Gometra
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Gometra is an island in the Scottish Inner Hebrides, lying west of Mull. It lies immediately west of Ulva, to which it is linked by a bridge, and at low tide also by a beach. It is approximately two square miles. The name is also applied to the island summit, which is a Marilyn.
| Gometra | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
  Gometra
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| Gometra shown within Scotland. | |
| OS grid reference: | NM361414 |
| Names | |
| Gaelic name: | Gòmastra |
| Norse name: | Goðrmaðray |
| Meaning of name: | warrior priest's island |
| Area and Summit | |
| Area: | 425 ha |
| Area rank (Scottish islands): | 75 |
| Highest elevation: | 155 m |
| Population | |
| Population (2001): | 5 |
| Population rank (inhabited Scottish islands): | 80= out of 97 |
| Groupings | |
| Island Group: | Mull |
| Local Authority: | Argyll and Bute |
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| References: | [1] |
The island is agricultural, formerly growing grain for the monastery on Iona. Once home to a population of over a hundred, it is now down to a tight-knit community of a handful of people, up to a thousand black face sheep, a flock of feral goats, and red deer. Historical sites on the island include an old burial ground, the remains of two duns and old settlements. It has no school, doctor, ferry or postal service. The etymology of the name has been traced to both the Norse Goðrmaðray meaning "warrior priest's island" and the Gaelic Gu mòr traigh meaning "only at low tide", but the latter is an example of folk etymology. Gometra's Gaelic name is 'Gòmastra', showing its Norse origin.
In 1932, the island was sold to the English mountaineer Hugh Ruttledge (1884–1961), who had taken early retirement from the Indian Civil Service and planned a life as a farmer. While living on the island, Ruttledge led two British expeditions to Mount Everest, in 1933 and 1936, and took up sailing. In 1950, he moved to Dartmoor.[2]
Gometra House had fallen into disrepair by the 1980s, but was reoccupied and restored as a family home in the 1990s.
For most of its history, the Island has belonged to descendants of Viking settlers of Sodor or the Kingdom of Man, who intermarried with the original Pictish rulers of the area.
| Gometra | |
|---|---|
| Elevation | 155 m (509 ft) |
| Location | Off the coast of Mull, Scotland |
| Prominence | 155 m |
| Topo map | OS Landrangers 47, 48 |
| Listing | Marilyn |
[edit] References
- ^ Ordnance Survey
- ^ Salkeld, Audrey, Ruttledge, Hugh (1884–1961), mountaineer in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004, online at Ruttledge, Hugh (1884–1961) (subscription required) accessed 1 March 2008
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