![]() The rest of the island is sparsely populated and mainly agricultural. Other smaller villages include Bridgend, Ballygrant, Port Charlotte, Portnahaven and Port Askaig. The island's population is concentrated mainly in and around the villages of Bowmore and Port Ellen. In the far southwest is a rocky and now largely uninhabited peninsula called The Oa, the closest point in the Hebrides to Ireland. The fractal coast has numerous bays and sea lochs, including Loch an t-Sailein, Aros Bay and Claggain Bay. The south coast is sheltered from the prevailing winds and, as a result, relatively wooded. The fertile and windswept southwestern arm is called The Rinns, and Ardnave Point is a conspicuous promontory on the northwest coast. The western peninsulas are separated from the main bulk of the island by the waters of Loch Indaal to the south and Loch Gruinart to the north. The east coast is rugged and mountainous, rising steeply from the Sound of Islay, the highest peak being Beinn Bheigier, which is a Marilyn at 1,612 feet (491 m). Islay is 40 kilometres (25 mi) long from north to south and 24 kilometres (15 mi) broad. Port Charlotte for example, was named after Lady Charlotte Campbell, daughter of 5th Duke of Argyll, and wife of the island's then owner, Col John Campbell (1770–1809) of Shawfield and Islay. Several of the villages were developed in the 18th and 19th centuries and English is a stronger influence in their names as a result. Gaelic names, or their anglicised versions such as Ardnave Point, from Àird an Naoimh, "height of the saint" are very common. Port Askaig is from the Norse ask-vík, meaning "ash tree bay" and the common suffix -bus is from the Norse bólstaðr, meaning "farm". The obliteration of pre-Norse names is almost total and place names on the island are a mixture of Norse and later Gaelic and English influences. In poetic language Islay is known as Banrìgh Innse Gall, or Banrìgh nan Eilean usually translated as "Queen of the Hebrides" and Eilean uaine Ìle – the "green isle of Islay" A native of Islay is called an Ìleach, pronounced. In seventeenth-century maps the spelling appears as "Yla" or "Ila", a form still used in the name of the whisky Caol Ila. The root is not Gaelic and of unknown origin. In the seventh century Adomnán referred to the island as Ilea and the name occurs in early Irish records as Ile and as Íl in Old Norse. Islay was probably recorded by Ptolemy as Epidion, the use of the "p" suggesting a Brittonic or Pictish tribal name. The climate is mild and ameliorated by the Gulf Stream. Islay is home to many bird species such as the wintering populations of Greenland white-fronted and barnacle goose, and is a popular destination throughout the year for birdwatchers. Its landscapes have been celebrated through various art forms, and there is a growing interest in renewable energy in the form of wave power. The island has a long history of religious observance, and Scottish Gaelic is spoken by about a quarter of the population. ![]() ![]() ![]() Today, it has over 3,000 inhabitants, and the main commercial activities are agriculture, malt whisky distillation and tourism. This was followed by substantial forced displacements and declining resident numbers. During the 17th century the power of Clan Donald waned, but improvements to agriculture and transport led to a rising population, which peaked in the mid-19th century. The later medieval period marked a "cultural high point" with the transfer of the Hebrides to the Kingdom of Scotland and the emergence of the Clan Donald Lordship of the Isles, originally centred at Finlaggan. The island had become part of the Gaelic Kingdom of Dál Riata during the Early Middle Ages before being absorbed into the Norse Kingdom of the Isles. There is ample evidence of the prehistoric settlement of Islay and the first written reference may have come in the first century AD. Islay is the fifth-largest Scottish island and the eighth-largest island of the British Isles, with a total area of almost 620 square kilometres (240 sq mi). The island's capital is Bowmore where the distinctive round Kilarrow Parish Church and a distillery are located. Known as "The Queen of the Hebrides", it lies in Argyll just south west of Jura and around 40 kilometres (22 nautical miles) north of the Northern Irish coast. Islay ( / ˈ aɪ l ə/ ( listen) EYE-lə Scottish Gaelic: Ìle, Scots: Ila) is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. ![]()
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