The mountains and hills of the
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...
are categorised into various lists based on different combinations of
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...
,
prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
, and other criteria such as
isolation. These lists are used for
peak bagging
Peak bagging or hill bagging is an activity in which hikers, climbers, and mountaineers attempt to reach a collection of summits, published in the form of a list. This activity has been popularized around the world, with lists such as 100 Peaks ...
, whereby
hillwalkers attempt to reach all the summits on a given list, the oldest being the 282
Munro
A Munro () is defined as a mountain in Scotland with a height over , and which is on the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) official list of Munros; there is no explicit topographical prominence requirement. The best known Munro is Ben Nevis ...
s in Scotland, created in 1891.
A height above 2,000 ft, or more latterly 610 m, is considered necessary to be classified as a mountain – as opposed to a hill – in the British Isles. With the exception of Munros, all the lists require a prominence above . A prominence of between (e.g. some Nuttalls and Vandeleur-Lynams), does not meet the
International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation
The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation, commonly known by its French name Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme (UIAA, lit. ''International Union of Alpine Clubs''), was founded in August 1932 in Chamonix, France ...
(UIAA) definition of an "independent peak", which is a threshold over . Most lists consider a prominence between as a "top" (e.g. many Hewitts and Simms). Marilyns, meanwhile, have a prominence above , with no additional height threshold. They range from small hills to the largest mountains. Prominences above , meet the P600 (the "Majors") classification, which is the UIAA international classification of a "major" mountain.
General concepts
Elevation
There is no worldwide consensus on the definition of mountain versus a hill, but in Great Britain and Ireland it is usually taken to be any summit with an
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...
of at least 2,000 feet (or 610 metres).
The UK government legally defines a mountain as land over for the purposes of
freedom of access. When
Calf Top
Calf Top is a mountain in the western part of the Yorkshire Dales, England. It is located in the county of Cumbria, although Lancashire and North Yorkshire are not far away. Calf Top is a dominating profile in the view from many of the smaller hi ...
in
Cumbria
Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...
was re-surveyed in 2016 and confirmed to be 6 millimetres above the 609.6 m threshold for a 2,000 ft peak, the
Ordnance Survey
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described Calf Top as England's "last mountain".
Regardless of the technical definition of a mountain, cultural norms also feature, with mountains in
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 ...
being frequently referred to as hills irrespective of their height; examples being the
Cuillin
The Cuillin ( gd, An Cuiltheann) is a range of mostly jagged rocky mountains on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. The main Cuillin ridge is also called the Black Cuillin to distinguish it from the Red Cuillin ('), which lie to the east of Glen Sliga ...
Hills and the
Torridon Hills
The Torridon Hills surround Torridon village in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. The name is usually applied to the mountains to the north of Glen Torridon. They are among the most dramatic and spectacular peaks in the British Isles and made ...
.
Prominence
All British Isles-wide mountain classifications, and most country-specific classifications, include an explicit minimum
topographical prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
threshold (also called relative height, or drop, or re-ascent, between neighbouring peaks), which is typically .
The lowest prominence threshold is (e.g. Nuttalls, and Vandeleur-Lynams), but most classifications have a prominence threshold above . Many classifications use the term "Tops" for peaks with prominence between (e.g. Donald Tops), while other classifications ignore height and just focus purely on prominence (e.g. P600s, Marilyns, and HuMPs).
Prominence requirements feature in
International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation
The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation, commonly known by its French name Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme (UIAA, lit. ''International Union of Alpine Clubs''), was founded in August 1932 in Chamonix, France ...
(UIAA) classifications of Himalayan mountains.
In 1994, the UIAA stated that for a "peak" to be independent (and not a sub-peak), it needed a prominence over , and a "mountain" had to have a prominence above .
Unlike the single measurement of elevation, prominence requires the measurement of all contours around the peak and is therefore subject to greater revision over time, and thus classification lists based on prominence are subject to change. Some definitions use an
imperial measurement
The imperial system of units, imperial system or imperial units (also known as British Imperial or Exchequer Standards of 1826) is the system of units first defined in the British Weights and Measures Act 1824 and continued to be developed thro ...
for height, but a metric measurement for the topological prominence (e.g. Murdos, Hewitts, and Nuttalls.
Isolation
No British Isles classification uses a quantitative metric of
topographic isolation
The topographic isolation of a summit is the minimum distance to a point of equal elevation, representing a radius of dominance in which the peak is the highest point. It can be calculated for small hills and islands as well as for major mountain ...
(such as the distance to the next point of equal height). However, the concept is embedded in the qualitative definition of a Scottish
Munro
A Munro () is defined as a mountain in Scotland with a height over , and which is on the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) official list of Munros; there is no explicit topographical prominence requirement. The best known Munro is Ben Nevis ...
, and the
Scottish Mountaineering Club
Established in 1889, the Scottish Mountaineering Club is the leading club for climbing and mountaineering in Scotland.
History
The Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) was formed in 1889 as Scotland’s national club and the initial membership of ...
requirement of "sufficient separation".
''Database of British and Irish Hills''
The ''Database of British and Irish Hills'' (''DoBIH'') was created in 2001 "with the intention of providing a comprehensive, up-to-date resource for British hillwalkers".
