Seaforth Island facts for kids
- There is also a Seaforth Island in the Whitsunday Islands of Queensland, Australia
| Gaelic name | Eilean Shìophoirt or Mulag |
|---|---|
| Norse name | Múli |
| Meaning of name | Norse for 'craggy ridge between fjords'; Gaelic for "island of Seaforth" |
 Loch Seaforth and Eilean Shìophoirt from the north with Clisham beyond |
|
| OS grid reference | NB207111 |
| Coordinates | 58°00′00″N 6°43′45″W / 58.00°N 06.7292°W |
| Physical geography | |
| Island group | Outer Hebrides |
| Area | 273 hectares (1.05 sq mi) |
| Area rank | 92 |
| Highest elevation | 217 metres (712 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Country | Scotland |
| Council area | Outer Hebrides |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 0 |
 |
|
| Seaforth Island | |
|---|---|
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 217 m (712 ft) |
| Prominence | 217 m (712 ft) |
| Listing | Marilyn |
| Geography | |
| Location | Loch Seaforth between Harris and Lewis, Scotland |
| OS grid | NB207111 |
| Topo map | OS Landrangers 13, 14 |
Seaforth Island is a small, uninhabited island located in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Unlike many islands that are surrounded by the open sea, Seaforth Island sits inside a long, narrow sea inlet called Loch Seaforth. This loch is like a fjord, which is a deep, narrow arm of the sea, often with steep sides. The island is about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from the open waters of The Minch, a strait of the sea.
The island has two different names in Gaelic, the traditional language of Scotland. One name is Eilean Shìphoirt or Shìophoirt, which means "island of Seaforth." This name comes from the family of Francis Mackenzie, 1st Baron Seaforth, who became the owner of the island in 1783. The other Gaelic name is Mulag, which comes from the Old Norse name Múli. This Old Norse name describes the island's shape and location, meaning "craggy ridge between fjords."
The soil on Seaforth Island is not very good. It can only support rough grass, which is used for animals to graze on.
A Look at Seaforth Island's Past
Even though Seaforth Island is not lived on today, its history is quite interesting. There are no records of people living on the island in recent times. However, the area around the loch was involved in arguments about borders in the 1800s.
How Borders Were Decided
In 1851, a very unusual decision was made to solve these border arguments. Seaforth Island was given to two different counties at the same time: Ross-shire and Inverness-shire. These were like big regions or areas that controlled Lewis and Harris respectively. This strange situation, where the island belonged to two different areas, continued until 1975. In 1975, the way counties were organized in Scotland changed, and the border issue was finally resolved.
Images for kids
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The Island from Lewis and Harris
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Shore of Seaforth Island
