Fuaigh Mòr (sometimes anglicised as Vuia Mor) is an island in the

Outer Hebrides The Outer Hebrides ( ) or Western Isles ( , or ), sometimes known as the Long Isle or Long Island (), is an Archipelago, island chain off the west coast of mainland Scotland. It is the longest archipelago in the British Isles. The islan ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. It is off the west 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 Radiohe ...

near

Great Bernera Great Bernera (; ), often known just as Bernera (), is an island and community council, community in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. With an area of just over , it is the thirty-fourth largest List of islands of Scotland, Scottish island. Great ...

Loch Ròg Loch Ròg or Loch Roag is a large sea loch on the west coast of Isle of Lewis, Lewis, Outer Hebrides. It is broadly divided into East Loch Roag and West Loch Roag with other branches which include Little Loch Roag. The loch is dominated by the on ...

. It is and at its highest point.

History

In 1841, Fuaigh Mòr was the scene of an incident in the

Highland Clearances The Highland Clearances ( , the "eviction of the Gaels") were the evictions of a significant number of tenants in the Scottish Highlands and Islands, mostly in two phases from 1750 to 1860. The first phase resulted from Scottish Agricultural R ...

, a subject that still evokes much bitterness in the surrounding area. A local Lewis story goes that the Bernera Ground Officer, who was responsible for the evictions, was later dismissed from his post and ended up as a tramp in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. While he was begging for food in Ontario, he came to the door of someone he had evicted from Fuaigh Mòr, but did not recognise them at first. The evictee is said to have given him food, and then reminded him of who she was. The island is currently uninhabited, and now used only for grazing sheep.

Geography and geology

The rock is

Lewisian gneiss The Lewisian complex or Lewisian gneiss is a suite of Precambrian metamorphic rocks that outcrop in the northwestern part of Scotland, forming part of the Hebridean terrane and the North Atlantic Craton. These rocks are of Archaean and Paleopr ...

. The island itself is ''L''-shaped, tapering towards the north. The south east has a small headland extended northwards, called Rubha na h-Athadh, which has a

cairn A cairn is a human-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, t ...

on it. There are a couple of caves in the north as well. There are cliffs on the west coast such as Creag na h-Iolaire (eagle crag). There are many skerries and small islands near it such as Geile Sgeir, Garbh Eilean, Eilean nam Feannag, Linngeam, Cliatasay, Grousam and yet another Floday, as well as Fuaigh Beag. Eunay Mòr is between the island and

Notes and references

Islands of Loch Ròg Cleared places in the Outer Hebrides Uninhabited islands of the Outer Hebrides {{WesternIsles-geo-stub