Portal:Scottish islands

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The Scottish Islands Portal
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The Cuillin, Isle of Skye
View from Elgol on the Isle of Skye across to the Cuillin
Looking from the Isle of Mull towards Ardnamurchan peninsula as the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry MV Clansman sails past the Rubha nan Gall lighthouse
Tiree
Clisham in the distance, Harris
Tombolo connecting St Ninian's Isle to Mainland, Shetland
Portree Waterfront, Isle of Skye
Seilebost on Harris
Tobermory waterfront on Mull

Scotland has around 900 offshore islands, most of which are to be found in four main groups: Shetland, Orkney, and the Hebrides, sub-divided into the Inner Hebrides and Outer Hebrides. There are also clusters of islands in the Firth of Clyde, Firth of Forth, and Solway Firth, and numerous small islands within the many bodies of fresh water in Scotland including Loch Lomond and Loch Maree. The largest island is Lewis and Harris which extends to 2,179 square kilometres, and there are a further 200 islands which are greater than 40 hectares in area. Of the remainder, several such as Staffa and the Flannan Isles are well known despite their small size. Some 94 Scottish islands are permanently inhabited, of which 89 are offshore islands. Between 2001 and 2011 Scottish island populations as a whole grew by 4% to 103,702.

The geology and geomorphology of the islands is varied. Some, such as Skye and Mull, are mountainous, while others like Tiree and Sanday are relatively low lying. Many have bedrock made from ancient Archaean Lewisian Gneiss which was formed 3 billion years ago; Shapinsay and other Orkney islands are formed from Old Red Sandstone, which is 400 million years old; and others such as Rùm from more recent Tertiary volcanoes. Many of the islands are swept by strong tides, and the Corryvreckan tide race between Scarba and Jura is one of the largest whirlpools in the world. Other strong tides are to be found in the Pentland Firth between mainland Scotland and Orkney, and another example is the "Grey Dog" between Scarba and Lunga. (More on Scottish islands...)

