History of Galway History of Galway Galway, one of the largest cities in Ireland, situated on the west coast of Ireland, has a complex history going back around 800 years. The city was the only medieval city in the province of Connacht. The city takes its name from that of the river, the "Gaillimh". The word "Gaillimh" means ""stony"" as in ""stony river"". Today, the river is commonly called the River Corrib, after Lough Corrib, just to the north. In Irish, Galway is also called "Cathair na Gaillimhe" ("city of Galway") which is a modern creation to prevent confusion with "Contae na Gaillimhe"
Castlegar, County Galway Because there were so many castles in the parish, the distance between them was very short, so some have suggested that this could be an alternative source of the name. Parts of the parish, most notably Carrabrowne, Ballindooley and Menlo, were until recently, strongholds of the Irish language. But with recent development of the area, and the influx of non-native speakers, the use of Irish is very much reduced. Emigrants from Ireland went to British Columbia and named a place there after it:Castlegar, British Columbia. Ó Laoi, Padraic. "History of Castlegar Parish". 1996 Castlegar, County Galway Castlegar ("An Caisleán Gearr")