Fladda-chùain, or Fladaigh Chùain, is an island of the

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, whic ...

north of the

Trotternish Trotternish or Tròndairnis (Scottish Gaelic) is the northernmost peninsula of the Isle of Skye, in Scotland. Its most northerly point, Rubha Hùinis, is the most northerly point of Skye. One of the peninsula's better-known features is the Trot ...

peninsula of

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye (; gd, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or ; sco, Isle o Skye), is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated b ...

. It is the major island of the Fladda-chùain group between Skye and the

Outer Hebrides The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coast ...

Name

The name of the island derives from

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

''Flatey'', meaning a "flat island", and ''Cuan'', a

Scottish 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 ...

word meaning "ocean" (or

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

and

Old Gaelic Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writte ...

). The latter probably refers to

the Minch The Minch ( gd, An Cuan Sgitheanach, ', ', '), also called North Minch, is a strait in north-west Scotland, separating the north-west Scottish Highlands, Highlands and the northern Inner Hebrides from Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides. It ...

, which is known as ''An Cuan Sgìth'' ("Ocean of

") or ''Cuan na Hearadh'' ("Ocean of

Harris Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle o ...

"). The suffix is also added to distinguish this island from the many others with similar names.

History

Fladda-chùain is the subject of some legends. There are the ruins of a chapel here, said to have been founded by one "O' Gorgon" in the days of

St. Columba Columba or Colmcille; gd, Calum Cille; gv, Colum Keeilley; non, Kolban or at least partly reinterpreted as (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is toda ...

, and/or dedicated to him. It is said also that MacDonald of the Isles hid his deeds here prior to the

Jacobite rising of 1715 The Jacobite rising of 1715 ( gd, Bliadhna Sheumais ; or 'the Fifteen') was the attempt by James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender) to regain the thrones of England, Ireland and Scotland for the exiled Stuarts The House of Stuart, ori ...

. The last known inhabitant was known as "Am Muileach Mòr", which means either "the Big

Mull Mull may refer to: Places *Isle of Mull, a Scottish island in the Inner Hebrides **Sound of Mull, between the Isle of Mull and the rest of Scotland * Mount Mull, Antarctica *Mull Hill, Isle of Man * Mull, Arkansas, a place along Arkansas Highway ...

man", or the "man of the headland". In 2002 the nuclear submarine grounded on Fladda-chùain whilst travelling at during a traverse of the Fladda-chùain-

Eilean Trodday Eilean Trodday is an island in The Minch just off the north coast of the Trotternish peninsula of Skye in Scotland. Eilean Trodday is about in extent and the coastline has various caves and Stack (geology), stacks. The island was inhabited in ...

trough, resulting in some damage to the submarine and three minor injuries to the crew. After the grounding the submarine re-surfaced and proceeded to the

Faslane His Majesty's Naval Base, Clyde (HMNB Clyde; also HMS ''Neptune''), primarily sited at Faslane on the Gare Loch, is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Devonport and HMNB Portsmouth). It ...

base by surface transit. The main cause of the accident was reported as being the use of tracing paper to cover the navigational chart to protect it from being written on, so obscuring vital information. Damage to the hull cost an estimated £5 million to repair.Dawar, Anil (23 May 2008
"Submarine's £5m repair bill blamed on tracing paper"
''The Guardian''. Retrieved 6 December 2009. A few hundred metres to the south lie the islets of Gaeilavore, Gearran and Am Bord (Lord Macdonald's Table).

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fladda-Chuain Uninhabited islands of Highland (council area) Skye and Lochalsh