Sir Iain Andrew Noble, 3rd Baronet, (8 September 1935 – 25 December 2010) was a businessman, landowner on the Isle of Skye and a noted

Scottish Gaelic language 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 ...

activist.

Early life

Noble was born in Berlin in 1935 the son of a British diplomat and a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

mother. He received his primary education in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, and at

Summer Fields Summer Fields is a fee-paying boys' independent day and boarding preparatory school in Summertown, Oxford. It was originally called Summerfield and used to have a subsidiary school, Summerfields, St Leonards-on-Sea (known as "Summers mi"). H ...

, Oxford, before attending

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the unive ...

. He was the nephew of the Conservative MP Michael Noble and a great-grandson of Sir Andrew Noble, 1st Baronet. The Nobles have been landowners in Dunbartonshire and Argyllshire since the 15th century, often with careers in the military or in business.

Career

Noble began his own career by establishing a merchant bank, Noble Grossart, in Edinburgh in 1969. When he was bought out, he used the proceeds to buy part of the MacDonald Estates on Skye. This included 20,000 acres of land, most of which was on the Sleat peninsula. Noble subsequently developed many business interests on Skye and elsewhere, including Hotel Eilean Iarmain and the whisky company Pràban na Linne which produces a vatted malt whisky called ''Poit Dhubh'' (literally the "Black Pot" or "Illicit Still". The company also produces two blends, Té Bheag nan Eilean ("small dram of the islands") and ''Mac na Mara'' (the "Son of the Sea"). Although not a

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

speaker Noble became an enthusiastic learner of the language and used his position as landowner to support the language, introducing an employment policy of positive discrimination in favour of Gaelic speakers. He was directly responsible for the erection of the first

Gaelic road signs in Scotland In the Gaelic-speaking parts of Scotland, the use of the Gaelic language on road signs instead of, or more often alongside, English is now common, but has been a controversial issue. History In the 18th and 19th centuries, map makers recorded ...

, and the holder of the first ever Gaelic cheque book, issued for him by the

Bank of Scotland The Bank of Scotland plc (Scottish Gaelic: ''Banca na h-Alba'') is a commercial and clearing bank based in Scotland and is part of the Lloyds Banking Group, following the Bank of Scotland's implosion in 2008. The bank was established by th ...

. Noble was the original founder of the Gaelic medium college

Sabhal Mòr Ostaig Sabhal Mòr Ostaig () (Great Barn of Ostaig) is a public higher education college situated in the Sleat peninsula in the south of the Isle of Skye, with an associate campus at Bowmore on the island of Islay, Ionad Chaluim Chille Ìle (the ...

which is located in Sleat, Skye. The original "Large Hall" (the ''Talla Mhòr'') was part of the MacDonald estates. Noble married Lucilla Mackenzie in 1990. He died at home on Skye on 25 December 2010, and was succeeded in the

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

by his brother, Timothy Peter Noble.

Awards and honours

He received an

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in the

1998 Birthday Honours Queen's Birthday Honours are announced on or around the date of the Queen's Official Birthday in the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth countries. The dates vary, both from year to year and from country to country. All are published in supplem ...

for services to Gaelic language and culture.

References

Sources

*Roger Hutchinson, ''A Waxing Moon: The Modern Gaelic Revival'', Mainstream Publishing, Edinburgh, 2005. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Noble, Iain Alumni of University College, Oxford 1935 births Scottish Gaelic language activists People educated at Eton College Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Officers of the Order of the British Empire Sabhal Mòr Ostaig Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders officers Scottish people of Norwegian descent 2010 deaths Scottish landowners 20th-century Scottish businesspeople Presidents of the Saltire Society

Early life

Career

Awards and honours

See also

References

Sources