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Image 1The main ridge of the Cuillin, Skye
Credit: Adrian Pingstone
Image 2Aerial view of the low-lying island of Berneray in the Outer Hebrides, known for its sandy beaches backed by machair
Credit: Doc Searls
Image 3Aerial view of the ruins of a hermitage on Canna
Credit: Peter Van den Bossche
Image 4Fishing boats in Stromness Harbour, Orkney
Credit: Renata
Image 5Duart Castle, a 13th-century castle on Mull, the historical seat of Clan Maclean
Credit: Philippe Giabbanelli
Image 6Rubha nan Gall lighthouse, Tobermory, Mull, built in 1857 by David and Thomas Stevenson, with a Caledonian MacBrayne ferry in the background
Credit: Colin
Image 7Sandy beach at Eoropie, Lewis
Credit: AmosWolfe
Image 8Eilean Donan Castle at the confluence of three sea lochs, Loch Duich, Loch Long and Loch Alsh
Credit: Diliff
Image 9A common or harbour seal breast-feeding a pup on Skye
Credit: Nevit Dilmen
Image 10Skye Bridge, opened in 1995; the toll was lifted in 2004
Credit: Gene Selkov
Image 11Sandy beach at Mealista, Lewis
Credit: Peter Moore
Image 12The Corryvreckan Whirlpool in the narrow Gulf of Corryvreckan between Jura and Scarba
Credit: Walter Baxter
Image 13Wildflowers in machair, a coastal dune grassland found in the Outer Hebrides and elsewhere
Credit: Jon Thomson
Image 14Barra Airport is the only one in the world to use a beach as a regular runway
Credit: Steve Houldsworth
Image 15Blackhouses were the traditional form of house across the Hebrides and the Highlands; this example is at Arnol, Lewis
Credit: LornaMCampbell
Image 16The cliffs of Eshaness, North Mainland, Shetland
Credit: ThoWi
Image 17The Italian Chapel on Lamb Holm, Orkney was built from two Nissen huts by Italian prisoners of war during World War 2; the interior frescoes are by Domenico Chiocchetti
Credit: Renata
Image 18The ferry from Glenelg to Kylerhea on Skye has run for 400 years; the present boat, MV Glenachulish, is the only hand-operated turntable ferry still in operation
Credit: Wojsyl
Image 19A scattered settlement on Eriskay in the Outer Hebrides, beneath Beinn Sciathan
Credit: Mipmapped
Image 20Alasdair Crotach MacLeod is the first McLeod not to be buried on Iona; his tomb on Harris dates from 1528, and is among the finest of this period in Scotland
Credit: Gvdwiele
Image 21Baile Mòr, the village on Iona
Credit: Clydecoast
Image 22A boat leaving a slipway stacked with creels in Elgol Bay, Skye, with the Cuillin in the background
Credit: Paul Hermans
Image 23Common or harbour seal, seen off Lismore
Credit: Charles J Sharp
Image 24Fingal's Cave on Staffa
Credit: Unknown (c. 1900)
Image 25The tied island of St Ninian's Isle is joined to the Shetland Mainland by the largest tombolo in the UK
Credit: ThoWi
Image 26Sgùrr nan Gillean, in the Cuillin on Skye, from Sligachan
Credit: Diliff
Image 27The Bruichladdich distillery, one of eight on Islay; single-malt whisky is a major product of the islands
Credit: Bdcl1881
Image 28Aerial view of Kisimul Castle, a small medieval castle on an islet off Barra
Credit: DJI_0077
Image 29Neist Point Lighthouse on Skye was designed by David Alan Stevenson and dates from 1909
Credit: Lionel Ulmer
Image 30The 1st-century Dun Carloway on Lewis is a well-preserved example of an Iron Age broch, a type of complex Atlantic roundhouse only found in Scotland
Credit: Morris R. Maciver
Image 31Shetland mouse-ear, a rare plant species unique to Shetland and found only on two serpentine hills in the Keen of Hamar reserve on the island of Unst
Credit: Melvin Grey
Image 32Satellite image of Skye, showing the surrounding islands including Rona, Raasay and Scalpay to the north east and Soay, Canna and Rùm to the south
Credit: NASA
Image 33Portree, the main settlement on Skye
Credit: Bert Kaufmann
Image 34White-tailed eagle fishing off Mull, one of several islands to which the birds have been successfully re-introduced
Credit: Jacob Spinks
Image 35Kilarrow Parish Church, known as the Round Church, is a Georgian building in Bowmore on Islay
Credit: Ronsteenvoorden
Image 36The highest of the Fairy Pools, a series of waterfalls near Glen Brittle, Skye
Credit: Drianmcdonald
Image 37The Neolithic farmstead of Knap of Howar on Papa Westray, Orkney, dates from 3700 BC and might be the oldest surviving stone dwelling in northern Europe
Credit: Me677

Selected island group

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Orkney (/ˈɔːrkni/; Scots: Orkney; Old Norse: Orkneyjar; Norn: Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands (archaically "The Orkneys"), is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north of the coast of Caithness and has about 70 islands, of which 20 are inhabited. The largest island, the Mainland, has an area of 523 square kilometres (202 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest Scottish island and the tenth-largest island in the British Isles. Orkney's largest settlement, and also its administrative centre, is Kirkwall.

Orkney is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a constituency of the Scottish Parliament, a lieutenancy area, and an historic county. The local council is Orkney Islands Council, one of only three councils in Scotland with a majority of elected members who are independents.

The islands have been inhabited for at least 8,500 years, originally occupied by Mesolithic and Neolithic tribes and then by the Picts. Orkney was colonised and later annexed by the Kingdom of Norway in 875 and settled by the Norsemen. In 1472, the Parliament of Scotland absorbed the Earldom of Orkney into the Kingdom of Scotland, following failure to pay a dowry promised to James III of Scotland by the family of his bride, Margaret of Denmark.

