New cillíní project to document Mayo’s children’s burial grounds
A NEW project that will document and preserve local knowledge, memories and traditions relating to Mayo's cillíní has been launched.
Cillín: Recording Mayo's Children's Burial Grounds - led by the heritage office of Mayo County Council, funded by the Heritage Council and delivered by Mac Conmara Heritage Consulting - will combine oral history interviews with documentary research to record the stories, folklore and community understanding associated with these important but often overlooked heritage sites.
Historically, cillíní were burial grounds used for unbaptised infants, stillborn children and, in some cases, other people excluded from consecrated burial grounds. While at least 228 cillíní are currently recorded on the Record of Monuments and Places for County Mayo, this figure is widely acknowledged to represent only a portion of the sites known within local communities.
Many sites remain undocumented, while others survive primarily through local knowledge and tradition. The project therefore welcomes information relating to the location, history, folklore and community understanding of cillíní sites throughout Mayo.
The project will explore not only the physical locations of these burial grounds, but also the stories, traditions and memories associated with them. Through professionally recorded interviews, documentary research and interpretive outputs, the initiative aims to preserve knowledge that remains vulnerable to loss as generations pass.
The project will draw upon a range of documentary sources, including archaeological records, Ordnance Survey mapping, folklore collections, placenames research and local historical publications. These sources will be combined with oral testimony to create a richer understanding of how cillíní were perceived, remembered and discussed within communities.
The project will produce a series of archived oral history recordings, alongside a researched narrative report and publicly accessible digital resource. The findings will help inform future research, conservation and interpretation initiatives, while providing valuable material for communities, researchers, schools and heritage practitioners.
By combining oral history with documentary research, the project aims to foster informed and respectful discussion about a complex aspect of Ireland’s social and religious history, while ensuring that the experiences and memories associated with these places become part of the historical record
If you have knowledge, memories, stories, family connections, local traditions, folklore, historical information, photographs or information relating to the location and history of cillíní sites in Mayo, researchers would greatly appreciate hearing from you. You can contact the Mayo Heritage Office on (094) 9064092 or (094) 906 4619 or by email at heritage@mayococo.ie, or contact Mac Conmara Heritage Consulting on (087) 9160730 or by email at macconmaraheritage@gmail.com.