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Eilean-a-beithich
Eilean-a-beithich or Eilean nam Beitheach ("island of the birches") was once one of the Slate Islands, located in Easdale Sound between Easdale and Seil, in the Inner Hebrides. In 1549, Dean Monro wrote: "''Narrest Seunay layes ther a litle iyle, callit in Erische Leid Ellan Sklaitt, quherein ther is abundance of skalzie to be win''".Gillies (1909) p. 10 In modern English: "Nearest to Shuna there lies a little isle, called ''Eilean Sklaitt'' in Gaelic where there is an abundance of slate to be gained." Originally about in area the island was quarried for its slate to a depth of below sea level leaving only the outer rim of the island. Tipping of the quarry detritus eventually filled up the channel which separated Eilean-a-beithich from Seil, and the slate-mining village of Ellenabeich Ellenabeich (Scottish Gaelic: ''Eilean nam Beitheach'', meaning "island of the birchwoods.") is a small village on the isle of Seil (Scottish Gaelic: ''Saoil'') – an island on the east sid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slate Islands
The Slate Islands are an island group in the Inner Hebrides, lying immediately off the west coast of Scotland, north of Jura and southwest of Oban. The main islands are Seil, Easdale, Luing, Shuna, Torsa and Belnahua. Scarba and Kerrera, which lie nearby are not usually included. The underlying geology of the islands is Dalradian slate, which was quarried widely until the mid-20th century. Quarry working began in 1630 and at the turn of the 20th century, the quarries were yielding some eight million slates every year. The Garvellachs lie to the southwest. Definition Unlike some of Scotland's larger archipelagos such as Orkney and the Outer Hebrides, which are distant from other islands and also have their own local authority, the Slate Islands have no formal definition. The islands from which the slate that gives rise to the name was quarried on a substantial commercial basis are Easdale, Belnahua, Luing and Seil. The website of the Slate Islands Heritage Trust also promin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seil
Seil (; gd, Saoil, ) is one of the Slate Islands, located on the east side of the Firth of Lorn, southwest of Oban, in Scotland. Seil has been linked to the mainland by bridge since the late 18th century. The origins of the island's name are unclear and probably pre-Gaelic. Part of the kingdom of Dalriada in the 7th century, by the sixteenth century Seil seems to have been primarily agricultural in nature. It became part of the estates of the Breadalbane family and in the early 18th century they began to exploit the rich potential of the Neoproterozoic slate beds. The excavations from the island's quarries were exported all over the world during the course of the next two centuries. Today, the economy is largely dependent on agriculture and tourism. The "dangerous seas" of the Firth of Lorn have claimed many lives and there are several shipwrecks in the vicinity of Seil. Kilbrandon Church has fine examples of stained glass windows and an association with St Brendan. Etym ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ellenabeich
Ellenabeich (Scottish Gaelic: ''Eilean nam Beitheach'', meaning "island of the birchwoods.") is a small village on the isle of Seil (Scottish Gaelic: ''Saoil'') – an island on the east side of the Firth of Lorn, 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Oban, in Scotland. It is a former slate-mining village and is where parts of ''Ring of Bright Water (film), Ring of Bright Water'' were filmed. Seil is one of the Slate Islands. The village gets its name from the former slate island within proximity of the village, called Eilean-a-beithich, Eilean nam Beitheach. The island was mined out of existence and its name is now the current Scottish Gaelic name of the village. The village is sometimes called "Easdale" because of its proximity to the island of that name. In the village can be found: * The Ellenabeich Heritage Centre which was opened in 2000 and is run by the Scottish Slate Islands Heritage Trust. The centre has been created in a former slate quarry-worker's cottage and has 19th ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Easdale
Easdale ( gd, Eilean Èisdeal) is one of the Slate Islands, in the Firth of Lorn, Scotland. Once the centre of the Scottish slate industry, there has been some recent island regeneration by the owners. This is the smallest of the Inner Hebrides' inhabited islands and is "home to traditional white-washed cottages, a small pub and disused slate quarries". One of the latter, filled with water, is used for swimming. A ferry sails from Easdale to Ellenabeich ( Gaelic: ''Eilean nam Beathach'') on the nearby island of Seil (Gaelic: ''Saoil''), which is separated from Easdale by only a narrow channel. Confusingly, Ellenabeich is sometimes known as ''Easdale'' as a result of its traditional connections with the island. Etymology In 1549, Donald Monro, "Dean of the Isles" wrote, in brief reference to Easdale, of an island "namit in the Erische Leid Ellan Eisdcalfe" However the derivation of "Eisdcalfe" and this word's etymological relationship to "Easdale" is not clear. Haswell Smith (2 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inner Hebrides
