Eilean Chaluim Chille (

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 ...

: island of

Saint 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 tod ...

, Calum Cille) is an unpopulated island in the Outer Hebrides. It lies off the east coast of

Lewis Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...

at the mouth of

Loch Erisort Loch Erisort ( gd, Èireasort) is an 8-mile-long narrow sea inlet on the east coast of the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides off the west coast of Scotland. Its name is a relic of the Viking Age and came from Old Norse ''Eiríksfjorðr'' = "Er ...

. The island reaches a height of 43m (141 feet) in the northeast. At low tide Eilean Chaluim Chille is connected by a causeway to the mainland of Lewis at Crobeag. There are two lochs in the centre of the island.

History

At the southern end of the island lie the ruins of Teampall Chaluim Chille ( St Columba's Church). Local tradition has it as the site where Columban monks first arrived in Lewis. Another tradition is that it was built by a man named Columb Kill. It is cited in a report of 1549 as the main place of worship for the parish of

Lochs ''Loch'' () is the Scottish Gaelic, Scots and Irish word for a lake or sea inlet. It is cognate with the Manx lough, Cornish logh, and one of the Welsh words for lake, llwch. In English English and Hiberno-English, the anglicised spelling ...

. There was probably a church there from the medieval period. The cemetery was in use until 1878. Eilean Chaluim Chille is protected by

Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ( gd, Àrainneachd Eachdraidheil Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the mer ...

as a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

Footnotes

Islands off Lewis and Harris Uninhabited islands of the Outer Hebrides {{WesternIsles-geo-stub