#Raasay

[scotianostra]

On October 26th 1911 the Gaelic poet, Sorley MacLean, was born on the island of Raasay.

Sorley (Somhairle MacGill-Eain)was brought up within a family and community immersed in Gaelic language and culture, particularly song. Sorley studied English at Edinburgh University from 1929, taking a first class honours degree and there encountering and finding an affinity with the work of Hugh MacDiarmid, Ezra Pound, and other Modernist poets. Despite this influence, he eventually adopted Gaelic as the medium most appropriate for his poetry. However, it should be noted that MacLean translated much of his own work into English, opening it up to a wider public than the speakers of the Gaelic language.

During the Spanish Civil War, MacLean was torn between family commitments and his desire to fight on behalf of the International Brigades, illustrating his left-wing - even Marxist - political stance. He eventually resigned himself to remaining on Skye. He fought in North Africa during World War Two, before taking up a career in teaching, holding posts on Mull, in Edinburgh and finally as Head Teacher at Plockton High School.

It is often said that what Hugh MacDiarmid did for the Scots language, Sorley MacLean did for Gaelic, sparking a Gaelic renaissance in Scottish literature in line with the earlier ‘Scottish Renaissance’, as evinced in the work of George Campbell Hay, Derick Thomson and Iain Crichton Smith. He was instrumental in preserving and promoting the teaching of Gaelic in Scottish schools. Through the diverse subject matter of his poetry, he demonstrates the capacity of the Gaelic language to express themes from the personal to the political and philosophical.

MacLean’s work was virtually unknown outside Gaelic-speaking circles until the 1970s, when Gordon Wright published Four Points of a Saltire - poems from George Campbell Hay, Stuart MacGregor, William Neill and Sorley MacLean. He also then appeared at the Cambridge Poetry Festival, establishing his fame in England, as well as Scotland and Ireland, where he had become something of a cult figure thanks to a fan base including fellow poet Seamus Heaney. A bilingual Selected Poems of 1977 secured a broader readership and a new generation began to appreciate his work.

Latterly, he wrote and published little, showing his concern with quality and authenticity over quantity. Never a full-time writer, he was also a scholar of the Highlands with a vast knowledge of genealogy, and an avid follower of shinty. Amongst other awards and honours, he received the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry in 1990. He passed on in 1996 at the age of 85, and was survived by his wife and two daughters.

I have posted many times about Sorley, and probably overused Martyn Bennet’s Hallaig, but if you haven’t heard it, please go to Youtube and search for it, you won’t regret it.

The Two MacDonalds Sorley MacLean

You big strong warrior, you hero among heroes, you shut the gate of Hougomont. You shut the gate and behind it your brother did the spoiling. He cleared tenants in Glengarry – the few of them left – and he cleared tenants about Kinloch Nevis, and he cleared tenants in Knoydart. He was no better than the laird of Dunvegan. He spoiled Clan Donald.

What did you do then, you big strong hero? I bet you shut no gate in the face of your bitch of a brother.

There was in your time another hero of Clan Donald, the hero of Wagram, Leipsig, Hanau. I have not heard that he cleared one family by the Meuse or by any other river, that he did any spoiling of French or of MacDonalds.

What a pity that he did not come over with Bonaparte! He would not clear tenants for the sake of the gilded sheep, nor would he put a disease in the great valour of Clan Donald. What a pity that he was not Duke of the Land of the Barley And Prince of Caledonia!

What a pity that he did not come over with Bonaparte twenty years before he did, not to listen to flannel from the creeper Walter nor to gather dust from the old ruin but to put the new vigour in the remnant of his kinsmen!

What a pity that he did not come to succour his kinsmen!

