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Egilsay

Scottish Gaelic name	?Eaglais (see meaning)
Scots name	Egilsay
Old Norse name	Egilsey
Meaning of name	Disputed – either Norse "Egil's island" or Norse "ey" + Celtic "eaglais" – "Church island"
Egilsay from Rousay with St Magnus Church on the skyline
Location
EgilsayEgilsay shown within Orkney
OS grid reference	HY470301
Coordinates	59°09′00″N 2°54′58″W / 59.15°N 2.916°W / 59.15; -2.916
Physical geography
Island group	Orkney Islands
Area	650 hectares (1,600 acres)
Area rank	67
Highest elevation	35 m (115 ft)
Administration
Council area	Orkney
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Demographics
Population	26
Population rank	62
Population density	4/km
Largest settlement	Skaill
References	www.aroundrousay.co.uk/egilsay.shtml

Egilsay (/ˈɛɡɪlsiː/, Scots: Egilsay) is one of the Orkney Islands in Scotland, lying east of Rousay. The anglicized name of Eagleshay was used in past centuries. The island is largely farmland and is known for St Magnus Church, dedicated or re-dedicated to Saint Magnus, who was killed on the island in 1117 by an axe blow to the head. For hundreds of years the story of St Magnus, part of the Orkneyinga saga, was considered just a legend until a skull with a large crack in it, such as it had been stricken by an axe, was found in the walls of St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall.

Etymology

Unusually for the Northern Isles, it has been suggested that Egilsay may have a partly Gaelic name. While at first sight, it appears to be Egil's island, "Egil" being a Norse personal name, the Gaelic eaglais (Celtic "eccles") meaning church, may be part of the root, as the island is dominated by a church of pre-Norse foundation. The island of Kili Holm just to the north, may represent cille, a monastic cell.

Present day

The island's population was 26 as recorded by the 2011 census a drop of almost a third since 2001 when there were 37 usual residents. During the same period, Scottish island populations as a whole grew by 4% to 103,702.

Orkney Ferries sail from the island to Tingwall on the Orkney Mainland via Wyre and Rousay.

See also

• Sir Alexander Douglas of Eagleshay

References

1. ^ Anderson, Joseph (ed.) (1873) The Orkneyinga Saga. Translated by Jón A. Hjaltalin & Gilbert Goudie. Edinburgh. Edmonston and Douglas. The Internet Archive. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
2. ^ Area and population ranks: there are c. 300 islands over 20 ha in extent and 93 permanently inhabited islands were listed in the 2011 census.
3. "National Records of Scotland: Statistical Bulletin" (PDF). 15 August 2013. p. 12. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
4. ^ Haswell-Smith, Hamish. (2004) The Scottish Islands. Edinburgh. Canongate.
5. National Records of Scotland (15 August 2013). "Appendix 2: Population and households on Scotland's Inhabited Islands" (PDF). Statistical Bulletin: 2011 Census: First Results on Population and Household Estimates for Scotland Release 1C (Part Two) (PDF) (Report). SG/2013/126. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
6. General Register Office for Scotland (28 November 2003) Scotland's Census 2001 – Occasional Paper No 10: Statistics for Inhabited Islands. Retrieved 26 February 2012.
7. "Scotland's 2011 census: Island living on the rise". BBC News. Retrieved 18 August 2013.

External links

• Information on the island of Egilsay

v t e Islands of Scotland
Geography Northern Isles Shetland list Orkney list Hebrides Outer Hebrides list Inner Hebrides list St Kilda Other Islands of the Clyde Islands of the Forth Freshwater Islands Outlying Islands Sea Stacks
Prehistory Prehistoric Orkney Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site: Maeshowe Ness of Brodgar Ring of Brodgar Skara Brae Standing Stones of Stenness Prehistoric Shetland Zenith of Iron Age Shetland: Broch of Mousa Jarlshof Old Scatness Prehistoric Western Isles Callanish Stones Dun Carloway Rubha an Dùnain Dun Nosebridge
History Dál Riata Columba Hinba Kingdom of the Isles Scandinavian Scotland Rulers of the Kingdom of the Isles Bishop of the Isles Lordship of the Isles Treaty of Perth Treaty of Ardtornish-Westminster Finlaggan Earldom of Orkney Buckquoy spindle-whorl Udal law 18th and 19th Century Clearances Jacobite risings Flora MacDonald Literature Orkneyinga Saga Description of the Western Isles of Scotland (Monro) A Description of the Western Isles of Scotland (Martin) A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland (Johnson) The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides (Boswell)
Etymology General Scottish island names Northern Isles Hebrides Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba Specific Arran Gigha Islay Skye St Kilda
Economy Towns Kirkwall Lerwick Rothesay Stornoway Stromness Agencies Community Energy Scotland Crofters Commission Highlands and Islands Enterprise Scottish Islands Federation Oil industry Flotta Sullom Voe
Culture Shetland Aly Bain Thomas Fraser Peerie Willie Johnson Shetland Amenity Trust Up Helly Aa Vagaland Orkney George Mackay Brown Peter Maxwell Davies F. Marian McNeill Kirkwall Ba game Orkney Heritage Society St Magnus Festival Outer Hebrides Compton Mackenzie Fèis Bharraigh Free Church of Scotland Iain Crichton Smith Inner Hebrides Islay whisky Runrig Sorley MacLean West Highland Free Press
Politics Local authorities Shetland Islands Council Orkney Islands Council Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Highland Council Argyll and Bute North Ayrshire
Wildlife Fauna Fair Isle wren Orkney vole Shetland wren St Kilda field mouse St Kilda wren Flora Arran whitebeams Scottish Primrose Shetland Mouse-ear Domesticated animals Cairn Terrier Eriskay Pony Hebridean Blackface Luing cattle North Ronaldsay sheep Scottie Sheltie Shetland cattle Shetland Goose Shetland pony Shetland sheep Soay sheep Westie
Geology Shetland Geopark Shetland Geology of Orkney Eday Group Orcadian Basin Yesnaby Sandstone Group Hebrides Colonsay Group Great Estuarine Group Hebridean Terrane Lewisian complex Lorne plateau lavas Moine Supergroup Moine Thrust Belt Mull Rhinns complex Skye Staffa Torridonian Islands of the Clyde Highland Boundary Fault

59°09′N 2°55′W / 59.150°N 2.917°W / 59.150; -2.917

• Islands of the Orkney Islands