Clonagh derives from the Irish Cluianeach, meaning insular meadow of horses, and that word "insular" is the clue. The ground around this elevated site used to flood, turning the church and its graveyard into something close to an island, a raised dry patch surrounded by seasonal water with horses grazing the margins. That geography has long since changed, but the name carries the memory of it.

Writing in 1906, the historian Begley noted that the church consists of a nave and choir, and that while the walls of the nave appear to be of considerable age, the choir arch is of more recent construction and may have been added after the arrival of the Normans in Ireland during the twelfth century. The distinction matters, since it suggests the site was already old when the Normans came and was subsequently modified rather than built from scratch under their influence. The whole complex sits within an irregularly shaped graveyard, roughly sixty metres north to south and fifty metres east to west, enclosed by a stone wall built after 1700, with an entrance gate at the northern end of the western wall. Close by, there is a holy well dedicated to St Ciaran of Clonmacnoise, the sixth-century founder of one of Ireland's great monastic sites on the Shannon. A holy well is typically a natural spring or water source associated with a saint, often the focus of local devotion and pattern days. This one remains connected to the parish of Coolcappa, and Begley recorded that St Ciaran's feast on the 9th of September was still being observed there in his time.

The site sits in County Limerick and the entrance gate on the western wall is the practical way in. The graveyard remains in use, so the ground can be uneven and the older sections are worth picking through carefully. The association with St Ciaran makes September of particular interest, since there may still be some local observance around the feast day, though visitors should check locally before assuming any formal pattern day survives. The holy well is recorded nearby, and finding it may require a little searching in the surrounding landscape.