Dá Dhómhnallach Somhairle MacGill-Eain

‘Na do ghaisgeach mór láidir; ‘Nad churaidh miosg nan curaidhean, Dhùin thu geata Hougomont. Dhùin thu ‘n geata ‘s air a chùlaibh Rinn do bhráthair an spùilleadh. Thog e tuath an Gleann Garadh – Am beagan a bh’air fhágail dhiubh – Is thog e tuath mu Cheann Loch Nibheis Is thog e tuath an Cnóideart. Cha b’fhearr e na Fear Dhùn-Bheagain: Rinn e milleadh air Cloinn Domhnaill.

De rinn thusa ‘n uair sin, A churaidh mhóir láidir? Fiach na dhùin thu aon gheata An aodann do ghalla bráthair?

Bha ann ri d’linn-sa fear eile, Curaidh eile de Chloinn Dhómhnaill, Curaidh Bhágram, Leipsich, Hanau. Cha chuala mi gun do thog esan Aon teaghlach mun Mheuse No mu abhainn eile. Cha d’rinn esan milleadh Air Frangaich no air Dómhnallaich.

Nach bochd nach táinig esan Le Bonaparte a nall. Cha thogadh esan tuath Air sgáth nan caorach óraidh, ‘S cha mhó chuireadh esan gaiseadh Ann an gaisge mhóir Chloinn Dómhnaill. Nach bochd nach rodh esan ‘Na dhiuc air tir an Eórna Is ‘na phrionns air Albainn.

Nach bochd nach táinig esan Le Bonaparte a nall Fichead bliadhna mun táinig, Cha b’ann a dh’èisteachd sodail O’n t-sliomaire sin Bhátar No a chruinneachadh na h-ùrach As an t-seann láraich, Ach a chur an spionnaidh ùrair Ann am fuidheall a cháirdean.

Nach bochd nach táinig esan Gu cobhair air a cháirdean.

[stularsen]

This has been my home for May 2024. The Isle of Raasay is a little Scottish Island in the Inner Hebrides which I stumbled upon in 2020 when the world shut down and I needed a place to hide away for a few months. It has without a doubt become my favourite place in the world. 

Massive thanks to Sean who I met on Raasay and ended up carrying my guitar back down from the top of Dùn Caan 🙏🏽

Massive thanks also to Bek for rescuing an SD card with a lot of the footage that I needed to make this video 🙏🏽🙏🏽

[amp-memories-and-experiences]

[envexenveritas]

Scottish Train Adventures - Day 6, Part 1

Skye and Raasay - Day 2

The Transport Rush

Wake up, first bus to Sconser, first ferry to Raasay.

Raasay has our stuff, our stuff is good. It means things like a change of clothes and a shower (greatly needed after the ditch last night). And since we had already paid for this hotel, breakfast 😋.

We were sort of aware, but being back on Raasay also made us aware of the weather reports and what that might mean for the two other ferries that we were due to get that day.

The first ferry in the afternoon, from Raasay was running. Which is good because, as I have previously stated, Mum can't leave quickly.

We phoned a taxi from the ferry to take us to Armadale, who once again warned us about the weather. He had both his sons on ferry watch, they phoned in periodically with updates. (One of them works with the ferries the other side of the island so had onsite, I don't know how the other knew).

One o'clock, things really heat up final choice. We are 15 miles away from the ferry, taxi driver estimates 30 minutes, the ferry leaves in 35. The other road takes us to off the island via a bridge where we will have to continue by bus, I don't want to think about how much this journey will cost us, the taxi is already costing us more than my train ticket.

The taxi driver is sure he can make it. Baring the two cars we got suck behind for a way, the taxi flies over wet, curving, coastal roads faster than I had previously thought save. Yet I trust this man to get us to our ferry on time and in one piece.

We make it.

The Armadale-Mallaig ferry is practically plush in comparison to the Sconser-Raasay ferry I've got used to in the past few days. There's a cafe with tables, and announcements specifically for foot passengers.

I wish I could have seen more of Skye and Raasay, but I'm glad to be safely on the mainland and not having to find emergency accommodation again.