In addition to the Mainland, most of the remaining islands are divided into two groups: the North Isles and the South Isles. The local climate is relatively mild and the soils are extremely fertile; most of the land is farmed, and agriculture is the most important sector of the economy. The significant wind and marine energy resources are of growing importance; the amount of electricity that Orkney generates annually from renewable energy sources exceeds its demand. Daytime temperatures generally range between 7 °C (45 °F) in winter and 16 °C (61 °F) in summer. (Full article...)

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News

Proposed spaceport site at Lamma Ness, Unst

12 February: The BiFab construction yard at Arnish near Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, is purchased by InfraStrata.
11 February: Wild fires occur in Benbecula; and at Achmore and Sildinish in the Isle of Lewis; Horsaclete in Harris; Brevig in Barra; and Eubhal in North Uist.
19 January: Barra and Vatersay are put under tier-4 restrictions after an outbreak of Covid-19.
18 January: The Shetland Space Centre submits plans for a spaceport on Unst (proposed site pictured), Shetland, including three rocket launch pads.
8 January: Distilleries in Orkney and South Uist receive government grants to research ways of reducing their CO₂ emissions.
4 January: After the UK leaves the European Union, the Northern Celt, an Irish fishing boat based out of Greencastle, County Donegal, is ordered to leave the 12-nautical-mile zone around Rockall by officers of Marine Scotland.
1 January: A total of 72 cases of Covid-19 are recorded in an ongoing outbreak in Shetland.
9 December: A review by a committee of MSPs into the commissioning and building of two new dual-fuel Caledonian MacBrayne ferries, MV Glen Sannox and "hull 802", criticises CMAL, Transport Scotland and the Scottish government, as well as the ship builders, Ferguson Marine.
3 December: North-east Lewis, Sea of the Hebrides and Shiant East Bank are designated Marine Protected Areas, while East Mainland Coast Shetland, Sound of Gigha, Coll and Tiree, Rùm, the west coast of the Outer Hebrides, and the waters off St Kilda and Foula are designated Special Protection Areas.
30 November: Michael Russell, MSP for Argyll and Bute, and David Stewart and John Finnie, MSPs for the Highlands and Islands region, will stand down at the 2021 election.
17 November: Phytophthora ramorum-infected larch trees in Arran are to be felled over a 543-acre area, to prevent the fungus-like pathogen from spreading.
4 November: The Scottish Wildlife Trust objects to a proposed salmon farm in the Marine Protected Area of Wester Ross, near Horse Island, Summer Isles, because of the potential impact on kelp forests and maerl beds.

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Selected fauna

A Shetland lamb with the common "moorit" (reddish brown) colour

The Shetland is a small, wool-producing breed of sheep originating in the Shetland Isles, Scotland, but is now also kept in many other parts of the world. It is part of the Northern European short-tailed sheep group, and it is closely related to the extinct Scottish Dunface. Shetlands are classified as a landrace or "unimproved" breed. This breed is kept for its very fine wool, for meat, and for conservation grazing.

Although Shetlands are small and slow-growing compared to commercial breeds, they are hardy, thrifty, easy lambers, adaptable and long-lived. The Shetland breed has survived for centuries in difficult conditions and on a poor diet, but they thrive in better conditions. Shetlands retain many of their primitive survival instincts, so they are easier to care for than many modern breeds. (Full article...)

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Selected history & culture article

Whisky Galore! is a 1949 British comedy film produced by Ealing Studios, starring Basil Radford, Bruce Seton, Joan Greenwood and Gordon Jackson. It was the directorial debut of Alexander Mackendrick; the screenplay was by Compton Mackenzie, an adaptation of his 1947 novel Whisky Galore, and Angus MacPhail. The story—based on a true event, the running aground of the SS Politician—concerns a shipwreck off a fictional Scottish island, the inhabitants of which have run out of whisky because of wartime rationing. The islanders find out the ship is carrying 50,000 cases of whisky, some of which they salvage, against the opposition of the local Customs and Excise men.

It was filmed on the island of Barra; the weather was so poor that the production over-ran its 10-week schedule by five weeks, and the film went £20,000 over budget. Michael Balcon, the head of the studio, was unimpressed by the initial cut of the film, and one of Ealing's directors, Charles Crichton, added footage and re-edited the film before its release. Like other Ealing comedies, Whisky Galore! explores the actions of a small insular group facing and overcoming a more powerful opponent. An unspoken sense of community runs through the film, and the story reflects a time when the British Empire was weakening.

