Tongue, Highland
Encyclopedia
Tongue is a coastal village in northwest Highland
, Scotland
, in the western part of the former county of Sutherland
. It lies on the east shore above the base of the Kyle of Tongue and north of the mountains Ben Hope
and Ben Loyal
. To the north lies the area of Braetongue
.
Tongue is the main village in a series of crofting
township
s that runs through Coldbackie
, Dalharn, Blandy, and the harbour of Scullomie
to the deserted township of Slettel. The village includes a youth hostel, a craft shop, a general store and garage, a bank, a post office and two hotels, the Tongue Hotel and The Ben Loyal Hotel. It is connected to the west side of the Kyle by a causeway, built in 1971.
can be described as "tongue-shaped"). Rather it is a geographical term in Old Norse which refers to a piece of land shaped like a spit or tongue. That specific piece of land, on which the village and the kyle are located, is the terminal moraine
of the Kyle of Tongue glacier.
In Gaelic, Tunga indicates the village, whereas Caol Thunga indicates the kyle. The village is also known as Ceann Tàile and formerly as Circeabol.
, Picts
and Viking
s.
Tongue House is the historic seat of the Clan Mackay
, after they abandoned Castle Varrich (Caisteal Bharraich). The ruins of the castle, built at Tongue in the eleventh century after the clan were expelled from their ancestral Province of Moray
to County Sutherland, are a popular tourist attraction. A battle for succession some time around 1427 to 1433 culminated in the Battle of Drumnacoub
, in which two factions of the clan fought on Carn Fada, between the Kyle and Ben Loyal.
The village saw a key battle between a Jacobite
treasure ship and two ships of the Royal Navy in 1746, which resulted in the Jacobite crew trying to slip ashore with their gold. They were then caught by the Navy, supported by local people who were loyal to Hanover
, which cost Bonnie Prince Charlie valuable support in the run-up to Culloden
.
Highland (council area)
Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom as a whole. It shares borders with the council areas of Moray, Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross, and Argyll and Bute. Their councils, and those of Angus and...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, in the western part of the former county of Sutherland
Sutherland
Sutherland is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic administrative county of Scotland. It is now within the Highland local government area. In Gaelic the area is referred to according to its traditional areas: Dùthaich 'IcAoidh , Asainte , and Cataibh...
. It lies on the east shore above the base of the Kyle of Tongue and north of the mountains Ben Hope
Ben Hope
Ben Hope is a mountain in northern Scotland. It is the most northerly Munro, standing alone in the Flow Country south-east of Loch Hope in Sutherland. The mountain is a roughly triangular wedge, with a great crag on the west, with two lower shoulders to the south and northeast...
and Ben Loyal
Ben Loyal
Ben Loyal is an isolated mountain of 764 m in Sutherland, the northwestern tip of the Scottish Highlands. It is a Corbett located south of the Kyle of Tongue, and provides good views of the Kyle, Loch Loyal to the east, and Ben Hope to the west....
. To the north lies the area of Braetongue
Braetongue
Braetongue is an area in northern Sutherland just north of the town of Tongue . Runrig mentions the "hills about Brae Tongue" in the song The Summer Walkers.-References:...
.
Tongue is the main village in a series of crofting
Crofting
Crofting is a form of land tenure and small-scale food production unique to the Scottish Highlands, the Islands of Scotland, and formerly on the Isle of Man....
township
Township
The word township is used to refer to different kinds of settlements in different countries. Township is generally associated with an urban area. However there are many exceptions to this rule. In Australia, the United States, and Canada, they may be settlements too small to be considered urban...
s that runs through Coldbackie
Coldbackie
Coldbackie is a crofting township in Sutherland and is in the Scottish council area of Highland Scotland.-Geography:Coldbackie lies at the head of the Kyle of Tongue, two miles north east of Tongue. It sits under the Watch Hill, looking north over a spectacular beach to the Rabbit Islands...
, Dalharn, Blandy, and the harbour of Scullomie
Skullomie
Skullomie is a small fishing and crofting hamlet, at the head of Tongue Bay, in Lairg, north shore of Sutherland, Scottish Highlands and is in the Scottish council area of Highland....
to the deserted township of Slettel. The village includes a youth hostel, a craft shop, a general store and garage, a bank, a post office and two hotels, the Tongue Hotel and The Ben Loyal Hotel. It is connected to the west side of the Kyle by a causeway, built in 1971.
Toponymy
Contrary to popular belief, the name Tongue does not refer to the shape of the Kyle of Tongue (though the kyleKyle
Kyle may refer to:* KYLE, a Fox network affiliate* Kyle , a Scottish masculine given name * Kyle , a surname of Scottish origin* Kyle, Ayrshire, Scotland* Kyle, Indiana, United States...
can be described as "tongue-shaped"). Rather it is a geographical term in Old Norse which refers to a piece of land shaped like a spit or tongue. That specific piece of land, on which the village and the kyle are located, is the terminal moraine
Moraine
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...
of the Kyle of Tongue glacier.
In Gaelic, Tunga indicates the village, whereas Caol Thunga indicates the kyle. The village is also known as Ceann Tàile and formerly as Circeabol.
History
The area was an historic crossroad for GaelsGaels
The Gaels or Goidels are speakers of one of the Goidelic Celtic languages: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. Goidelic speech originated in Ireland and subsequently spread to western and northern Scotland and the Isle of Man....
, Picts
Picts
The Picts were a group of Late Iron Age and Early Mediaeval people living in what is now eastern and northern Scotland. There is an association with the distribution of brochs, place names beginning 'Pit-', for instance Pitlochry, and Pictish stones. They are recorded from before the Roman conquest...
and Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
s.
Tongue House is the historic seat of the Clan Mackay
Clan MacKay
Clan Mackay is an ancient and once powerful Scottish clan from the far north of the Scottish Highlands, but with roots in the old kingdom of Moray. They were a powerful force in politics beginning in the 14th century, supporting Robert the Bruce. In the centuries that followed they were...
, after they abandoned Castle Varrich (Caisteal Bharraich). The ruins of the castle, built at Tongue in the eleventh century after the clan were expelled from their ancestral Province of Moray
Moray
Moray is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland.- History :...
to County Sutherland, are a popular tourist attraction. A battle for succession some time around 1427 to 1433 culminated in the Battle of Drumnacoub
Battle of Drumnacoub
The Battle of Drumnacoub was a battle involving factions of the Clan Mackay fought in the far northwest of Scotland, some time between 1427 and 1433. It took place on a hill called Carn Fada at the southern end of the Kyle of Tongue, between Ben Loyal and the village of Tongue...
, in which two factions of the clan fought on Carn Fada, between the Kyle and Ben Loyal.
The village saw a key battle between a Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
treasure ship and two ships of the Royal Navy in 1746, which resulted in the Jacobite crew trying to slip ashore with their gold. They were then caught by the Navy, supported by local people who were loyal to Hanover
George II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...
, which cost Bonnie Prince Charlie valuable support in the run-up to Culloden
Battle of Culloden
The Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the 1745 Jacobite Rising. Taking place on 16 April 1746, the battle pitted the Jacobite forces of Charles Edward Stuart against an army commanded by William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, loyal to the British government...
.