Blaskets

Group of seven islands off the west coast of County Kerry, Republic of Ireland, near Slea Head. Great Blasket is 6 km/4 mi by 1 km/0.6 mi; other islands include Inishtooskert, Inishnabro, and Inishvickillane. The Blaskets have been uninhabited since 1953, and are an important breeding ground for sea birds such as gannets, puffins, and Manx shearwaters.

The Blasket Centre, an interpretive museum recalling the history and culture of the islands, is on the mainland at Dún Chaoin. The ruins of St Brendan's Oratory are on Inishvickillane.

It is estimated that the population of Great Blasket was about 150 in 1840, but after the Great Famine of 1845–47, had declined to 100. It had peaked at 176 by 1916, but declined thereafter, until it was abandoned in 1953.

The Blaskets produced several important Gaelic writers in the 20th century, including Maurice O'Sullivan, Peig Sayers, and Tomas Ó Criomhthainn.

Two ships from the Spanish Armada, the Santa Maria de la Rosa and the San Juan de Ragusa, sank near the Blaskets in 1588.