It is maintained by a team of seven editors, and is described by the
Long Distance Walkers Association
The Long Distance Walkers Association (LDWA) is a British not for profit, volunteer-led association whose aim is "to further the common interests of those who enjoy long distance walking". The LDWA is an association of people with the common inte ...
as "now the most reliable online source for all Registers" (i.e. all lists of summits attained).
The ''DoBIH'' has been used as a source by books, hillwalking websites and smartphone apps, including Mark Jackson's 2010 book on the HuMPS, titled ''More Relative Hills of Britain''.
The ''DoBIH'' is available as a downloadable database,
or in an online version under the title ''Hill Bagging''.
the database included 20,976 hills, including all
Marilyns,
HuMP
The mountains and hills of the British Isles are categorised into various lists based on different combinations of elevation, prominence, and other criteria such as isolation. These lists are used for peak bagging, whereby hillwalkers attempt ...
s,
TuMPs,
Simm
A SIMM (single in-line memory module) is a type of memory module containing random-access memory used in computers from the early 1980s to the early 2000s. It differs from a dual in-line memory module (DIMM), the most predominant form of memory ...
s,
Dodd Dodd may refer to:
Places
* Dodd (Buttermere), a fell near Red Pike in England
* Dodd (Lake District), a fell in Cumbria, England
* Dodd, Indiana, a community in the United States
People
* Dodd (surname), people with the surname ''Dodd''
Other us ...
s,
Munro
A Munro () is defined as a mountain in Scotland with a height over , and which is on the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) official list of Munros; there is no explicit topographical prominence requirement. The best known Munro is Ben Nevis ...
s and Tops,
Corbetts
This is a list of Corbett mountains in Scotland by height. Corbetts are defined as Scottish mountains between in height with a prominence over ; solely imperial measurement thresholds.
The first list was compiled in the 1920s by John Rooke C ...
and Tops,
Graham
Graham and Graeme may refer to:
People
* Graham (given name), an English-language given name
* Graham (surname), an English-language surname
* Graeme (surname), an English-language surname
* Graham (musician) (born 1979), Burmese singer
* Clan ...
s and Tops,
Donald
Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...
s and Tops,
Furths
This is a list of Furth mountains in Britain and Ireland by height. Furths are defined as mountains that meet the classification criteria to be a Scottish Munro, including being over in elevation, but which are ''furth'' of (i.e. "outside" of ...
,
Hewitts,
Nuttalls,
Buxton & Lewis,
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
s,
Yeamans,
Clems,
Murdos,
Deweys,
Donald Deweys,
Highland Fives,
Wainwrights
Wainwrights are the 214 English peaks (known locally as '' fells'') described in Alfred Wainwright's seven-volume '' Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'' (1955–66). They all lie within the boundary of the Lake District National Park in Cum ...
,
Birketts,
Synges,
Fellrangers,
County top
The mountains and hills of the British Isles are categorised into various lists based on different combinations of elevation, prominence, and other criteria such as isolation. These lists are used for peak bagging, whereby hillwalkers attempt ...
s, SIBs (Significant Islands of Britain),
Dillons
Dillons is a grocery supermarket chain based in Hutchinson, Kansas, and is a division of Kroger. Other banners under Dillon Stores Division include Gerbes in Missouri and Baker's in Omaha, Nebraska. Dillons operates grocery stores throughout K ...
,
Arderin
Arderin () is a mountain on the border between Laois and Offaly in Ireland. With a height of 527 metres (1,729 ft) it is the highest point in the Slieve Bloom Mountains, and is the highest point in both County Laois and County Offaly.
An ...
s,
Vandeleur-Lynams,
Carn
''Carn'' is the official magazine of the Celtic League. The name, a Celtic word which has been borrowed into English as ' cairn', was chosen for its symbolic value and because it can be found in each of the living Celtic languages. The subtit ...
s and
Binnions.
Since 2012, the ''DoBIH'' has had a data-sharing agreement with the Irish online database of mountains and hills known as ''
MountainViews
In these lists of mountains in Ireland, those within Northern Ireland, or on the Republic of Ireland – United Kingdom border, are marked with an asterisk, while the rest are within the Republic of Ireland. Where mountains are ranked by height ...
''.
British Isles
P600 (the "Majors")
The P600s are mountains in the British Isles that have a
topographical prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
of at least , regardless of absolute height or other merits. The list initially used a 2,000 ft metric (or 609.6 m, the P610s) but this was subsequently reduced to 600 m and the list became known as the "Majors". The list is authored by Mark Trengove. The definitive version is published on his Europeak website
and in the Database of British and Irish Hills.
It is one of the shortest of the classification lists of mountains in the British Isles as it has testing threshold criteria.
In 2006, 93 P600s were identified in Great Britain: 82 in Scotland, four in England and seven in Wales. These, together with one in Northern Ireland, one on the Isle of Man, and 24 in the Republic of Ireland, brought the total number of P600 mountains in the British Isles to 119.
Later, the Welsh peak
Moel Siabod
Moel Siabod ( Welsh for "bare hill" with unknown meaning of 'Siabod'), is a mountain in Snowdonia, North Wales, which sits isolated above the village of Dolwyddelan. At , it is the highest peak in the Moelwynion mountain range. The UK National Mo ...
