Belleek (Fermanagh, Northern Ireland)

Belleek (from Irish Béal Leice 'mouth of the flagstones') is a large village and civil parish in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. While the greater part of the village lies within County Fermanagh, part of it crosses the border and the River Erne into County Donegal. It lies in the historic barony of Lurg. It had a population of 904 people in the 2011 Census, and is situated within Fermanagh and Omagh district, around 7 kilometres (4 mi) east of Ballyshannon. July is normally the warmest month in Northern Ireland, and the highest summer temperatures of all occur inland, furthest away from the cooling influence of the Atlantic. A long-standing high temperature record for Northern Ireland (30.8 °C) was recorded at Knockarevan in County Fermanagh on 30 June 1976, which was not surpassed until the heatwave of July 2021 (peaking at 31.4 °C, recorded at Armagh). The village is the most westerly settlement in Northern Ireland and thus the most westerly settlement in the United Kingdom. The majority of the pottery is still produced in Belleek today using the same procedures of over 165 years.