Co. Cork would be County Cork, which is a very big area to search, at a rough count over 80 parishes.
Sponsors are usually relations but there is no hard and fast rule, the women can be hard to follow due to married names and the men could just as easily be a cousin or a brother due to repeating first names. It's a lot easier to make use of the sponsors when you have a few siblings to work with.
I don't want to put you off but unless you can tie down the family in the UK records I can't see how you can be sure of anything you find in Cork.
Hi
All good points. I did suspect that the sponsors were relations and this has helped a bit. I know that when she married John Donovan in 1858, Catherine Flynn put her father's name down as Daniel Flynn (labourer) and if I remember correctly he was deceased (according to the certificate). I have not found a Catherine Flynn born in Ireland to a Daniel Flynn, but on of them I have found does have a Daniel listed as a sponsor. Maybe he was an uncle who looked after her if her father died. I am currently seeing if I can find Daniel's death either in Ireland or England. If I can find this and work out when where he was born then that might help me.
I know there is a Daniel Flynn living in London in the right area at the time of the 1851 census who is about the right age and has a daughter named Catherine who is the correct age to be mine, so I am initially looking to see if there is a death of a Daniel Flynn between 1851 and 1858.
I also know at the time of the 1861 census there is a Catherine Flynn, widowed, listed as lodging with John and Catherine Donovan. She is old enough to be Catherine's mother or aunt, but as she is described as a lodger (rather than John's mother in law) I am inclined to think she is an aunt. Again if I can trace her on the 1841 or 1861 census and work out who she was married to then that might also help me.
With regards to the actually place I have had a bit of luck in possibly narrowing it down. I can across a print out of the census returns this morning and closer inspection of the later ones revealed that there was a bit more written regarding the place of birth. I have now got transcripts and the birthplace is down as "C.., Co Cork, Ireland". I think this could be Clonakilty or Cork as these areas are where I have found the most Flynns so far, but I am still investigating.
Thanks again.
Matt