Whisky Galore! was well received on release. It came out in the same year as Passport to Pimlico and Kind Hearts and Coronets, leading to 1949 being remembered as one of the peak years of the Ealing comedies. In the US, where Whisky Galore! was renamed Tight Little Island, the film became the first from the studios to achieve box office success. It was followed by a sequel, Rockets Galore!. Whisky Galore! has since been adapted for the stage, and a remake was released in 2016. (Full article...)

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Selected island

The Boathouse

Ulva (/ˈʌlvə/; Scottish Gaelic: Ulbha) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, off the west coast of Mull. It is separated from Mull by a narrow strait, and connected to the neighbouring island of Gometra by a bridge. Much of the island is formed from Cenozoic basalt rocks, which are formed into columns in places.

Ulva has been populated since the Mesolithic period, and there are various Neolithic remains on the island. The Norse occupation of the island in the Early Middle Ages has left few tangible artefacts but did bequeath the island its name, which is probably from Ulvoy, meaning "wolf island". Celtic culture was a major influence during both Pictish and Dalriadan times as well as the post-Norse period when the islands became part of modern Scotland. This long period, when Gaelic became the dominant language, was ended by the 19th-century Clearances. At its height, Ulva had a population of over 800, but by May 2019, this had declined to 5; some increase in the number of residents was expected in future, with the re-population plan that was to commence in 2020.

Numerous well-known individuals have connections with the island including David Livingstone, Samuel Johnson and Walter Scott, who drew inspiration from Ulva for his 1815 poem, The Lord of the Isles. Wildlife is abundant: cetaceans are regularly seen in the surrounding waters and over 500 species of plant have been recorded. Today there is a regular ferry service and tourism is the mainstay of the economy. In March 2018 the Scottish Land Fund pledged £4.4 million towards a community buyout of the island, and the North West Mull Community Woodland Company took ownership of the island on 21 June 2018. (Full article...)

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Did you know?

...that Hinba, an island in Scotland of unknown location (possible location pictured), was the site of a small monastery associated with the church of St Columba on Iona?
... that the German dreadnought battleship SMS Kaiserin was the first battleship to pass through the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal in July 1914, days before the outbreak of World War I?
...that Bridei III's victory in the Battle of Dunnichen led to the expulsion of Northumbrians from southern Pictland?
... that ever since coming between neighbours, Funzie Girt has run almost the length of a Scottish island?

More did you know facts

Selected portrait

Image 1Eilean Ruairidh Mòr, one of many forested islands in Loch Maree
Credit: Jerry Sharp
Image 2The North Carr Beacon at low tide; the unlit beacon was built between 1813 and 1821 by Robert Stevenson to warn shipping of the North Carr Reef near Fife Ness
Credit: Kathrinpassig
Image 3Seals hauled out by Lyrie Geo on Hoy
Credit: Claire Pegrum
Image 4Jurassic sandstone rock arch on the Strathaird peninsula of Skye
Credit: John Allan
Image 5Fossilised dinosaur print on Staffin beach, Skye
Credit: maproom
Image 6Reconstruction of a timber crannog, an ancient man-made island, on Loch Tay; several hundred crannog sites have been recorded in Scotland
Credit: Dave Morris
Image 7A Hebridean spotted orchid in machair on Lewis
Credit: Etherp
Image 8The 8th-century Kildalton Cross, Islay, one of the best-preserved Celtic crosses in Scotland
Credit: Tom Richardson
Image 9Puffins and guillemots on Lunga in the Treshnish Isles, with Bac Mòr (known as Dutchman's Cap for its distinctive shape) in the background
Credit: Simaron
Image 10Scottish Gaelic speakers in the 2011 census; the Outer Hebrides, Tiree, Raasay, Skye and Lismore have the highest proportion of speakers
Credit: SkateTier
Image 11Seabird colonies on a crag on the Brough of Birsay, Orkney
Credit: Tbc
Image 12Columba was a 6th-century Irish-born saint who spread Christianity in Scotland and founded Iona Abbey, where he is commemorated in this stained-glass window
Credit: Vegansoldier
Image 13The Standing Stones of Stenness, near Stromness, Orkney, started by 3100 BC and possibly Britain's oldest henge site
Credit: Fantoman400

