Kilchoman ( or ; gd, Cill Chomain ) is a small settlement and large parish on the

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

island of Islay, within the unitary council of

Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute ( sco, Argyll an Buit; gd, Earra-Ghàidheal agus Bòd, ) is one of 32 unitary authority council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod (14 July 202 ...

Settlement

The settlement of Kilchoman consists of a small number of houses gathered around the 19th century church, a short way above the beach and dunes of

Machir Bay Machir Bay is a small bay on the Western coast of the isle of Islay in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. It is one of the features of the Rhinns of Islay and lies within a few hundred metres of the small settlement of Kilchoman. To the north, the c ...

, "locally known as Kilchoman Beach or Machrie Beach." The site is ancient, dating back to the early Christianization of the Argyll seaboard. The current-day church was built in 1827 to serve a large community that has since disappeared. It ceased use as a place of worship in 1977. Prior to 1827, a medieval church stood on the location of the now ruined church and before that, an early chapel stood there. The burial ground enclosing the church contains many medieval and renaissance sculptures, and notable

high cross A high cross or standing cross ( ga, cros ard / ardchros, gd, crois àrd / àrd-chrois, cy, croes uchel / croes eglwysig) is a free-standing Christian cross made of stone and often richly decorated. There was a unique Early Medieval traditi ...

, the Kilchoman Cross, dating from the 14th or 15th century. The sculptor of the cross belonged to the Iona School. Close to the settlement is another cemetery, the Kilchoman Military Cemetery, maintained by the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mi ...

. This contains the remains of victims of the sinking of HMS Otranto in 1918. A short distance east is Kilchoman Distillery.

Chough There are two species of passerine birds commonly called chough ( ) that constitute the genus ''Pyrrhocorax'' of the Corvidae (crow) family of birds. These are the red-billed chough (''Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax''), and the Alpine chough (or yello ...

s breed in the area of farmland around the settlement, and the south shores of Loch Gorm, representing around 10% of the population of this vulnerable bird in the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles (O ...

Parish of Kilchoman

The parish covers the west part of Islay, covering the Rhinns of Islay, and the area around and north of Loch Gorm, and bounded to the east by

Loch Gruinart Loch Gruinart ( from the Old Norse, meaning "shallow fjord") is a sea loch on the northern coast of isle of Islay in Scotland. Land at the head of the loch, Gruinart Flats, is a designated nature reserve owned by the RSPB. It is an important win ...

and

Loch Indaal Loch Indaal (or Lochindaal) is a sea loch on Islay, the southernmost island of the Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland. Together with Loch Gruinart to the north, it was formed by the Loch Gruinart Fault, which branches off the Great Glen ...

totalling around 100 square miles (250 km²). New Statistical Account ''ibid.'' It thus includes the settlements of Ardnave, Bruichladdich, Claddach, Conisby, Kilchiaran, Kilnave, Nerabus, Port Charlotte,

Portnahaven Portnahaven ( gd, Port na h-Abhainne, meaning river port) is a village on Islay in the Inner Hebrides, Scotland. The village is within the parish of Kilchoman. In 1991 it had a population of 150. It is located at the southern tip of the Rinns ...

and Port Wemyss.

Bibliography

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External links

Carved Stones of Kilchoman Parish
An 1885 account * Kilchoman a
Islay History Blog

References

{{Islay Villages in Islay

Settlement

Parish of Kilchoman

See also

Bibliography

External links

References