| Muldoanich | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
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Muldoanich
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| Muldoanich shown within the Outer Hebrides | |
| OS grid reference | NL688940 |
| Names | |
| Gaelic name | Maol Dòmhnaich |
| Meaning of name | Duncan's rounded hill |
| Area and summit | |
| Area | 78 hectares (0.30 sq mi) |
| Area rank | 164= |
| Highest elevation | Cruachan na h-àin 153 m |
| Population | |
| Population | 0 |
| Groupings | |
| Island group | Uist and Barra |
| Local Authority | Comhairle nan Eilean Siar |
| References | [1][2][3][4] |
| If shown, area and population ranks are for all Scottish islands and all inhabited Scottish islands respectively. Population data is from 2001 census. | |
Muldoanich is one of the islands in the Barra Isles archipelago at the southern extremity of the larger island chain of the Outer Hebrides of Scotland.
The island is 78 hectares (193 acres - about a third of a sq. mile) in area and rises to a maximum height of 153 metres (502 ft) at the peak of Cruachan na h-àin ("midday hill").[2]
Muldoanich stands about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) south west of Castlebay, the main port on the island of Barra and it is a prominent landmark for the approaching ferry and other craft. It has no level ground and is uninhabited. There are no census records, but the southern headland of Vanish (meaning "headland of the house" or "sacred place" in Gaelic) may indicate habitation at some time in the past.[2]
The name "Muldoanich" is probably the anglicised version of the Scottish Gaelic: Maol Dòmhnaich meaning "Duncan's rounded hill". Mul Domhnach meaning "Sunday island" is another possible derivation. Writing in the 16th century, Dean Munro referred to the island as "Scarp" and it appears as "Scarpa"on Blaeu's atlas of 1654.[2]
Martin Martin refers to "Muldonish" in his 1695 voyage around the Western Isles, stating "about a mile in circumference; it is high in the middle, covered over with heath and grass, and is the only forest here for maintaining the deer, being commonly about seventy or eighty in number."[5]
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