Selected geography article

The Norse mill and kiln at Shawbost

Shawbost (Scottish Gaelic: Siabost) is a large village in the West Side of the Isle of Lewis. The village of Shawbost has a population of around 500 and lies around 20 miles (30 kilometres) west of Lewis's capital Stornoway. Shawbost is within the parish of Barvas. A recent development in the village was the renovation of the old school into the new community centre. The scattered settlement is split into three sections: North Shawbost (Siabost bho Thuath), South Shawbost (Siabost bho Dheas) and New Shawbost (Pàirc Shiaboist). There is a small museum of folk life and nearby is a small stone circle. The village is overlooked by a small hill named Beinn Bhragair, 261 m high. Shawbost is a prominent village on the Isle of Lewis, due to the school, community centre, beach and Harris Tweed mill.

In the 2001 United Kingdom Census, 72% of people in Shawbost reported being able to speak Scottish Gaelic. (Full article...)

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Selected biography

Sorley MacLean (Scottish Gaelic: Somhairle MacGill-Eain; 26 October 1911 – 24 November 1996) was a Scottish Gaelic poet, described by the Scottish Poetry Library as "one of the major Scottish poets of the modern era" because of his "mastery of his chosen medium and his engagement with the European poetic tradition and European politics". Nobel Prize Laureate Seamus Heaney credited MacLean with saving Scottish Gaelic poetry.

He was raised in a strict Presbyterian family on the island of Raasay, immersed in Gaelic culture and literature from birth, but abandoned religion for socialism. In the late 1930s, he befriended many Scottish Renaissance figures, such as Hugh MacDiarmid and Douglas Young. He was wounded three times while serving in the Royal Corps of Signals during the North African Campaign. MacLean published little after the war, due to his perfectionism. In 1956, he became head teacher at Plockton High School, where he advocated for the use of the Gaelic language in formal education.

In his poetry, MacLean juxtaposed traditional Gaelic elements with mainstream European elements, frequently comparing the Highland Clearances with contemporary events, especially the Spanish Civil War. His work was a unique fusion of traditional and modern elements that has been credited with restoring Gaelic tradition to its proper place and reinvigorating and modernizing the Gaelic language. Although his most influential works, Dàin do Eimhir and An Cuilthionn, were published in 1943, MacLean did not become well known until the 1970s, when his works were published in English translation. His later poem Hallaig, published 1954, achieved "cult status" outside Gaelic-speaking circles for its supernatural representation of a village depopulated in the Highland Clearances and came to represent all Scottish Gaelic poetry in the English-speaking imagination. (Full article...)

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Selected panorama

Image 1The Storr ridge on Skye, with the Old Man of Storr (right)
Credit: Klaus with K
Image 2Quiraing, Trotternish, on Skye
Credit: Stefan Krause
Image 3Dunvegan Castle, a 14th-century castle on Skye, the seat of Clan MacLeod
Credit: Mihael Grmek
Image 4Eilean Donan
Credit: Stefan Krause
Image 5The colourful Main Street of Tobermory on Mull
Credit: Colin
Image 6Iona Abbey
Credit: Oliver-Bonjoch
Image 7The remains of the Old Pier at Salen, Mull
Credit: Colin
Image 8Arran's northern hills, including Goat Fell, the island's highest point
Credit: Colin
Image 9View towards the Cuillin on Skye
Credit: Stefan Krause
Image 10Loch Fada, Trotternish, on Skye, looking towards The Storr
Credit: Klaus with K
Image 11Small freshwater islets on Loch Assynt
Credit: Vincent
Image 12View from Canna, overlooking Sanday towards Rùm
Credit: Emoscopes

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