Colby is a small village in the south of the Isle of Man

Isle of Man

The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...

 in the parish of Arbory

Arbory (parish)

Arbory is a parish in the Isle of Man. The name is derived from "Kirk Cairbre". It forms part of the sheading of Rushen in the south of the island, and its main settlements are Colby and Ballabeg .-External links:*...

. It lies on the A7 road between the towns of Castletown and Port Erin and close to the similarly sized village of Ballabeg

Ballabeg

There are several small villages and hamlets with the name Ballabeg in the Isle of Man.The name Ballabeg derives from the Manx which means small homestead; although the spelling is different, it is pronounced the same as the English name....

.

History and facilities

The name Colby is of Scandinavian origin and is derived from Kolli's Farm which was home to the lexicographer, Archibald Cregeen (1774–1841). The word Colby is thought to derive from the Viking

Viking

The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...

 words Col (meaning Hill) and Byr (meaning farm).

The village has a railway station

Colby railway station

Colby Station is a small station on the southern edge of the village of Colby in the south of the Isle of Man served by the Isle of Man Railway; it forms part of the sole remaining section of the network which once covered over 46 miles island-wide.-Origins:...

 on the Isle of Man Steam Railway and is home to Colby Glen, one of the seventeen National Manx Glens.

The village is home to Colby

Colby F.C.

Colby A.F.C. are a football club from Colby on the Isle of Man. They compete in the Isle of Man Football League and wear black and white kits. They play their home games at Glen Road in Colby. The Manager of Colby A.F.C. for the 2010-11 season is Dave Beard, with the coach as Ken...

 Football Club who play in the Isle of Man Football League

Isle of Man Football League

The Isle of Man Football League, also known as Canada Life Premier League due to sponsorship purposes, is a football league for clubs on the Isle of Man run by the Isle of Man Football Association. The league does not form part of the English football league system. All clubs on the island are...

 and are based at Glen Road.

Methodism

Colby has long been associated with Methodism

Methodism

Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...

. John Wesley

John Wesley

John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...

 preached at Balladoole in 1781, invited to do so by a local family. The first Methodist preacher arrived in the village in 1822 and a local house was set up as the Preaching House for Primitive Methodists

Primitive Methodism

Primitive Methodism was a major movement in English Methodism from about 1810 until the Methodist Union in 1932. The Primitive Methodist Church still exists in the United States.-Origins:...

. By 1883 two Methodist chapels were built, Colby Primitive Methodist Chapel on Main Road which closed in 1950, when the two chapels united and is now a private house. Colby Wesleyan Methodist Chapel on Station Road was also built in 1833.

Colby Glen

Colby Glen is a small valley just north of the village, with ash, beech, elm, and sycamore trees. It is 2.0 hectares or 4.9 acres (19,829.6 m²). The Colby river runs through it.