The Inner Hebrides (; Scottish Gaelic: ''Na h-Eileanan a-staigh'', "the inner isles") is an archipelago off the west coast of mainland Scotland, to the south east of the Outer Hebrides. Together these two island chains form the Hebrides, which experience a mild oceanic climate. The Inner Hebrides comprise 35 inhabited islands as well as 44 uninhabited islands with an area greater than . Skye, Mull, and Islay are the three largest, and also have the highest populations. The main commercial activities are tourism, crofting, fishing and whisky distilling. In modern times the Inner Hebrides have formed part of two separate local government jurisdictions, one to the north and the other to the south. Together, the islands have an area of about , and had a population of 18,948 in 2011. The population density is therefore about . There are various important prehistoric structures, many of which pre-date the first written references to the islands by Roman and Greek authors. In the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Donald Monro (Dean)
Donald Monro (or Munro) ( fl. 1526–1574) was a Scottish clergyman, who wrote an early and historically valuable description of the Hebrides and other Scottish islands and enjoyed the honorific title of "Dean of the Isles". Origins Donald Monro was born early in the 16th century, the eldest of the six sons of Alexander Munro of Kiltearn, by Janet, daughter of Farquhar Maclean of Dochgarroch. His father was a grandson of George Munro, 10th Baron of Foulis (Chief of the Clan Munro)Alexander Ross, ''The Reverend Donald Munro, M.A., High Dean of the Isles'', in The Celtic Magazine (volume 9, 1884), at pages 142 to 144. and his maternal grandfather was Farquhar MacLean of Dochgarroch, (''Fearchar Mac Eachainn'') Bishop of the Isles from 1529 to 1544.MacLeod (2004) p. 23 On Farquhar's resignation the bishopric passed to his son, and Donald Monro's uncle, Roderick MacLean (''Ruaidhri Mac Gill-Eathain''). Career Monro became the vicar of Snizort and Raasay in 1526MacLeod (2004) p. 2 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shuna, Slate Islands
Shuna (Gaelic Siuna) is one of the Slate Islands lying east of Luing on the west coast of Scotland. History In 1815, James Yates, a Glasgow native living in Woodville in Devon, bought the island from Colonel McDonald of Lynedale. In 1829 Yates bequeathed the island in trust to the magistrates and council of Glasgow, with profits from the estate divide two fifths to the city, two fifths to Glasgow University and one fifth to Glasgow Royal Infirmary. This was disputed by Yates' heir, who accepted £300 from the trustees to settle his claim. The revenue from the island was scarce and the trustees sold it in 1911. Shuna Castle was built as recently as 1911. It fell into disrepair in the 1980s when the cost of maintenance become too great."Shuna Wildlife & History" Internet Archive. Original access ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scots Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as both Irish and Manx, developed out of Old Irish. It became a distinct spoken language sometime in the 13th century in the Middle Irish period, although a common literary language was shared by the Gaels of both Ireland and Scotland until well into the 17th century. Most of modern Scotland was once Gaelic-speaking, as evidenced especially by Gaelic-language place names. In the 2011 census of Scotland, 57,375 people (1.1% of the Scottish population aged over 3 years old) reported being able to speak Gaelic, 1,275 fewer than in 2001. The highest percentages of Gaelic speakers were in the Outer Hebrides. Nevertheless, there is a language revival, and the number of speakers of the language under age 20 did not decrease between the 2001 and 20 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. Foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering, but instead is in planes perpendicular to the direction of metamorphic compression. The foliation in slate is called "slaty cleavage". It is caused by strong compression causing fine grained clay flakes to regrow in planes perpendicular to the compression. When expertly "cut" by striking parallel to the foliation, with a specialized tool in the quarry, many slates will display a property called fissility, forming smooth flat sheets of stone which have long been used for roofing, floor tiles, and other purposes. Slate is frequently grey in color, especially when seen, en masse, covering roofs. However, slate occurs in a variety of colors even from a single locality; for ex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
