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 Highlands is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands. The term is also used for the area north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault, although the exact boundaries are not clearly defined, particularly to the east. The Great Glen divides the Grampian Mountains to the southeast from the Northwest Highlands. The Scottish Gaelic name of A' Ghàidhealtachd literally means "the place of the Gaels" and traditionally, from a Gaelic-speaking point of view, includes both the Western Isles and the Highlands.
The Inner Hebrides 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, which experience a mild oceanic climate. The Inner Hebrides comprise 35 inhabited islands as well as 44 uninhabited islands with an area greater than 30 hectares. Skye, Mull, and Islay are the three largest, and also have the highest populations. The main commercial activities are tourism, crofting, fishing and whisky distilling. In modern times the Inner Hebrides have formed part of two separate local government jurisdictions, one to the north and the other to the south. Together, the islands have an area of about 4,130 km2 (1,594 sq mi), and had a population of 18,948 in 2011. The population density is therefore about 4.6 inhabitants per square kilometre.
Portree is the capital and largest town of the Isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. It is a civil parish and lies within the Highland council area, around 74 miles (119 km) from its administrative centre of Inverness.
Armadale is a village near the southern end of the Sleat peninsula on the Isle of Skye, in the Highland council area of Scotland. Like most of Sleat, but unlike most of Skye, the area is fairly fertile, and though there are hills, most do not reach a great height. It looks out over the Sound of Sleat, to Morar and Mallaig.
Clan MacLeod is a Highland Scottish clan associated with the Isle of Skye. There are two main branches of the clan: the MacLeods of Harris and Dunvegan, known in Gaelic as Sìol Tormoid and the Clan MacLeod of Lewis Assynt and Raasay, known in Gaelic as Sìol Torcaill. Both branches claim descent from Leòd, a Norse-Gael who lived in the 13th century.
Trotternish is the northernmost peninsula of the Isle of Skye in Scotland, spanning in length from Portree to Rubha Hunish. The Trotternish escarpment runs almost the full length of the peninsula, some 30 kilometres, and contains landmarks such as the Old Man of Storr and the Quiraing. The summit of The Storr, overlooking the Old Man, is the highest point of the peninsula at 719 m above sea level. The north-eastern part of the peninsula around Quiraing is designated as a National Scenic Area and the entire escarpment is a Special Area of Conservation.
The Minch is a strait in north-west Scotland that separates the mainland from Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides. It was known as Skotlandsfjörð in Old Norse.
Ullinish is a crofting township on Loch Bracadale, on the southwest coast of Skye, Scotland. The only promontory fort on Skye is located at Ullinish. It is situated to the west of Struan and just south of the hamlet of Ebost. Historically, Ullinish is associated with the MacLeod family. Of literary note, Samuel Johnson's views and denunciation of James Macpherson's Ossian were confirmed while Johnson was in Ullinish.
Borreraig is a crofting settlement in Duirinish, north-west of Dunvegan on the Isle of Skye. The ancient and famous MacCrimmon Piping Heritage Centre is based in the village, where the chiefs of the Highlands sent their young pipers for training.
Kilmuir is a village on the west coast of the Trotternish peninsula in the north of the island of Skye, and a civil parish covering the north of the peninsula. It is in the Scottish council area of Highland and is the only place in Scotland where Scottish Gaelic is spoken by about half of the population. Flora MacDonald, who assisted Bonnie Prince Charlie to escape from Scotland after his defeat at Culloden, is buried here, and fashion designer Alexander McQueen has his headstone here.
Portnalong is a small village on north west of the Isle of Skye on the shore of Loch Harport. Portnalong is Gaelic for "harbour of the ships". It was founded by crofters from Lewis and Harris in 1921.
The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye, is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated by the Cuillin, the rocky slopes of which provide some of the most dramatic mountain scenery in the country. Although Sgitheanach has been suggested to describe a winged shape, no definitive agreement exists as to the name's origin.
Staffin is a township with the Gaelic name An Taobh Sear, which translates as "the East Side", on the northeast coast of the Trotternish peninsula on the Isle of Skye. It is located on the A855 road about 17 miles north of Portree and is overlooked by the Trotternish Ridge. The township forms part of a parish comprising 23 townships. From south to north: Rigg, Tote, Lealt, Lonfearn, Grealin, Breackry, Culnancnoc, Valtos, Raiseburgh, Ellishadder, Garafad, Clachan, Garros, Marishader, Maligar, Stenscholl, Brogaig, Sartle, Glasphein, Digg, Dunans, Flodigarry and Greap.
The etymology of Skye attempts to understand the derivation of the name of the Isle of Skye in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Skye's history includes the influence of Gaelic, Norse and English speaking peoples, and the relationships between their names for the island are not straightforward. Ultimately, like other Scottish locations as Islay, Lewis and Arran, the origin of the name is still debated and may be impossible to discern with all known evidence.
Minginish is a peninsula on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. It is situated on the west coast of the island and runs from Loch Scavaig in the south, along the western coast of Skye to Loch Bracadale in the north west, to Loch Harport in the north east, and Glen Sligachan in the south east. It includes most of the peaks of the Cuillin hills including Sgurr Alasdair, the highest point on the island at 992 metres (3,255 ft). The island of Soay lies offshore across the Soay Sound, with the Small Isles further south across the Cuillin Sound.
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.
Flashader is a small crofting township close to the east coast of the sea loch Loch Greshornish on the Isle of Skye. It is in the Scottish council area of Highland. The broch, Dun Flashader, lies north of the main settlement close to the shore and beyond this is the area of Kildonan, which has a small jetty.
Ellishadder is a crofting township, situated close to the north shore of the freshwater Loch Mealt, on the Trotternish peninsula of the Isle of Skye, and is in the Scottish council area of Highland. Ellishadder is one of 23 townships making up the district area of Staffin.
Lochalsh is a district of mainland Scotland that is currently part of the Highland council area. The Lochalsh district covers all of the mainland either side of Loch Alsh - and of Loch Duich - between Loch Carron and Loch Hourn, ie. from Stromeferry in the north on Loch Carron down to Corran on Loch Hourn and as (south-)west as Kintail. It was sometimes more narrowly defined as just being the hilly peninsula that lies between Loch Carron and Loch Alsh. The main settlement is Kyle of Lochalsh, located at the entrance to Loch Alsh, opposite the village of Kyleakin on the adjacent island of Skye. A ferry used to connect the two settlements but was replaced by the Skye Bridge in 1995.
