|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Both Gaelic and English are spoken in Lewis, but in day to day life, a hybrid of English and Gaelic (Highland English) is very common [1]. As a result of the Gaelic influence, the Lewis accent is frequently considered to sound more Irish, Welsh and even North American than stereotypically Scottish in some quarters. The island's settlements are on or near the coasts or sea lochs, being particularly concentrated on the north east coast. The interior of the island is a large area of moorland from which peat was traditionally cut as fuel, although this practice has become rarer. The southern part of the island, adjoining Harris, is more mountainous with inland lochs. The island of Bernera (Great Bernera) in the district of Uig is linked to the mainland of Lewis by a bridge opened in 1953. The main industries are fishing, tourism, crafts (including the manufacture of Harris tweed), and crofting. Religion is important in Lewis, with much of the population belonging to the Free Church and Church of Scotland (both Presbyterian in tradition). The Sabbath (i.e., Sunday) is generally observed with most shops and licensed premises closed on that day, although there is a scheduled air service to mainland Scotland.
Most of the place names in Lewis and Harris come from Old Norse. The name Lewis is the English spelling of the Gaelic Leòdhas which comes from the Old Norse Ljóðhús, as Lewis is named in medieval Norwegian maps of the island. Ljóðhús translates from Old Norse to English as Home of the Poet (Ljóð = Poet, hús = house). The 12th century ruler of the Island, Leod, taking his name from the Norse word for Poet. In 1919 the Isle of Lewis suffered a terrible blow with the sinking of the Iolaire, when at the close of the First World War the Admiralty yacht HMY Iolaire, sank within sight of Stornoway's harbour, killing over 200 naval reservists from the island who were returning home after the war.
Parishes and districts of LewisImage:Garenin.jpg Garenin Black House Village Image:St Columba's Church, Aiginis, Isle of Lewis.jpg St Columba's Church, Aignish, Isle of Lewis Image:Wfm lewis landsat.jpg Satellite photograph of Lewis and Harris There are four parishes: Barvas (Barabhas), Lochs (Na Lochan), Stornoway (Steòrnabhagh), and Uig on which the original civil registration districts were based. The district of Carloway (after the village of that name) which hitherto had fallen partly within the parishes of Lochs and Uig, became a separate civil registration district in 1859. The districts of Lewis are Ness (Nis), Carloway (Càrlabhagh), Broadbay, Lochs (Na Lochan), Park (A' Phàirc), Point (An Rubha), Stornoway itself, and Uig. These designations are traditional and in use by the entire population. The West Side is a generic designation for the area covering the villages from Arnol to Shawbost (Siabost). For civil registration purposes Lochs (Na Lochan) is nowadays split into North Lochs (Na Lochan a Tuath) and South Lochs (Na Lochan a Deas).
It is claimed that you can see all the areas of Lewis from the top of Stornoway War Memorial[citation needed] Sites of historical interestThe Isle of Lewis has a variety of areas of historical and archaeological interest. From the ancient site of Callanish with its standing stones to the Dun Carloway Broch, from the Iron Age houses near Bostadh (Great Bernera) to the Black House village at Garenin (Na Gearannan), near Carloway, from St. Columba's church in Aignish to the Teampull Mholuaidh in Ness, a wide variety of historical sites can be found. This section of the article needs expanding See also
|
Sites |
Searched sites for "Lewis" |
|
No sites found. |
Sorry, no matching site records were found. |
Want your site listed here?
|
||||||||||||||