's prominence was remapped at and the list of P600s expanded to 120. In 2018 a GNSS survey gave a prominence of 599.9m. Although the margin of error means the result is not conclusive, it was accepted by Mark Trengove, who was present on the survey, bringing the total back to 119. More recently available
LIDAR
Lidar (, also LIDAR, or LiDAR; sometimes LADAR) is a method for determining ranges (variable distance) by targeting an object or a surface with a laser and measuring the time for the reflected light to return to the receiver. It can also be ...
data for the col would give a prominence of 599.7m. In February 2020 a GNSS survey of Beinn Odhar Bheag in conjunction with OS trig point data for Rois-Bheinn found the former to be 1 metre higher. Accordingly, Beinn Odhar Bheag has replaced Rois-bheinn in the P600 list.
The British Isles' P600s contain 54 of the 282 Scottish Munros, and 10 of the 34 Non-Scottish Munros called ; these 64 British Isles' mountains meet the designation of being above in height, and in prominence.
P600 is an international mountain classification criterion, along with P1500 (or
Ultras
Ultras are a type of association football fans who are renowned for their fanatical support. The term originated in Italy, but is used worldwide to describe predominantly organised fans of association football teams. The behavioural tende ...
), for a prominence above .
The online version of ''The Database of British and Irish Hills'' also offers a P500 mountain classification: summits with a prominence above .
Marilyns
The Marilyns are mountains and hills in the British Isles that have a topographical prominence above , regardless of absolute height or other merits.
As of April 2020, there were 1,552 Marilyns in Great Britain: 1,219 in Scotland, 175 in England, and 158 in Wales (
Black Mountain, on the
England-Wales border
England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Engl ...
, is counted as being in Wales).
There are 454 Marilyns in Ireland (389 in the Republic of Ireland and 66 in Northern Ireland), and five on the
Isle of Man
)
, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
, bringing the total for the British Isles to 2,011.
The list was first compiled in 1992 by Alan Dawson.
The name was coined as a humorous contrast to the designation ''Munro'', which is homophonous with
'' Monroe''">arilynMonroe''.
The Marilyns are one of the most popular lists for peak baggers, and because of the lack of any height threshold, the classification includes a wide range of hills and mountains, and some
sea stacks
A stack or sea stack is a geological landform consisting of a steep and often vertical column or columns of rock in the sea near a coast, formed by wave erosion. Stacks are formed over time by wind and water, processes of coastal geomorphology ...
(pictured right).
HuMPs
The Marilyns were expanded in 2007 by the HuMPs (Hundred and upwards Metre Prominence), which reduced the prominence requirement to ; all British Isles Marilyns are British Isles HuMPS (but not vice versa).
Though he did not use the term HuMP, Eric Yeaman's ''Handbook of the Scottish Hills'' (1989) is considered an early source as it included lists of hills with a prominence above 100 m.
The name and first formal British Isles list was compiled by Mark Jackson from a number of sources and published online in 2010 in ''More Relative Hills of Britain''.
As of April 2020, there were 2,984 HuMPs in the British Isles: 2,167 in Scotland, 833 in Ireland, 441 in England, 368 in Wales and 11 in the Channel Islands.
Jackson maintains a "Hall of Fame" for climbers who have summited 1,200 HuMPs.
Simms
A Simm is a mountain in the British Isles that is over high and has a prominence of at least .
The word comes from ''Six-hundred Metre Mountain''.
As of April 2020, there are 2,755 recorded Simms in the British Isles, including 2,190 Scottish Simms, 192 English Simms, 149 Welsh Simms, one Isle of Man Simm, and 223 Irish Simms.
By definition all Simms are also
TuMPs (see below) and most, if not all, are mountains, depending on whether 600 metres or 2,000 feet (610 m) (e.g. a ), is used as the criterion. The idea of the Simm was introduced by Alan Dawson in June 2010, who noted that a Simm was the "broadest credible definition of what could be objectively conceived as a mountain in Britain".
, 6,414 people had registered themselves as having climbed all 282 Scottish Munros, by March 2020 11 people had registered climbing all 1,557 Marilyns of Great Britain, while by Aug 2021 only four people had registered completion of the 2,531 Simms of Great Britain, three of whom have also declared completion of all 2,755 Simms of the British Isles. July 2020 saw one summit promoted and one deleted, and by 24/07/2020 all of the three initial completers had "topped up".
TuMPs
In 2010, Mark Jackson further expanded the HuMPS and compiled the TuMPs (Thirty and upwards Metre Prominence), a list of all hills in Britain having a prominence above .
By definition, all Murdos, Corbett Tops, Graham Tops, Hewitts and Deweys are also TuMPs. As of April 2020, there are 17,127 TuMPs;
approximately half of that number that did not appear in previously researched lists were researched by Mark Jackson between 2006 and 2009. Since 2012 the list has been published and maintained by the editors of ''The Database of British and Irish Hills''.
[
]
Scotland only
Munros
The Munros are mountains in Scotland over . The list was originally compiled by Sir Hugh Munro
Sir Hugh Thomas Munro, 4th Baronet (16 October 1856 – 19 March 1919), was a British mountaineer best known for his list of mountains in Scotland over 3,000 feet (914.4 m), known as Munros. Born in London, Munro was the fifth child of ...
in 1891, and is modified from time to time by the Scottish Mountaineering Club
Established in 1889, the Scottish Mountaineering Club is the leading club for climbing and mountaineering in Scotland.
History
The Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) was formed in 1889 as Scotland’s national club and the initial membership of ...
