Insh Island

Insh Island (Scottish Gaelic: An Innis) or simply Insh is an uninhabited island west of the island of Seil in the Firth of Lorn, Scotland.

Insh Island
Gaelic nameInnis
Meaning of nameisland
Location
Insh Island
Insh Island shown within Argyll and Bute
OS grid referenceNM729192
Coordinates56.311109°N 5.672493°W / 56.311109; -5.672493
Physical geography
Island groupSlate Islands
Area33 ha (82 acres)[1]
Highest elevation69 m (226 ft)
Administration
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
CountryScotland
Council areaArgyll and Bute
Demographics
Population0
References[2][3]

One of the Slate Islands, Insh Island lies a mile (1.5 km) northeast of Ellenabeich in Seil. It is separated from it by the Sound of Insh. The island rises to 69 metres (226 feet) and is 36 hectares (89 acres) in area. The private owner, David Brearley lived in a cave at the north end between 1973 and 2003.[2] It was "Eilean nan Caorach" on the 1875 OS maps, which was though to have been an error, with its correct name being "Inis-Capul".[4] It is now on OS maps as "Insh Island".[5] Insh was previously known as Sheep Island.[6][2]

The name is tautologous. The Gaelic An Innis means simply "The Island" and the derived English language name thus means "The Island Island."[7]

The 49.3 m (162 ft) long wooden sailing ship Norval ran aground in fog near the southern tip of Insh on 20 September 1870. The wreckage was still visible in 1995.[6]

The Northern sea fan (Swiftia pallida) is found in the waters off Insh Island.[8]

The island is "reputed to be owned by a Londoner who ocasionaly occupies the cave"[2] found in the northwest overlooking Seil.[3]

Footnotes
  1. Rick Livingstone’s Tables of the Islands of Scotland (pdf) Argyll Yacht Charters. Retrieved 12 Dec 2011.
  2. Haswell-Smith (2004) p. 78
  3. Ordnance Survey. OS Maps Online (Map). 1:25,000. Leisure.
  4. "Insh Island". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 14 November 2009.
  5. "Insh Island". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  6. Baird (1995), p. 117.
  7. Mac an Tàilleir (2003) p. 65
  8. "The Insh Island Sea Fans" (PDF). Northern Sea Fan Project. Retrieved 13 November 2009.

Bibliography

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