Texa (
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 ...
: Teacsa) is a small island directly south of
Islay
Islay ( ; gd, Ìle, sco, Ila) is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Known as "The Queen of the Hebrides", it lies in Argyll just south west of Jura, Scotland, Jura and around north of the Northern Irish coast. The isl ...
, in 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 ...
,
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 ...
. It reaches a height of at its highest point, Ceann Garbh. It is part of the parish of
Kildalton on Islay. The distilleries of
Laphroaig and
Lagavulin
Lagavulin ( gd, Lag a' Mhuilinn, "hollow of the mill") is a small village approximately outside Port Ellen on the Isle of Islay, Scotland. The village is within the parish of Kildalton, and is situated on the A846 road
The A846 road is one o ...
are nearby on the Islay coast, as well as
Port Ellen
Port Ellen ( gd, Port Ìlein) is a small town on the island of Islay, in Argyll, Scotland. The town is named after the wife of its founder, Walter Frederick Campbell. Its previous name, ''Leòdamas'', is derived from Old Norse meaning "Leòd's Ha ...
. It is currently uninhabited, but is home to wild goats, as well as otters.
![Texa Island](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Texa_Island.jpg)
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Geology
The island has its own fresh water supply at Tobar Moireig. The rock is mainly
schist
Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock showing pronounced schistosity. This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a low-power hand lens, oriented in such a way that the rock is easily split into thin flakes o ...
and some
hornblende
Hornblende is a complex inosilicate series of minerals. It is not a recognized mineral in its own right, but the name is used as a general or field term, to refer to a dark amphibole. Hornblende minerals are common in igneous and metamorphic rocks ...
.
History
Church history
Texa has tentatively been identified as the ''Oidecha Insula'' written about by
St Adomnan. The etymology of the name is disputed – it may represent either the Old Irish ''tech'' (house – ''taigh'' in modern
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 ...
) or ''Oideachd/Oideachas'', a word for a religious seminary.
Adomnan mentions that St Cainneach (Kenneth) used "Oidecha Insula" as a stopping place on his journey between
Iona
Iona (; gd, Ì Chaluim Chille (IPA: iːˈxaɫ̪ɯimˈçiʎə, sometimes simply ''Ì''; sco, Iona) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there ...
and
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 ...
. Kenneth is said to have left his crozier on Iona on this journey, so
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 ...
blessed it, cast it into the sea, and it washed up on ''Oidecha'' where Kenneth found it.
Whether or not Texa is ''Oidecha Insula'', the island was, like many others round the Scottish coast, used as an ecclesiastical settlement, and the remains of a chapel dedicated to the
Virgin Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...
can still be seen. This was built, probably on the site of an older one, in the late 14th century by Raghnall/Reginald of Islay, son of Iain/John. This is commemorated today in the name Bàgh na h-Eaglais (Church Bay) and Tobar Moireig (
icMary’s Well), which lies next to the anchorage. There are also many caves on the island, in which anchorites could live.
The shaft of a cross stood east of the chapel, commemorating Raghnall. It is now in a museum in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
.
[National Museum of Scotland Record]
/ref>
Miscellaneous
In the 13th Century, the Norse fleet of Somerled
Somerled (died 1164), known in Middle Irish as Somairle, Somhairle, and Somhairlidh, and in Old Norse as Sumarliði , was a mid-12th-century Norse-Gaelic lord who, through marital alliance and military conquest, rose in prominence to create the ...
anchored near to Texa. Islay was one of the centres of Norse culture in the Hebrides
The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebrid ...
.
The island's name has been recorded in a number of variants. In 1385, John of Fordun
John of Fordun (before 1360 – c. 1384) was a Scottish chronicler. It is generally stated that he was born at Fordoun, Mearns. It is certain that he was a secular priest, and that he composed his history in the latter part of the 14th cen ...
refers to Texa as "Helan ttexa" ("eilean" being an island in Gaelic). In 1549, Dean Monro
Donald Monro (or Munro) ( fl. 1526–1574) was a Scottish clergyman, who wrote an early and historically valuable description of the Hebrides and other Scottish islands and enjoyed the honorific title of "Dean of the Isles".
Origins
Donald Monro ...
wrote of "Tisgay" that it was: "''callit by the Erische Tisgay, ane myle of lenthe guid maineland, and ane kirk in it; very guid it is for sheep and for fishing.''"
In 1614, it was referred to in a document as "Ilantasson", and was chartered by the crown to Sir John Campbell of Cawdor, confirmed by a Scottish Act of Parliament in 1626. In 1608, Andrew Knox, bishop of the Isles
The Bishop of the Isles or Bishop of Sodor was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of the Isles (or Sodor), one of Scotland's thirteen medieval bishoprics. The bishopric, encompassing both the Hebrides and Mann, probably traces its origins as ...
, wrote from "Ilintexa". In 1625, Father Cornelius Ward, a Franciscan missionary reported that there were twenty nine people living on the island, and most of them were Roman Catholic. (The island was inhabited until the early 19th century.) The six who were not Catholic, he converted. Johan Blaeu
Joan Blaeu (; 23 September 1596 – 21 December 1673) was a Dutch cartographer born in Alkmaar, the son of cartographer Willem Blaeu.
Life
In 1620, Blaeu became a doctor of law but he joined the work of his father. In 1635, they published ...
's 1654 Atlas records Texa as "Ylen Teghza".
The Statistical Account, written more than a century and a half later, records that:[Robertson, Rev. Mr. Archibald ''Statistical Account'' (1791-99) vol. XI "Parish of Kildalton: County of Argyle" p. 290]
There is good pasture on this small island; and there is a burying-place around the chapel the walls of which are partly standing. There are the remains of other 2 or 3 chapels in this parish, where they were formerly wont to bury those who were of the popish religion; but the whole inhabitants of this parish now belong to the Established Church.
See also
* List of islands of Scotland
This is a list of islands of Scotland, the mainland of which is part of the island of Great Britain. Also included are various other related tables and lists. The definition of an offshore island used in this list is "land that is surrounded by ...
Notes and references
Further reading
*
External links
''Statistical Account'' (1791-99)
University of Edinburgh: University of Glasgow.
{{Portal bar, United Kingdom, Scotland
Uninhabited islands of Argyll and Bute