(SMC), an example being the delisting in December 2020 of Stob Coire na Cloiche
Stob may refer to:
People
* Verity Stob (since 1988), pseudonymous author of IT satirical articles
* Ralph Stob (1894–1965), U.S. academic, president (1933–1939) of Calvin College
* Henry J. Stob (1908–1996), U.S. academic, namesake of the ...
as a Munro top, now recognised as being of only . Unlike most other lists, the Munros do not depend on a rigid prominence criterion for entry; instead, those that satisfy the subjective measure of being a "separate mountain" are regarded as ''Munros'', while subsidiary summits are given the status of Munro Tops. There are 282 Munros, and 226 further Munro Tops, totalling 508 summits, all of them in the Scottish Highlands
The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...
.
Real Munro is used to describe Munros with a prominence over (the Marilyn prominence threshold), and there are 202 Real Munros in Scotland. Of the 282 Scottish Munros, 54 meet the prominence threshold to be classified as P600s.[
Metric Munro is used to describe the Munros with a height above and a prominence either over (of which there are 88), or a prominence over (of which there are 130), but the term is not in widespread use.]
Murdos
The Murdos apply a quantitive criteria to the Munro
A Munro () is defined as a mountain in Scotland with a height over , and which is on the Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) official list of Munros; there is no explicit topographical prominence requirement. The best known Munro is Ben Nevis ...
s and their associated tops, and comprise all of the summits in Scotland over with a prominence above . There are 442 Murdos, compared to 282 Munros (or 508 Munros plus Munro Tops); one of the Munros does not qualify as a Murdo (Maoile Lunndaidh
Maoile Lunndaidh or Maoil Lunndaidh is a Scottish mountain situated 13 km south of Achnasheen in the Ross and Cromarty district of the Highland council area. It is part of the high ground between Loch Monar and Gleann Fhiodhaig.
Over ...
), and 66 of the Munro Tops do not qualify as Murdos.
Alan Dawson first compiled the list in 1995 as an objective and quantitative alternative to the more qualitative SMC definition of a Munro. Dawson's threshold is in line with the 1994 UIAA declaration that an "independent peak" has to have a prominence of over . Unlike all other Scottish mountain and hill classifications, the SMC does not maintain an official list of Murdos. All Murdos are either SMC Munros or SMC Munro Tops.
Corbetts
The Corbetts are peaks in Scotland that are between high with a prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
of at least . The list was compiled in the 1920s by John Rooke Corbett
John Rooke Corbett (27 September 1876 – 13 August 1949), better known as J. Rooke Corbett was one of the founder-members of The Rucksack Club and their Convener of Rambles. In the 1920s Corbett compiled a list of Scottish hills between 2500 an ...
, a Bristol-based climber and SMC member, and was published posthumously after his sister passed it to the SMC. As of April 2020, there were 222 Corbetts. Climbers who climb all of the Corbetts are called ''Corbetteers''; the first being Corbett himself who completed in 1943.
A list of Corbett Tops, covering mountains in Scotland between in height and with between of prominence, was published by Alan Dawson in 2001. There are 455 Corbett Tops, and thus 677 Corbetts and Corbett Tops in total.
Grahams
The Grahams are mountains in Scotland between high, with a drop of at least all round. A list of 224 mountains fitting these criteria was first published in 1992 by Alan Dawson in ''The Relative Hills of Britain'', as the Elsies (LCs, short for Lesser Corbetts). They were later named Grahams after the late Fiona Torbet (''née'' Graham) who had compiled a similar list around the same time. Dawson continues to maintain the list, which as of April 2020 contained 219 hills distributed as follows: Highlands south of the Great Glen 87, Highlands north of the Great Glen 84, Central and Southern Scotland 23, Skye 10, Mull 7, Harris 3, Jura 2, Arran 1, Rum 1, South Uist 1. There are six differences from the original list of 224 Grahams that arose from re-surveys. Creag na h-Eararuidh replaced neighbour Beinn Dearg (which was lower). Five Grahams were dropped including: Ben Aslak, Corwharn and Ladylea Hill as they were below the height threshold; Cnoc Coinnich as it was above the height threshold; Stob na Boine Druim-fhinn as it was below the prominence threshold. Climbers who summit all of the Grahams are known as ''Grahamists''.
In 2004, Dawson published a list of Graham Tops covering every mountain in Scotland with between of height and between of prominence. There are 776 Graham Tops, thus giving an overall total of 995 Grahams and Graham Tops.
Donalds
The Donalds are mountains in the Scottish Lowlands
The Lowlands ( sco, Lallans or ; gd, a' Ghalldachd, , place of the foreigners, ) is a cultural and historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Lowlands and the Highlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowl ...
over , amongst other criteria. The list was compiled by Percy Donald in 1935, and is maintained by the SMC. The classification is determined by a complicated formula which also contains qualitative elements around "sufficient topographical interest". The formula necessitates splitting Donalds into Donald Hills and Donald Tops; in general, Donald Hills have a prominence over , but the prominence of Donald Tops can range from . Donalds can be Corbetts or Grahams and the SMC state that: "Percy Donald's original Tables are seen as a complete entity, unlike the Munros, Corbetts and Grahams." As of April 2020, there are 140 Donalds, comprising 89 Donald Hills and 51 Donald Tops.
Given the complexity of the Donald classification, the simpler New Donalds was introduced by Alan Dawson in his 1995 book ''The Grahams and the New Donalds'', with an explicit prominence threshold of ; there are 118 New Donalds, and while all Donald Hills are New Donalds, 22 Donald Tops are not.
