perspectives
the Galtachan…..
“There is a word in Latin, ‘palus’, which means a stake, and has given us the word ‘palisade’ or fence, but may also have helped name the line of large skerry islets, including Galta Beag, Galta Mòr, Bodach and Damhag, which guard the waters to the southwest of The Shiants. An intimidating visual barrier to seafarers, they are known in Gaelic as the “Galtachan” and the seas roundabout are notorious for their unpredictability and dangerous currents.
The etymology of the Scottish Gaelic term for these rocks seems lost in time and there is no memory of any references by people of the neighbouring Harris and Lewis, but (allowing for differences in spelling) the Galtachan may just be derived from an Irish Gaelic phrase.
The English Pale (An Ghalltacht in Irish) was that part of Ireland occupied under English rule in the late Middle Ages. Within the Pale, English was spoken and its rules prevailed. When you were ‘beyond the pale’, you were in the land of the Irish-speaking native people.
While there may never have been a literal fence to divide the two worlds, the idea of a clear separation lies at the heart of the phrase; a here, and a there.
Which seems to be appropriate, if you venture to the Shiants from Harris or Lewis, and travel ‘beyond the pale’, to reach this otherworldly place.”
R F Hood
from the pen…
Invited contributions, in verse, inspired by the islands.
Brian Hill is a Scottish poet, writer and storyteller with decades of experience writing and performing his work throughout Scotland, and is greatly inspired by his base in Wester Ross.
the Minch…..
[placeholder for contributions from those familiar with the seas around the Shiants, including fishermen and sailors and their experiences of the islands - to include audio, if possible…..]
from Harris and Lewis……..
[placeholder for stories from Hearach today and their reminiscences of the islands - to include audio, if possible….]
from the Mainland…….
[placeholder for stories from the mainland of this more distant perspective of the islands…..]