The Hebrides 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 Hebrides.
The Outer Hebrides or Western Isles, sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island, is an island chain off the west coast of mainland Scotland. The islands are geographically coextensive with Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. They form part of the archipelago of the Hebrides, separated from the Scottish mainland and from the Inner Hebrides by the waters of the Minch, the Little Minch, and the Sea of the Hebrides. Scottish Gaelic is the predominant spoken language, although in a few areas English speakers form a majority.
The Isle of Lewis or simply Lewis is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as if they were separate islands. The total area of Lewis is 683 square miles (1,770 km2).
Taransay is an island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. It was the host of the British television series Castaway 2000. Uninhabited since 1974, except for holidaymakers, Taransay is the largest Scottish island without a permanent population. It is one hectare larger than Scarba, which is also uninhabited.
Clan Donald, also known as Clan MacDonald, is a Highland Scottish clan and one of the largest Scottish clans. The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grants of coats of arms, and serving as the judge of the Court of the Lord Lyon, recognises under Scottish law the High Chief of Clan Donald. Historically the chiefs of the Clan Donald held the title of Lord of the Isles until 1493 and two of those chiefs also held the title of Earl of Ross until 1476.
The Black Isle is a peninsula within Ross and Cromarty, in the Scottish Highlands. It includes the towns of Cromarty and Fortrose, and the villages of Culbokie, Jemimaville, Rosemarkie, Avoch, Munlochy, Tore, and North Kessock, as well as numerous smaller settlements. About 12,000 people live on the Black Isle, depending on the definition.
Na h-Eileanan an Iar, formerly Western Isles, is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, created in 1918. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Armadale Castle is a ruined country house in Armadale, Skye, former home of the MacDonalds. A mansion house was first built here around 1790, facing south-east over the Sound of Sleat. In 1815 a square Tudor-Gothic mock-castle, intended for show rather than defence, designed by Edinburgh architect James Gillespie Graham, was built next to the house.
Amhuinnsuidhe Castle is a large 19th-century private country house on Harris, one of the Western Isles of Scotland. It was designated as a Category A listed building in 1971 and is now operated as a hotel and shooting estate.
Killegray is an island in the Sound of Harris in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland.
Gordon Castle is a country house located near Fochabers in the parish of Bellie in Moray, Scotland. It was the principal seat of the Dukes of Gordon and was originally called Bog-of-Gight. The six-storey medieval tower dates from 1498 and in the late 18th century it was incorporated into the centre of a huge Neoclassical house. The castle was used as a military hospital during the First World War, and in 1954 all but the central tower and the east wing pavilion were demolished due to dry rot.
Hermetray is an uninhabited island off North Uist, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland.
Ormacleit Castle is a ruined mansion house of the early 18th century. It is located on South Uist in the Western Isles of Scotland. It was built in the early years of the 18th century by Allan Macdonald, chief of Clanranald, and occupied from 1707. Macdonald was killed at the Battle of Sheriffmuir on 13 November 1715, and Ormacleit Castle is said to have burned down on the same day. After the fire, the Clanranald seat was moved north to Nunton on Benbecula, and the castle was abandoned after less than ten years of occupation.
Borve Castle, also known as Castle Wearie, and Caisteal Bhuirgh in Scottish Gaelic, is a ruined 14th-century tower house, located at the south-west of the island of Benbecula, in the Western Isles of Scotland. The castle was designated as a Scheduled Monument in 1993.
Lewis and Harris, or Lewis with Harris, is a single Scottish island in the Outer Hebrides, divided by mountains. It is the largest island in Scotland and the third largest in the British Isles, after Great Britain and the island of Ireland, with an area of 841 square miles (2,178 km2), which is approximately 1% of the area of Great Britain. The northern two-thirds is called [the Isle of] Lewis and the southern third [the Isle of] Harris; each is referred to as if it were a separate island and there are many cultural and linguistic differences between the two.
Kilberry Castle is a Category B listed country house near Kilberry in South Knapdale in the county of Argyll, in western Scotland on the shores of the Sound of Jura.
Roineabhal is a hill in Harris, in the Western Isles of Scotland. The granite on the summit plateau of the mountain is anorthosite, and is similar in composition to rocks found in the mountains of the Moon.
Castle Forbes is a 19th-century country house in the Scottish baronial architecture style near Alford in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Duirinish is a peninsula and civil parish on the island of Skye in Scotland. It is situated in the north west between Loch Dunvegan and Loch Bracadale.
Sursaigh is an island off North Uist in the Sound of Harris, Scotland. It lies 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) northeast of the village of Lochmaddy and there are numerous nearby islands including Stromay, Sgarabhaigh and Tahay.