Hughs
The Hughs (Hills Under Graham Height) are a list compiled by Andrew Dempster, who published ''The Hughs: Scotland's Best Wee Hills Under 2,000 Feet: Volume 1: The Mainland'' in 2015. Dempster describes them as "hills with attitude, not altitude" and says "the three key words are prominence, position, panorama". He lists 100 summits in the mainland volume, and plans a second volume to list 100 summits on the islands. they are not listed in the DBIH but have attracted attention from peakbaggers.
Outside Scotland
Furths
Furths are mountains in Great Britain and Ireland that are furth of (i.e. "outside") Scotland, and which would otherwise qualify as Scottish Munros or Munro Tops. They are sometimes referred to as the Irish, the English or the Welsh Munros. There are 34 furths; 15 in Wales, 13 in Ireland and six in England. The highest is Snowdon
Snowdon () or (), is the highest mountain in Wales, at an elevation of above sea level, and the highest point in the British Isles outside the Scottish Highlands. It is located in Snowdonia National Park (') in Gwynedd (historic ...
. Of these 34 SMC identified Furths, 33 have a prominence above (e.g. the Murdo Furths), 14 have a prominence above (e.g. the Real Munro Furths), and 10 have a prominence above (e.g. the P600 Furths).
The Scottish Mountaineering Club
Established in 1889, the Scottish Mountaineering Club is the leading club for climbing and mountaineering in Scotland.
History
The Scottish Mountaineering Club (SMC) was formed in 1889 as Scotland’s national club and the initial membership of ...
(SMC) maintains the list of Furths and records claims of Munroists who go on to complete the Furths (called "Furthists").
Hewitts
The Hewitts, named after the initials of their definition, are "hills in England, Wales and Ireland over two thousand" feet (609.6 m), with a relative height of at least . The English and Welsh, lists were compiled and are maintained by Alan Dawson. Dawson originally called them "Sweats" in his book, from "Summits – Wales and England Above Two thousand". the Irish component was compiled and maintained by Clem Clements up to his death in 2012; it is now maintained by the DoBIH along with his list of Irish Marilyns. The list is a subset of the Nuttall classification (see below), and excludes the 125 least prominent Nuttalls from the list.
, the ''DoBIH'' listed 525 Hewitts, 209 in Ireland, 180 in England and 136 in Wales. Since their publication in 1997, Birks Fell and Calf Top in England and Mynydd Graig Goch have been added and Black Mountain deemed to be in Wales only. The combination of Murdos, Corbett Tops and Graham Tops comprise the Scottish equivalent of the Hewitts, but their author Alan Dawson regards those classifications as obsolete. Hewitts are a sub-class of the newer 2010 British Isles classification, the , or "metric Hewitt", with a height threshold, and a prominence threshold. Dawson still maintains a list of Hewitts.
Nuttalls
The Nuttalls are mountains in England and Wales only that are over , and with a relative height of at least . There were 444 Nuttalls in the original list (254 in England and 190 in Wales), compiled by John and Anne Nuttall and published in 1989–90 in two volumes, ''The Mountains of England & Wales''. After updates, the total of Nuttalls reached 446 in August 2018 with the inclusion of Miller Moss Knott or The Knott may refer to:
* Knott, Caldbeck, a mountain in the northern part of the English Lake District
* The Knott, a mountain in the eastern part of the English Lake District
* Knott, Skye, a location in Highland, Scotland
* Knott, T ...
.
By including high points that rise by as little as above their surroundings, the list of Nuttalls is sometimes criticised for including too many insignificant minor tops; the Hewitts (see above) are one attempt to avoid this. Some Nuttalls would not be considered peaks or mountains under UIAA definitions.
With the exception of Pillar Rock, a rocky outcrop on Pillar
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...
in the Lake District
The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or ''fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...
, the peaks of all of the Nuttalls can be reached without resort to rock climbing
Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...
. , 302 people are recorded as having completed the list, though this includes some who did not climb Pillar Rock, which the authors permit. They have also announced that Tinside Rigg and Long Fell (added to the list in 2016) need not be summited as they are in a restricted area of Warcop Artillery Range.
England only
Wainwrights
The Wainwrights are mountains or hills (locally known as fells
A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of Man, par ...
) in the English Lake District National Park
The Lake District National Park is a national park in North West England that includes all of the central Lake District, though the town of Kendal, some coastal areas, and the Lakeland Peninsulas are outside the park boundary.
The area was desi ...
that have a chapter in one of Alfred Wainwright
Alfred Wainwright MBE (17 January 1907 – 20 January 1991), who preferred to be known as A. Wainwright or A.W., was a British fellwalker, guidebook author and illustrator. His seven-volume ''Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'', published ...
's ''Pictorial Guides to the Lakeland Fells
''A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells'' is a series of seven books by A. Wainwright, detailing the fells (the local word for hills and mountains) of the Lake District in northwest England. Written over a period of 13 years from 1952, they ...
''. There are 214 Wainwrights in the seven guides, and there are no qualifications for inclusion other than Wainwright's choice, although in the introduction he stated that he would include all summits over 1,000-feet in height, with a prominence above 50 feet. An exception was made for Castle Crag in Borrowdale, at ; Wainwright stated that although it was below his 1,000-feet criterion, it was a perfect mountain in miniature and demanded inclusion. A further 116 summits were included in the supplementary guide, ''The Outlying Fells of Lakeland
''The Outlying Fells of Lakeland'' is a 1974 book written by Alfred Wainwright dealing with hills in and around the Lake District of England. It differs from Wainwright's '' Pictorial Guides'' in that each of its 56 chapters describes a walk, ...
