Elrig ( gd, An Eileirg, meaning "the deer run") is a

clachan A clachan ( ga, clochán or ; gd, clachan ; gv, claghan ) is a small settlement or hamlet on the island of Ireland, the Isle of Man and Scotland. Though many were originally kirktowns,MacBain, A. (1911) ''An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaeli ...

or hamlet in the historical county of

Wigtownshire Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown (, ) is one of the historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Wigtownshire was an administrative county used for local government. Since 1975 the area has f ...

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the counties of Scotland, historic counties of ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Located in the

Machars , photo = File:West Coast of the Machars - geograph.org.uk - 3085411.jpg , photo_width = , photo_alt = , photo_caption = Luce Bay coastline of The Machars, south of Auchenmalg , map = UK Scotlan ...

peninsula, it is about north of Port William. Elrig is the birthplace of author and naturalist

Gavin Maxwell Gavin Maxwell FRSL FZS FRGS (15 July 19147 September 1969) was a British naturalist and author, best known for his non-fiction writing and his work with otters. He wrote the book ''Ring of Bright Water'' (1960) about how he brought an otter ba ...

, who was born at the House of Elrig. The house was built in 1912 for his parents Aymer and Lady Mary Maxwell by the architects John Stewart & George Paterson. His boyhood is recounted in ''The House of Elrig'', published in 1965. The house and grounds of his family estate are private with no public access

Between 1941 and 1946 Oskar Kokoschka, Oscar Kokoschka and his wife Olda spent several weeks each summer with the new owner of House of Elrig, fellow refugee, Czech Professor Emil Korner.

Etymology

The town's name derives from the original Gaelic placename, ''An Eilreig''. The Gaelic language arrived in Galloway in the 7th century and the language was still strong in

in the 18th century.

Ancient monuments

standing stone A menhir (from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large human-made upright rock (geology), stone, typically dating from the European middle Bronze Age. T ...

, the Carlin Stone, can be found on The Derry, near to the head of Elrig Loch, which is also home to the remains of a

crannog A crannog (; ga, crannóg ; gd, crannag ) is typically a partially or entirely artificial island, usually built in lakes and estuarine waters of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. Unlike the prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps, which were bu ...

. The ruins of a mediaeval chapel can be found at Barhobble, which is near to the House of Elrig. None of the above is within Elrig itself, but all are located relatively near to the settlement in Mochrum Parish.

Politics

The council area of

Port William, Dumfries and Galloway Port William ( gd, Cill na Tràghad) is a fishing village in the parish of Mochrum in the historical county of Wigtownshire, Dumfries and Galloway, in Scotland with a population of approximately 460. Port William has a post office and small ...

represents Barrachan, Port William,

Mochrum Mochrum () is a coastal civil and Church of Scotland parish situated to the east of Luce Bay on the Machars peninsula and southwest of Wigtown and in the historical county of Wigtownshire in Galloway, Scotland. It covers and is approximately ...

and

Monreith Monreith ( / 'mon-REETH'; gd, Am Monadh Rèidh) is a small seaside village in the Machars, in the historical county of Wigtownshire, Scotland. A ruined church near Monreith is called "Kirkmaiden-in-Fernis" and was dedicated to St Medan. The chan ...

as well as Elrig. 885 people live in the area. There are 18 councillors who run the region and the council meets each month at the Talla MhicShuail in Port William. Elrig is in the 02 electoral district (

) for the Comhairle na Roinne.

Transportation

There is no rail service, but there is a bus service: *415 ''Newton Stewart - Machair''.Còmhdhail na Comhairle
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References

External links

Loch Elrig Crannog at the Megalithic Portal
*http://www.scottisharchitects.org.uk/building_full.php?id=213757 *https://www.kirkcudbrightgalleries.org.uk/artists-footsteps/artist/oskar-kokoschka/ {{authority control Villages in Dumfries and Galloway