Ullinish (

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

: Uilfhinis) is a crofting township on Loch Bracadale, on the southwest coast of

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye (; gd, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or ; sco, Isle o 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 b ...

, Scotland. The only

promontory fort A promontory fort is a defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the ramparts needed. Although their dating is problematic, most seem to da ...

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 Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

's views and denunciation of James Macpherson's ''

Ossian Ossian (; Irish Gaelic/Scottish Gaelic: ''Oisean'') is the narrator and purported author of a cycle of epic poems published by the Scottish poet James Macpherson, originally as ''Fingal'' (1761) and ''Temora'' (1763), and later combined under t ...

'' were confirmed while Johnson was in Ullinish.

Etymology

The name Ullinish is from Old Norse ''úlfa-nes'', meaning "promontory of the wolves". In Gaelic, it is sometimes spelt as ''Uilinis'' or ''Uilbhinis''.

Geography

Located on the

Inner Hebrides The Inner Hebrides (; Scottish Gaelic: ''Na h-Eileanan a-staigh'', "the inner isles") 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, whic ...

, Ullinish lies on a small peninsula, with a

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

moorland Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils. Moorland, nowadays, generally ...

ending at Ullinish Point. Loch Caroy is situated between Ullinish Point and Harlosh Island. The small tidal island of

Oronsay This is a list of islands called Oronsay (Scottish Gaelic: '), which provides an index for islands in Scotland with this and similar names. It is one of the more common names for Scottish islands. The names come from ''Örfirisey'' which transla ...

is joined to Ullinish Point at low tide, and separated by a

breakwater Breakwater may refer to: * Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour Places * Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia * Breakwater Island Breakwater Island () is a small island in the Palme ...

. The town is overlooked by the low, basalt cliffs of the

Cuillin Hills The Cuillin ( gd, An Cuiltheann) is a range of mostly jagged rocky mountains on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. The main Cuillin ridge is also called the Black Cuillin to distinguish it from the Red Cuillin ('), which lie to the east of Glen Sliga ...

, and MacLeod's Table. Knock Ullinish is a small hill east of Ullinish.

Fauna and flora

The common teal nests in Ullinish. Other avifauna include the common raven, long-eared owl, hen harrier,

merlin Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and le ...

, osprey, black grouse, and bar-tailed godwit.

Landmarks

The largest building in the area is the Ullinish Country Lodge, a historic hotel which contains six rooms. Originally a farmhouse, it was built in 1757. The building is sheltered by a small

brae :''"Brae" is also the Lowland Scots language word for the slope or brow of a hill.'' Brae (Old Norse: ''Breiðeið'', meaning "the wide isthmus") is a village on the island of Mainland in Shetland, Scotland, United Kingdom. Description Brae wa ...

and surrounded on three sides by

loch ''Loch'' () is the Scottish Gaelic, Scots language, Scots and Irish language, Irish word for a lake or sea inlet. It is Cognate, cognate with the Manx language, Manx lough, Cornish language, Cornish logh, and one of the Welsh language, Welsh w ...

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 (New Style, N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the Englis ...

and Doctor Johnson stayed in the farmhouse between September 21–23, 1773 during their famous literary tour of the Hebrides, documented in ''

The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides ''The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides with Samuel Johnson, LL.D.'' is a travel journal by Scotland, Scotsman James Boswell first published in 1785. In 1773, Boswell enticed his English friend Samuel Johnson to accompany him on a tour through ...

'' that was published in 1775. While in Ullinish, Johnson's views and denunciation of Macpherson's ''Ossian'' were confirmed. Here, too, Boswell remarked that the mountain view reminded him of those seen in

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

. After two nights in Ullinish, they departed by boat for

Talisker Talisker ( gd, Talasgair) is a settlement on the Minginish peninsula in the Isle of Skye, Scotland. History Talisker was for centuries a possession of the Clan Macleod. For nearly two hundred years it was associated with a cadet branch of the ...

. Remains of a chambered

cairn A cairn is a man-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 gd, càrn (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehis ...

consisting of a denuded circle of boulders are found just north of the lodge. Also of archaeological interest is a partly destroyed Earth house on the east side of the northern extremity of Knock Ullinish.

Notable people

*Sergeant Donald McLeod (June 20, 1688-?) *Mary MacLeod also known as

Màiri nighean Alasdair Ruaidh Màiri nighean Alasdair Ruaidh (c.1615–c.1707), also known as Mary Macleod, was a Scottish Gaelic poet. Life Born at Rowdil, Harris, she was a daughter of Red Alasdair, and through him connected with the chiefs of the Macleods. In one of her ...

"Ullinish/ Of white-hoofed cattle/ Where in my youth/ I was reared" *Sheriff Alexander MacLeod, one of the first Sheriffs Principal in Skye

References

External links

Official site of Ullinish Country Lodge
{{Skye Populated places in the Isle of Skye