'', and are known as the Wainwright Outlying Fells.
Birketts
The Birketts are all the tops over within the boundaries of the Lake District National Park
The Lake District National Park is a national park in North West England that includes all of the central Lake District, though the town of Kendal, some coastal areas, and the Lakeland Peninsulas are outside the park boundary.
The area was desi ...
. Height and location, but not prominence, are the criteria. The list was devised by Bill Birkett
Thomas William Birkett (born 1952) better known as Bill Birkett is an English civil engineer, mountain writer, photographer and climber from the Lake District, Cumbria who has undertaken many expeditions around the world.
Early life
Bill Bi ...
as the basis for his 1994 book ''Complete Lakeland Fells''. There are 541 of these tops, and they include 209 of the 214 Wainwrights, and 59 of the 116 Wainwright Outlying Fells.
The five Wainwrights that are not Birketts are Armboth Fell
Armboth Fell is a fell in the English Lake District, regarded by Alfred Wainwright as the centre of Lakeland. It is named for the former settlement of Armboth. The fell is a domed plateau, three-quarters of a mile across, jutting out to the east ...
, Baystones, Castle Crag (which, at , is Wainwright's only sub-1,000 ft summit), Graystones
Graystones is a fell in the English Lake District. It lies in the North Western Fells region and is one of the peaks on the ridge which encircles the valley of Aiken Beck.
Name
According to Alfred Wainwright the name Graystones properly ref ...
and Mungrisdale Common
Mungrisdale Common, pronounced ''mun-grize-dl'', with emphasis on ''grize'', is a fell in the English Lake District. Although Alfred Wainwright listed it as one of the 214 featured hills in his influential ''Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fell ...
; Birketts are listed in the .[
]
Synges
''The Database of British and Irish Hills'' recognises as Synges the 647 Lake District summits in Tim Synge's ''The Lakeland Summits: Survey of the Fells of the Lake District National Park'' (1995),. Two hills have been added to the original list: High Rigg in 2017 and Oakhowe Crag in 2020. The current list is available on the Hill Bagging website. There is no height or prominence threshold.
Ireland only
Vandeleur-Lynams
A Vandeleur-Lynam is the Irish equivalent of a Nuttall, except that the definition is fully metric with a height requirement of , and a prominence requirement of . As with the Nuttalls, Vandeleur-Lynams do not meet the UIAA requirements for a "peak" or for a "mountain". In 1952, Irish climber Joss Lynam
Joss Lynam (born as James Perry O’Flaherty Lynam; 29 June 1924 – 9 January 2011) was an Irish civil engineer who was well known as a mountaineer, hillwalker, orienteer, writer and sports administrator. He was one of Ireland's most influent ...
made a list of 2,000 ft Irish summits with a 50 ft drop aided by Rev CRP Vandeleur. Lynam updated his list, and published it in the book, ''Mountaineering in Ireland'' (1976) by Claude Wall, and later made a metric version published in 1997. There are 273 Vandeleur-Lynams in Ireland.
Arderins
The Arderins are mountains in Ireland above , with a prominence over . The list was drawn up in 2002 by the Irish ''MountainViews'' publisher Simon Stewart from an early listing of the Myrddyn Deweys with hills from the Vandeleur-Lynams which meet the higher prominence criterion. The name Arderins was first used in 2009, and comes from the hill Arderin
Arderin () is a mountain on the border between Laois and Offaly in Ireland. With a height of 527 metres (1,729 ft) it is the highest point in the Slieve Bloom Mountains, and is the highest point in both County Laois and County Offaly.
An ...
, which is the County Top for County Laois
County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medie ...
and County Offaly
County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...
in Ireland, and translates as "Height of Ireland". The Arderins were published in the 2013 book, "A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Arderins". According to the MountainViews Online Database, Ireland has 407 Arderins, of which 207 are over 2,000 ft and classed as Hewitts, and the 222 are over 600 m and classed as Simms.
In addition, Mountainviews uses the term ''Arderin Begs'' for the additional class of peaks over in height, and with a prominence between ; in 2018, Ireland had 124 Arderin Begs.
MountainViews
In 2013, Simon Stewart, publisher of Irish mountain database ''MountainViews Online Database
In these lists of mountains in Ireland, those within Northern Ireland, or on the Republic of Ireland – United Kingdom border, are marked with an asterisk, while the rest are within the Republic of Ireland. Where mountains are ranked by height ...
'', published ''A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Arderins''. In the book, Stewart proposed a new classification of an Irish mountain, being one with a height above , and a prominence over . Stewart identified 222 Irish peaks as meeting his new classification. MountainViews used this definition to create the list of ''100 Highest Mountains in Ireland'', which has also become popular in Ireland.
Carns
MountainViews and Database of British and Irish Hills recognise a list of 337 summits as Carns, having height above and below , and with a prominence over .
Binnions
MountainViews and Database of British and Irish Hills recognise a list of 484 summits as Binnions, having a prominence of at least and a height below . Binnion Hill is a peak of in height in County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
, site of the Battle of Binnion Hill
The Battle of Binnion Hill was fought in 1557 when John O’Neill, the Grandson of Conn Ó Néill, Con O’Neill assembled an army to attack Tirconnell, modern day County Donegal. O’Neill’s plan was to defeat Manus O'Donnell from the Cenél ...
