My researches are far from complete, and not academically proven at the moment, but I think it is safe to suggest that where Manx place-names seem arbitrary or meaningless in a common-sense way, they are probably based on folk-etymology, and their original significsnce has been forgotten altogether.

I usually quote the 'coloured' names e.g. Croit Bane, white croft; Balladhoo, black farm; bayre jairg, red road; Ballabooie, yellow farm; Cronk Breck, speckerd hill, which with a bit of thought are meaningless.

Similarly garbled names such as 'bridge of the red lambs' or 'place behind the sheaves' which stretch credulkity to breaking point.

THe Irish have a written heritage of poetry and prose called the Dindshenchas, very long and involved accounts of Irish geography and place-names, mixed up with folklore.which date back to just before the Viking age.If you look at these you will never read either JJ Kneen or G Broderiick in the same way. Try entering The Metrical Dindshenchasin in a search engine.

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