My Hebrides

On the northwest of Scotland, you’ll find a mosaic of islands, communities and seascapes known by names such as the Outer Hebrides, Western Isles, Suðreyar, Na h-Eileanan Siar, An t-Eilean Fada – our islands have been called many things throughout their history. One of my favourite names for the islands that stretch from Vatersay in the south to the island of Lewis in the north is Na h-Innse Gall, the Island of Strangers. This is how the Gaelic-speaking islanders referred to the settlement of the Norse Vikings in the Outer Hebrides in the tenth century.