Glenuig ( , gd, Gleann Ùige) is a small village in Moidart,

Lochaber Lochaber ( ; gd, Loch Abar) is a name applied to a part of the Scottish Highlands. Historically, it was a provincial lordship consisting of the parishes of Kilmallie and Kilmonivaig, as they were before being reduced in extent by the creatio ...

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

, on the west coast 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 ...

. It is around west of Fort William and from

Ardnamurchan Point Ardnamurchan (, gd, Àird nam Murchan: headland of the great seas) is a peninsula in the ward management area of Lochaber, Highland, Scotland, noted for being very unspoiled and undisturbed. Its remoteness is accentuated by the main access ...

Geography

Glenuig is a tiny community of just over thirty folk located in the parish of Moidart in remote west

. Nowadays it is taken to include the neighbouring settlements of Samalaman and Alt Ruadh, and contains 21 houses in permanent occupation plus four holiday homes. In a wider sense it includes the nearby hamlets of

Roshven Roshven ( gd, Roisbheinn) is a township located on the eastern shoreline of Loch Ailort, in Lochaber, in the council area of Highland, Scotland. Towering above it is Rois-bheinn, the highest hill in the area. History Historically, the hamlet w ...

and

Lochailort Lochailort ( , gd, Ceann Loch Ailleart) is a hamlet in Scotland that lies at the head of Loch Ailort, a sea loch, on the junction of the Road to the Isles ( A830) between Fort William and Mallaig with the A861 towards Salen and Strontian. ...

, bringing the population over a distance of to just over fifty. Access to Glenuig by public road was only made possible in 1966, and mains electricity arrived in 1983. A growing population of young people saw the revival of Glenuig Village Hall Committee in 1982, running the village hall situated in the old School Room. In 1993 the Hall Committee changed to become Glenuig Community Association.

History

The area has been inhabited for thousands of years and the traces of these earlier residents are everywhere around. The coastal regions here are wild and rocky, but because of the warmer climate within the last two thousand years the inland areas were productive and heavily populated. In the last two hundred years, the population declined through enforced clearances of the glens for sheep and voluntary emigration from the harsher coastal regions to the new colonies, particularly

Cape Breton Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...

and

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. From 1783 to 1803, Samalaman House, on the outskirts of Glenuig, was the location of a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

Prior to 1966 access was by foot or horseback (from either Lochailort or Kinlochmoidart) or by boat. Since that year the area has been accessible by good modern roads, train or bus.

Facilities

Nowadays Glenuig is a thriving and friendly community. Occupations include fishing, crofting, building, craftwork and IT, and of course catering for the many visitors to the area. The community has a tiny but busy shop and post office and a variety of accommodation choices in Glenuig, Kinlochmoidart, Roshven and Lochailort. The village hall is one of the most splendid on the west coast and a very popular venue for entertainment. There is regular traditional folk music, fiddlers, blues bands, opera and dance and a range of community activities ranging from yoga, playgroups and youth nights to the meetings of the Moidart Local History Group. Glenuig Community Association (GCA) has been responsible for several initiatives in the area. Through determined fundraising, notably through the Glenuig Music Festival (1983–1993) the local community built the magnificent Glenuig Hall. Glenuig Hall is owned and managed by the GCA, and the Association is currently looking into the future of the village shop, hoping to build new premises and re-open the shop to be run as a Community Enterprise.

Gallery

File:Glenuig Bay - geograph.org.uk - 616320.jpg, Glenuig Bay File:The Glenuig Inn - geograph.org.uk - 1356962.jpg, Glenuig Inn File:Glenuig, view across bay - geograph.org.uk - 918774.jpg, View across bay File:Samalaman House - geograph.org.uk - 414016.jpg, Samalaman House File:St. Agnes Roman Catholic Church - geograph.org.uk - 414008.jpg, St Agnes Church

References

{{Lochaber Populated places in Lochaber