page_title: Hellisay
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Hellisay / History
caption_attribution_description: English: A view into the natural harbour from Gighay/Gioghaigh
context_page_description: Hellisay is a currently uninhabited island It is one of ten islands in the Sound of Barra, a Site of Community Importance for conservation in the southern Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The narrow Sound of Gighay lies between Hellisay and its neighbouring island.
context_section_description: The island's name is Old Norse in origin. It possibly means "island of the caves", which appears to be confirmed by the name Rubha na h-Uamh (headland of the cave) in the east of the island. However, Blaeu's map has "Hildesay", which suggests that the name may derive from the Norse for "Hilda's Island".
  The island's settlement was at Buaile Mhòr (anglicised to Bualavore and meaning "the big fold") near Eilean a' Ghamhna in the north west of the island. The remains of a sheep pen and a well can still be seen.
  Like so many other islands in the region, Hellisay was badly affected by the Highland Clearances. Firstly, refugees from clearances in neighbouring islands swelled the population, and latterly the island's inhabitants themselves were evicted, and many went to live on Eriskay. The population peaked at 108 in 1841, and the island was cleared in the 1840s - however it continued to have some inhabitants up until 1890.
  Alasdair Alpin MacGregor's stories reveal a rich folklore and mythology extant on the island, possibly only a fraction of which has been preserved.
caption: Hellisay from Gighay
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