Please, anyone who knows, how is it possible to explore Skye without a car? I tried looking up buses, but the Stage Coach website hates me.

[maltrunners]

Raasay Na Sia Single Cask 18/664

Review by: Whiskery Turnip Distillery: Raasay. Bottler: Distillery. Region: Scotland/Island Single Malt. ABV: 61.7%. Cask Strength. Age: N/A. Distilled in 2018. Bottled in 2022. Cask type: First Fill Bordeaux Red Wine. Nose: Earthy and vegetal with soft brine, stone, eucalyptus, anise, clay, wispy smoke, kinako. Palate: Medium-bodied, oily, earthy and fruit, tingling pepper, dried…

[amp-whisky]

[rig-a-rendal]

so casey found a very small kitten (probably 2-3 months) inside his car engine yesterday which on the plus side is very cute but on the negative side will not let me make food, fold laundry, or edit video

[chronicinnature]

A Few Drams on Raasay and a quick hello to Skye: Scotland Reflections Part 5

Onward west we ventured. A spectacular drive from the Glencoe region toward the Isle of Skye brought us to Eilean Donan Castle, which sits at a meeting point between three lochs. This restored castle was one of the most frequently found instagram tags when I began researching our itinerary. Generally, we find ourselves going in the opposite directions of the most trendy stops, however this spot…

[boozedancing]

Fletch + The Isle of Raasay Single Malt

On the latest #OneShowOneDrink #podcast, we chat about the great #1985 #comedy Fletch, which starred @ChevyChaseToGo, while we sample @RaasayWhisky #SingleMalt #Scotch. Many thanks to @impexbev for the samples! #movies #podcasting

https://boozedancing.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/one-show-one-drink-vol-15-fletch-isle-of-raasay-whisky.mp3 ______________________________ Subscribe to the show: Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, Audible, or Google. Please rate and review the show on your favorite Podcast platform, and if you have any questions or comments, message us here, or send us an email at…

[neil-gaiman]

Hey Neil!

I'm in Skye for a few days by myself, and I was wondering if you had any recommendations of what i should do/see.

Go on a hike? Eat seafood? Dissappear into the hills? Write a novel?

A bit lost out here on the Isle, any help would be greatly appreciated.

All of the above? See the Quairang and the Fairy Glen. Eat things. Find Hugh's Castle. Take the ferry to Raasay and see Calum's Road...

[scotianostra]

On October 26th 1911 the Gaelic poet, Sorley MacLean, was born on the island of Raasay.

He was brought up within a family and community immersed in Gaelic language and culture, particularly song. Sorley studied English at Edinburgh University from 1929, taking a first class honours degree and there encountering and finding an affinity with the work of Hugh MacDiarmid, Ezra Pound, and other Modernist poets. Despite this influence, he eventually adopted Gaelic as the medium most appropriate for his poetry. However, it should be noted that MacLean translated much of his own work into English, opening it up to a wider public than the speakers of the Gaelic language.

During the Spanish Civil War, MacLean was torn between family commitments and his desire to fight on behalf of the International Brigades, illustrating his left-wing - even Marxist - political stance. He eventually resigned himself to remaining on Skye. He fought in North Africa during World War Two, before taking up a career in teaching, holding posts on Mull, in Edinburgh and finally as Head Teacher at Plockton High School.

It is often said that what Hugh MacDiarmid did for the Scots language, Sorley MacLean did for Gaelic, sparking a Gaelic renaissance in Scottish literature in line with the earlier ‘Scottish Renaissance’, as evinced in the work of George Campbell Hay, Derick Thomson and Iain Crichton Smith. He was instrumental in preserving and promoting the teaching of Gaelic in Scottish schools. Through the diverse subject matter of his poetry, he demonstrates the capacity of the Gaelic language to express themes from the personal to the political and philosophical.

