Shuna, Slate Islands

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Shuna
Scottish Gaelic nameSiùna
Meaning of nameMost likely from Norse sjòn-a, meaning "watching island" [1]
Ruined castle near Shuna House - geograph.org.uk - 607453.jpg
The ruined castle
Location
Argyll and Bute UK relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Shuna
Shuna shown within Argyll and Bute
OS grid reference NM760080
Coordinates 56°13′N5°37′W / 56.21°N 5.61°W / 56.21; -5.61
Physical geography
Island group Slate Islands
Area451 ha (1,114 acres)
Area rank74  [2]
Highest elevationDruim na Dubh Ghlaic, 90 m (295 ft)
Administration
Council area Argyll and Bute
Country Scotland
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Demographics
Population2 [3]
Population rank88=  [2]
Population density0.44/km2 (1.1/sq mi) [4] [3]
Lymphad3.svg
References [4] [5] [6]

Shuna is one of the Slate Islands offshore of Arduaine lying east of Luing in the Firth of Lorn north of the Sound of Jura on the west coast of Scotland.

Contents

Unlike the other Slate Islands, Shuna has little slate, and has historically been farmed, although it is now overgrown with woodland. There are several cairns in the south and west of the small island.

During the nineteenth century the population numbered up to 69, but by the 2001 census Shuna was one of four Scottish islands with a population of just one. [7]

History

In 1815, James Yates, a Glasgow native living in Woodville in Devon, bought the island from Colonel McDonald of Lynedale. [8] In 1829 Yates bequeathed the island in trust to the magistrates and council of Glasgow, with profits from the estate divide two fifths to the city, two fifths to Glasgow University and one fifth to Glasgow Royal Infirmary. [8] [9] This was disputed by Yates' heir, who accepted £300 from the trustees to settle his claim. [9] The revenue from the island was scarce and the trustees sold it in 1911. [10]

Shuna Castle was built in 1911 by George Buckley. [11] It fell into disrepair in the 1980s when the cost of maintenance became too great. [12]

The island has been privately owned by the Gully family, Viscounts Selby, since 1946. [11] It is currently occupied by a farmer and his family, who let four houses as holiday cottages and had a usually resident population of 3 in 2011 [13] and 2 in 2022. [3] The holidaymakers are brought onto the island by boat from the jetty at Arduaine on the mainland. [12]

In 2025, freehold possession of the island, including all buildings, was listed for sale at £5.5 million. [14] [15]

Wildlife

The island has healthy populations of red, roe and fallow deer; along with otters, common and grey seals, porpoises and dolphins out on the water. [12]

References

  1. ↑ The place-names of Argyll : Gillies, H. Cameron : 1906, p.239. Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive https://share.google/EtvLfhWUUQQHdPbWG
  2. 1 2 Area and population ranks: there are c. 300 islands over 20 ha in extent. 93 permanently inhabited islands were listed in the 2011 census and 101 such islands in 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 "Scottish Islands Data Dashboard". RESAS/Scottish Government. 2025. p. 6. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  4. 1 2 Haswell-Smith, Hamish (2004). The Scottish Islands. Edinburgh: Canongate. ISBN   978-1-84195-454-7.
  5. ↑ Ordnance Survey. OS Maps Online (Map). 1:25,000. Leisure.
  6. ↑ Mac an Tàilleir, Iain (2003) Ainmean-àite/Placenames. (pdf) Pàrlamaid na h-Alba. Retrieved 26 August 2012.
  7. ↑ General Register Office for Scotland (28 November 2003) Scotland's Census 2001 – Occasional Paper No 10: Statistics for Inhabited Islands . Retrieved 26 February 2012.
  8. 1 2 Session, Scotland. Court of (1832). "Yates's Trustees v Yeats &c.". Cases Decided in the Court of Session. Bell & Bradfute. pp. 565–571. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  9. 1 2 Municipal Corporations (Scotland) Commissioners (1835). "Report on the City of Glasgow; Branch VII: Shuna Trust". Report Vol. II. Command papers. W. Clowes and sons. pp. 20–21. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  10. ↑ "The Last Years of the Old Regime". The History of Glasgow. electricscotland.com. pp. Volume 3 Chapter LI. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  11. 1 2 Grant, Rachel. "Family selling 'idyllic' island with ruined castle after 80 years". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 3 July 2025.
  12. 1 2 3 "Shuna Wildlife & History". Internet Archive. Original access: islandofshuna.co.uk on 28 July 2007. Archived at 14 August 2007. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
  13. ↑ National Records of Scotland (15 August 2013). "Appendix 2: Population and households on Scotland's Inhabited Islands" (PDF). Statistical Bulletin: 2011 Census: First Results on Population and Household Estimates for Scotland Release 1C (Part Two) (PDF) (Report). SG/2013/126. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  14. ↑ "Land for Sale in Shuna Island: A Rare Private Island Estate in Scotland's Inner Hebrides". UK Sotheby's International Realty. 5 June 2025. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
  15. ↑ Rappaport, Sarah (13 June 2025). "Private Island in Scotland Hits the Market for £5.5 Million". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 15 June 2025.

56°12′44″N5°36′42″W / 56.21222°N 5.61167°W / 56.21222; -5.61167


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