greenplains lots of activities set.The reason of being for some of them consist of the experience in horsemanship, fishing, walking.Among the various types, the most commons are walking along the ramparts walks, the hill of tara, golfing with its numerous clubs, angling, horseriding with the best known equestrian schools, cycling updated by the legendary epic tale of The Cattle Raid of Cooley. The cycling trail follows the route of many historical and heritage sites.Swimming is the healthy heart of all. During the summer months the sounds of splashing and dipping are the delight pleasure of children not more less than young and old people.

The legend of Hill Of Tara

The Hill of Tara is about 1.6 kms to the right off the main Navan/ Dublin Road.It is the wealth of history and legend associated with Royal Tara as the ancient spiritual and political Capital of Ireland, and its central place in Irish History, which attracts ongoing, national and international interest. For here on this lonely hill, once stood a royal acropolis.For well over two thousand years royalty occupied Tara. This was an ideal spot to build a palace and, in time, the Five Ancient Roads of Ireland converged here, linking Crúachan - Rathcroghan in County Roscommon, Eamain Macha - NavanFort in County Armagh and Dún Ailinne. The view from the hill is one of the best features. The surrounding countryside is considered to be one of the richest pastureland in the whole of Ireland. Here at the cultural and political heart of the country every third year there was a great Feis (fair or festival) held at which the laws and the rules of the land were discussed and revised.

Music “ Irish Dance” by Broccostella School

Orchestra

And finally, we leave you with the trailer of the movie

«007:GoldenEye» Starring by Pierce Brosnan

Click here!

ISTITUTO COMPRENSIVO EVAN GORGA

SCHOOL EXCHANGE 2013 BROCCOSTELLA – NAVAN