Buncrana
Buncrana
Bun Cranncha | |
|---|---|
Town | |
Buncrana from the south | |
| Motto(s): Aoibhinn Linn Áille na hÁite Seo (Irish) "sweet to us is the beauty of this place" | |
| Coordinates: 55°08′11″N 7°27′22″W / 55.1364°N 7.4560°W | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Ulster |
| County | County Donegal |
| Barony | Inishowen West |
| Dáil Éireann | Donegal |
| EU Parliament | Midlands–North-West |
| Elevation | 62 m (203 ft) |
| Population (2022) | 6,971 |
| Time zone | UTC±0 (WET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (IST) |
| Eircode routing key | F93 |
| Telephone area code | +353(0)74 |
| Irish Grid Reference | C346320 |
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1821 | 198 | — |
| 1831 | 1,059 | +434.8% |
| 1841 | 961 | −9.3% |
| 1851 | 797 | −17.1% |
| 1861 | 686 | −13.9% |
| 1871 | 755 | +10.1% |
| 1881 | 764 | +1.2% |
| 1891 | 735 | −3.8% |
| 1901 | 1,316 | +79.0% |
| 1911 | 1,848 | +40.4% |
| 1926 | 2,309 | +24.9% |
| 1936 | 2,295 | −0.6% |
| 1946 | 2,729 | +18.9% |
| 1951 | 3,039 | +11.4% |
| 1956 | 3,064 | +0.8% |
| 1961 | 3,165 | +3.3% |
| 1966 | 3,115 | −1.6% |
| 1971 | 3,334 | +7.0% |
| 1981 | 3,938 | +18.1% |
| 1986 | 4,131 | +4.9% |
| 1991 | 4,388 | +6.2% |
| 1996 | 4,805 | +9.5% |
| 2002 | 5,271 | +9.7% |
| 2006 | 5,911 | +12.1% |
| 2011 | 6,839 | +15.7% |
| 2016 | 6,785 | −0.8% |
| 2022 | 6,971 | +2.7% |
Buncrana (/ˈbʌnkrænə/ bun-KRA-NA; Irish: Bun Cranncha, meaning 'foot of the (River) Crana') is a town in Inishowen in the north of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. The town sits on the eastern shores of Lough Swilly, being 23 kilometres (14 mi) northwest of Derry and 43 kilometres (27 mi) north of Letterkenny. In the 2022 census, the population was 6,971, making it the second most populous town in County Donegal, after Letterkenny, and the largest in Inishowen.
Buncrana is the historic home of the Ó Dochartaigh (O'Doherty) clan and originally developed as a town around the defensive tower known as O'Doherty's Keep, at the mouth of the River Crana. The town was moved to its present location, just south of the River Crana, when George Vaughan had the current Main Street laid out in 1718.
The town was a major centre for the textile industry in County Donegal from the 19th century until the mid-2000s (decade).