Volume 3 - Electric Scotland

FiTYMOLOGIES OF THE ISLANDS. 147
adopted, and of the proportion which were relatively
named by the Northmen and by the natives. While I have
distinguished the conjectural or doubtful from the cer-
tain, and further classed them according- to certain ana-
logies, I must also remark that where the number of
names appears less than the number of the islands, it is
partly because a few of the most insignificant, particu-
larly where they appeared hopelessly corrupted, have
been passed over, but chiefly on account of the frequent
occurrence of the same name for many different islands.
Thus there are no less than four called Rona, as many
called Flota, Berneray, Glas, Fladday or Flattay; while
there are duplicates or triplicates of Soa, Wia, Ghia,
Boreray, Linga, Longa, and others. Hence you will
perceive that very few of the whole number of names
remain unexplained. 1 have seldom thought it necessary
to distinguish the Scandinavian terms according to the dif-
ferent dialects, or languages of the Mossogothic radical.
The following catalogue is derived from Saints, to
whom there were churches or chapels dedicated in some
of the islands, and who seem to have been mostly of Irish
extraction, as were all the followers of St. Columba.
They may thus be considered chiefly of Gaelic origin,
being only modified or corrupted by the Scandinavian
terminal ey, which has passed successively into ay and a.
Flannan from St. Flann Kerrera, Kiarara, from St. Kiaran
Barra St. Barr Mul Donich St. Duncan
Colonsa St. Columba Oransa St. Oran
Besides Marnoch, Martin, Chenzie and Inch Kenneth,
St. Cormac's Isles, and St. Kilda. In the Scandinavian,
we^find a Divinity, which may rank with these ;
Taransa,
from Taran or Thor; and in the Gaelic there are Gigha
and Gia, a corruption of Dia ey, God's island ; as is
proved by the Norwegian name, which is written Gud ey
in the account of Haco's expedition.
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