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Blarney (An Bhlárna in Irish) is a village in the south of Ireland, located 8km north-west of Cork, Ireland. It is the site of Blarney Castle, home of the legendary Blarney Stone. Blarney village is a major tourist attraction in County Cork. Mostly people come to see the castle, kiss the stone, and to shop at the "Blarney Woolen Mills" center.
By kissing the Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle, it is claimed that one can receive the "Gift of the Gab" (eloquence, or skill at flattery or persuasion). The legend has its roots in the response of the Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth I to Cormac Teige McCarthy's attempt to blandish his way out of a difficult situation, during negotiations of the takeover of the Blarney Castle by the occupying English forces. Cormac himself was the King of Munster, living in the Blarney Castle around the 14th century. The stone itself is rumoured to have been created by a witch during the Middle Ages.
The centre of the village is dominated by The Square - a grass field where Blarney locals and townspeople from Cork city sometimes congregate during the summer.
Several attempts to beautify the square over the years have always been met with stiff objection from the locals.[citation needed] Previously the square was used for markets.
Blarney formerly had its own narrow gauge railway station. The Cork and Muskerry Light Railway linked Blarney with Cork; it opened in 1887 but closed on 29 December 1934.