, and possibly the source of the name.
Wales only
The ''Mud and Routes'' website includes a list of WASHIS: Welsh And Six Hundred In Stature, 118 summits which are over 600m (1,969 ft) and have a prominence of at least , with the comment that "Wales doesn't have a list of summits in its own right", but the term does not appear to have been adopted elsewhere.
County tops
Climbing to the highest point of each county is a form of peak bagging
Peak bagging or hill bagging is an activity in which hikers, climbers, and mountaineers attempt to reach a collection of summits, published in the form of a list. This activity has been popularized around the world, with lists such as 100 Peaks ...
, dating back to the 1920s when John Rooke Corbett
John Rooke Corbett (27 September 1876 – 13 August 1949), better known as J. Rooke Corbett was one of the founder-members of The Rucksack Club and their Convener of Rambles. In the 1920s Corbett compiled a list of Scottish hills between 2500 an ...
was attempting to visit all British County Tops.
* List of counties of England and Wales in 1964 by highest point
List of counties of England and Wales in 1964 by highest point. In 1964 they are more or less the ancient counties, with the addition of the County of London and a number of historic divisions in place as administrative counties: Cambridgeshire int ...
* List of ceremonial counties of England by highest point
* List of Welsh principal areas by highest point
This is a list of the Subdivisions of Wales, principal areas of Wales, ordered by their highest points.
Notes
The highest points in the principal areas of both Torfaen and Rhondda Cynon Taf are not summits but locations high on hills, the su ...
* List of Scottish counties by highest point
* List of Scottish council areas by highest point
This is a list of the 32 council areas of Scotland by their highest point.
Footnotes
# "Dundee Law’s summit is the highest point in the city"
# Map of Dundee council area and it´s boundaries
See also
*List of counties of Scotland 1890–1975 ...
* List of Irish counties by highest point
This is a list of Irish counties by their highest point. These are most commonly known as county high points but are also sometimes referred to as county tops and county peaks. There are 32 counties in Ireland, but in the case of 10 counties, m ...
Other active lists
Deweys
The Deweys and related categories extend the Hewitts of England, Wales and Ireland to 500 metres, and include summits in Scotland, where there are no Hewitts.
* The Deweys are peaks in England, Wales and the Isle and Man between 500 metres and in height, with a prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
above , which were listed by Michael Dewey in 1995. Deweys extend the England and Wales Hewitts below 2,000 feet, but above 500 metres. There are 426 Deweys identified: 241 in Wales, 180 in England, and five in the Isle of Man.
* The Donald Deweys are peaks in the Scottish lowlands (similar to the Donald classification), between 500 metres and in height, with a prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
above , which were listed by David Purchase in 2001. Donald Deweys are the Scottish lowland equivalent of Deweys. There are 248 Donald Deweys.
* The Highland Fives are peaks in the Scottish highlands, between 500 metres and in height, with a prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
above . The first listing was compiled by Rob Woodall in 2003 using contributions from Tony Payne and others. The list was adopted by The Database of British and Irish Hills in 2011, who overhauled the list and with Woodall's agreement took over its maintenance and named it the Highland Fives. Highland Fives are the Scottish highland equivalent of Deweys. There are 774 Highland Fives.
* The Myrddyn Deweys are peaks in Ireland, between 500 metres and in height with a prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
above , listed by Michael Dewey and Myrddyn Phillips and made freely available to the Mountaineering Council of Ireland in 2000. Myrddyn Deweys are the Irish equivalent of Deweys. In 2011 the data was re-examined against the latest mapping. There are 200 Myrddyn Deweys.
Dodds
The Dodds comprises hills between 500 and 600 metres in height, with a prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
above . The list was conceived in December 2014 in an article in Marhofn magazine as a unification of those parts of the Deweys, Donald Deweys and Highland Fives below 600m to create a metric list that can be viewed as a downwards extension of the Simm
A SIMM (single in-line memory module) is a type of memory module containing random-access memory used in computers from the early 1980s to the early 2000s. It differs from a dual in-line memory module (DIMM), the most predominant form of memory ...
s (British hills over 600m high). The acronym comes from "Donald Deweys, Deweys and Scotland". A Subdodd is a hill which just fails (by up to 10m) to qualify on the drop rule, i.e. between 500m and 600m with 20-29m drop.
The list was first published by the Database of British and Irish Hills, who maintain the list, in December 2017 after it had been recognised by the Relative Hills Society. The geographical coverage was originally confined to Britain, but was extended to the Isle of Man in February 2020 and to Ireland in September 2020.
Hardys
A Hardy is the highest point of a UK, Manx or Channel Island hill range, a UK island over or 4.05 km2) or a UK top-tier administrative area (counties and unitary authorities). There are now 347 Hardys with the recent addition (up to July 2016) of five low lying English coastal estuary islands: 61 hill ranges, 96 islands and 190 administrative areas. 183 are in England, 31 in Wales, 107 in Scotland and 26 in Northern Ireland. The list was first compiled in the 1990s by Ian Hardy.''Hardys Hill List and GPS Waypoints''
at www.haroldstreet.org.uk. Retrieved 6 Jan 2017.
