Moyvane is a small village in County Kerry in the south west of Ireland. It is situated off the N69 road between Listowel to the South-West and Tarbert to the North. The village of Knockanure lies to the immediate South. The parish in which the village is located is now also known as the "Parish of Moyvane". It was originally called the parish of Murhur, this was part of the ancient "Barony of Iraghticonnor".
History
The name of "Moyvane", which in Irish is "Maigh Mheain" meaning "the Middle Plain", was adopted by the village in 1939 when a plebiscite was held by Father O'Sullivan, who was the Parish Priest at the time. It is the name of a townland situated about two miles South-West of the actual village itself and this area resembles a flat plain/prairie-like landscape that extends for miles around. Prior to 1939, the village had been called "NewtownSandes" and is even still referred to, by natives, as "Newtown" – which is especially true of the older generation. The origin of the name "NewtownSandes" itself is tempered with pain as it was the village located on the lands of George Sandes when he was alive in the early 1880s. He was a notoriously cruel Landlord at that time and still tenaciously held on to his estates towards the end of the Land War when most of his peers had already given up theirs. Around 1886, after a forceful eviction of some of his tenants, the name of the village was changed to "NewtownDillon" after John Dillon. However, this didn't stick and the name remained unchanged until 1916 when another name-change was attempted: this time to "NewtownClarke" after the 1916 Easter Rising leader Thomas Clarke.
Culture
The parish of Moyvane emphasises artistic talent in their culture, as well as music, drama, and storytelling. Performances are often held in the Marian Hall. Past performances there have included the well known 'seanchaí' Eddie Lenihan, who told of mythical battles involving the Fianna, as well as recitals by other poets. A number of 'talent' shows have been held in the hall over the years. These shows would often involve comedy sketches.
Boghole Boys
In 2004, Gabriel Fitzmaurice presented a radio show on Radio Kerry called 'The Boghole Boys'. The show aired each Monday night and included stories, songs, music and poems being performed by people from Moyvane, Knockanure and the surrounding parishes.
Poetry
The Moyvane village is perhaps most known for the poets that have come from its parish. The Village Hall is a verse by Gabriel Fitzmaurice which tells the tale of the old shows that took place in the performance hall prior to the new one being established. Willie's Car is a poetic description of a popular village character written by Dan Keane.
Stories and songs
Story-telling is a popular form of drama and expression in Moyvane. Many of the native stories written about the village are produced by the Moyvane poets discussed above. The songs of Moyvane and its surrounding area are many and varied. A collection of some of the songs and ballads that are native to the parish are listed on the village website.
Sport
GAA
The local GAA team has taken the championship in North Kerry 18 times throughout the course of the club's history. Moyvane also served as the setting for the 2005 championship final between Listol and Ballyduff.
Soccer
Moyvane has a soccer club called Newtown Athletic. Sponsored by Speedy's Bar, they play their Kerry District League home games in the Creamery Field – a well maintained pitch right in the heart of downtown Moyvane. The club was promoted last year to Division One.
Badminton
Badminton was first introduced to Moyvane in 1975. The first Club was a Juvenile Club formed by Fr. Brosnan. It was played in the old Marian Hall, and even though the roof was low and the Court size about three-quarters the size of a normal court, the young people of the parish played the new game with enthusiasm, skill and success. In 1976 Moyvane were among the prize winners in the County Championships held in Tarbert.
Basketball
Several basketball players, who have had victories at the county level and some international levels, have come from the village of Moyvane. Many girls from the parish have been involved with All-Ireland winning school teams and have brought many All-Ireland medals to Moyvane.
The Moyvane Nature Trail is a project that was created to connect the woods where the Moyvane and Knockanure woods meet. Moyvane is a rural parish in North Kerry bordering West Limerick.It is situated about north east of Listowel and south of Tarbert. The North Kerry Walks Committee provided finance for the project as well as appealed to volunteers to make an attack on all the rubbish, fallen trees, and to scrub both woods of briars and bushes commencing on Easter weekend of 1996. With the help of 145 voluntary hours, the walk was open to the public on 1 June 1996. The walk has been extended to include an alternative route around the perimeter of the GAA pitch, recently it has been further extended to take in a river walk that brings you to a restored Limekiln.
