Inishtooskert (sometimes spelled ''Inishtooshkert'') (''Inis Tuaisceart'' in

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 ...

) is the northernmost of the

Blasket Islands The Blasket Islands ( ga, Na Blascaodaí) are an uninhabited group of islands off the west coast of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The last island to hold a significant population, Great Blasket Island, was abandoned in 1954 due ...

, County Kerry,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Etymology

The Irish name means "northern island" and the English name is a

phonetic spelling A phonemic orthography is an orthography (system for writing a language) in which the graphemes (written symbols) correspond to the phonemes (significant spoken sounds) of the language. Natural languages rarely have perfectly phonemic orthographi ...

of the Irish name. The island is also known as ''An Fear Marbh'' (the dead man) or the sleeping giant due to its appearance when seen from the east (as in the photograph).

Nature

Inishtooskert holds important

seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same enviro ...

colonies, as well as extensive ruins of ancient stone buildings. Of particular note is the colony of

European storm-petrel The European storm petrel, British storm petrel, or just storm petrel (''Hydrobates pelagicus'') is a seabird in the northern storm petrel family, Hydrobatidae. The small, square-tailed bird is entirely black except for a broad, white rump and ...

s. With over 27,000 pairs in 2000 (

Seabird 2000 Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same enviro ...

survey), this is the largest colony in Ireland.

In culture

The island appears frequently in David Lean's 1970 film

Ryan's Daughter ''Ryan's Daughter'' is a 1970 British epic romantic drama film directed by David Lean and starring Robert Mitchum and Sarah Miles. The film, set between August 1917 and January 1918, tells the story of a married Irish woman who has an affair ...

Photo gallery

File:Tooskert2.jpg, The northern cliffs of Inishtooskert File:Inishtooskert, large Clochaun, Blasket Islands.jpg, Early Medieval ecclesiastical site on the island File:Inis Tuaisceart (Inishtooskert) - geograph.org.uk - 220149.jpg, Inishtooskert seen from the mainland

References

External links