Non-active lists
Bridges
''The Database of British and Irish Hills'' recognises as Bridges the 407 summits in George Bridge's ''Mountains of England and Wales: Tables of the 2000ft Summits'' (1973).[ ''Not titled, but linked from "Bridges" in HillBagging']
"Other lists" page
' Bridge used a prominence threshold of , but was hampered by the accuracy of the maps available at the time, and the list was effectively replaced by the Nuttalls, which uses the metric equivalent of 15 m49 ft.
Buxton & Lewis
''The Database of British and Irish Hills'' recognises as Buxton & Lewis the 422 summits in ''Mountain Summits of England and Wales'' (1986) by Chris Buxton and Gwyn Lewis.[ ''Linked from "Buxton-Lewis" in Hill Bagging']
"Other lists" page
' Buxton and Lewis used a prominence threshold of two contour rings on the OS 1:50,000 map, and the number of hills is similar to the Nuttalls and the Bridges.
Clems
''The Database of British and Irish Hills'' recognises as Clems the 1,284 summits in the list ''Yeamans of England & Wales'' compiled in 1993 by E. D. Clements, known as Clem, by applying Yeaman's criterion of "an eminence which has an ascent of 100m all round, or, failing that, is at least 5 km (walking distance) from any higher point on neighbouring hills" to summits in England, Wales and the Isle of Man, together with 14 summits which he added later. They were named Clems after his death, and formed the basis of the later list of HuMPs.
Fellrangers
''The Database of British and Irish Hills'' recognises as Fellrangers the 230 (originally 227) Lake District summits in Mark Richards' ''Fellranger'' series of eight guidebooks (originally published by HarperCollins, starting with ''Central Fells'' ; reprinted by Cicerone Press
Cicerone Press is an English publisher, founded in 1969, specialising in guidebooks for walkers, climbers, trekkers and cyclists.
The company's first publication was a climbing guide to the English Lake District, and over the past 50 years they ...
; 2013 boxed set ; new editions 2019-2021), A list is available on the HillBagging website. There is no height or prominence threshold. The original list included 18 fells not included in the 214 Wainwrights, some of which are listed among Wainwright's "Outlying fells". The 2019-2021 edition includes a further three summits to bring the total to 230, the additions being Winterscleugh
Winterscleugh is a hill of in Cumbria, England, to the east of the Lake District. It is in the far east of the Lake District National Park since the national park's expansion in 2019. It is east of the A6 road and west of the M6 motorway, on ...
(Bretherdale Common), Whinfell Beacon
Whinfell Beacon is a hill of in South Lakeland, Cumbria, England, to the east of the Lake District. It is in the far east of the Lake District National Park since the national park's expansion in 2019. It is east of the A6 road and west of t ...
and Grayrigg Forest
Grayrigg Forest is a hill in Cumbria, England, located on the eastern edge of what might be considered the Lake District, and in August 2016 becoming part of the national park. Reaching above sea level, it is attainable from the less well-kno ...
, all in the ''Mardale and the far east'' volume.
Yeamans
''The Database of British and Irish Hills'' recognises as Yeamans (sometimes spelled Yeomans) the 2,441 summits identified by Eric Yeaman in his ''Handbook of the Scottish Hills'' (1989, Arbroath:Wafaida ) with later changes. His criterion was "an eminence which has an ascent of 100 m all round, or, failing that, is at least 5 km (walking distance) from any higher point on neighbouring hills". Yeamans produced an update in 2001, and the list was used as the basis by those developing the later list of HuMPs, but the category is now considered to be "historic" and has not been updated since 2001.
Regional lists
The following are lists of hills for a given region in the British Isles:
England:
* List of hills of Cornwall
*List of hills of Dorset
This is a list of hills in Dorset. Many of these hills are important historical, archaeological and nature conservation sites, as well as popular hiking and tourist destinations in the county of Dorset in southern England.
Colour key
The table ...
*List of hills of Gloucestershire
This is a list of hills in Gloucestershire. Many of these hills are important historical, archaeological and nature conservation sites, as well as popular hiking and tourist destinations in the county of Gloucestershire in southern England.
Colo ...
* List of hills of Hampshire
* List of hills of Wiltshire
*List of hills in the Peak District
This is a list of the hills of the Peak District of England. Most lie within the Peak District National Park, but others lie outside its borders. The list is sorted by absolute height, then by relative height. Marilyn (hill), Marilyns a ...
See also
*List of mountain lists
Perhaps the first of what would become many notable mountain lists around the world was Sir Hugh Munro’s catalogue of the Munros, the peaks above 3,000’ elevation in Scotland. Once defined the list became a popular target for what became know ...
*Lists of mountains
Mountains are listed according to various criteria:
* List of mountains by elevation
** List of highest mountains greater than above sea level
** List of highest unclimbed peaks
** List of volcanoes by elevation
* Topographic prominence
** List of ...
*List of mountains of the British Isles by height
This is a list of mountains in Britain and Ireland by height and by prominence. Height and prominence are the most important metrics for the classifications of mountains by the UIAA; with isolation a distant third criterion. The list is sourced ...
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
Hill Bagging UK & Ireland
the searchable interface for the ''DoBIH''
the searchable database for the MountainViews
The Relative Hills of Britain
a website dedicated to mountain and hill classification
County tops
on ''Wikishire''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill and Mountain Lists In The British Isles
Mountains and hills of the United Kingdom
Mountains and hills of Ireland