MacLean’s work was virtually unknown outside Gaelic-speaking circles until the 1970s, when Gordon Wright published Four Points of a Saltire - poems from George Campbell Hay, Stuart MacGregor, William Neill and Sorley MacLean. He also then appeared at the Cambridge Poetry Festival, establishing his fame in England, as well as Scotland and Ireland, where he had become something of a cult figure thanks to a fan base including fellow poet Seamus Heaney. A bilingual Selected Poems of 1977 secured a broader readership and a new generation began to appreciate his work.

Latterly, he wrote and published little, showing his concern with quality and authenticity over quantity. Never a full-time writer, he was also a scholar of the Highlands with a vast knowledge of genealogy, and an avid follower of shinty. Amongst other awards and honours, he received the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry in 1990. He passed on in 1996 at the age of 85, and was survived by his wife and two daughters.

I have posted many times about Sorley, and probably overused Martyn Bennet’s Hallaig, but if you haven’t heard it, please go to Youtube and search for it, you won’t regret it.

Todays poem is Tràighean/ Shores, the Gaelic version first, followed by the verse translated by his fellow bi-lingual poet, Iain Crichton Smith.

Nan robh sinn an Talasgar air an tràigh

far a bheil am beul mòr bàn

a’ fosgladh eadar dà ghiall chruaidh,

Rubha nan Clach `s am Bioda Ruadh,

sheasainn-sa ri taobhn na mara

ag ùrachadh gaoil ‘nam anam

fhad ‘s a bhiodh an cuan a’lìonadh

camas Thalasgair gu sìorraidh:

sheasainn an siud air lom na tràghad

gu `n cromadh Priseal a cheann ��igich.

Agus nan robh sinn ciudeachd

air tràigh Chalgaraidh am Muile,

eadar Alba is Tiriodh,

eadar an saoghal `s a’bhiothbhuan,

dh’fhuirichinn an siud gu luan

a’ tomhas gainmhich bruan air bhruan.

Agus an Uibhist air tràigh Hòmhstadh

fa chomhair farsaingeachd na h-ònrachd,

dh’fheithinn-sa an siud gu sìorraidh

braon air bhraon an cuan a’ sìoladh.

Agus nan robh mi air tràigh Mhùideart

còmhla riut, a nodhachd ùidhe,

chuirinn suas an co-chur gaoil dhut

an cuan ’s a’ ghaineamh, bruan air bhraon dhiubh.

’S nan robh sinn air Mol Steinnseil Stamhain

’s an fhairge neo-aoibhneach a’ tarraing

nan ulbhag is gan tilgeil tharainn,

thogainn-sa am balla daingeann

ro shìorraidheachd choimhich ’s i framhach.

If we were in Talisker on the shore

where the great white foaming mouth of water

opens between two jaws as hard as flint –

the Headland of Stones and the Red Point –

I’d stand forever by the waves

renewing love out of their crumpling graves

as long as the sea would be going over

the Bay of Talisker for ever;

I would stand thee by the filling tide

till Preshal bowed his stallion head.

And if the two of us were together

on the shores of Calgary in Mull

between Scotland and Tiree,

between this world and eternity,

I’d stand there till time was done

counting the sands grain by grain.

And also on Uist, on Hosta’s shore,

in the face of solitude’s fierce stare,

I’d remain standing, without sleep,

while sea were ebbing, drop by drop.

And if I were on Moidart’s shore

With you, my novelty of desire,

I’d offer this synthesis of love,

grain and water, sand and wave.

And were we by the shelves of Staffin

where the huge joyless sea is coughing

stones and boulders from its throat,

I’d build a fortified wall

Against eternity’s savage howl.

As well as Hallaig I enjoy listening to Somhairle by Niteworks, an Electronic Celtic fusion band from the Isle of Skye who put some of Sorley’s words to music. Listen to it below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PgWqrxa_-Y

[stularsen]

Home for this month 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[delicatuscii-wasbella102]

Isle of Raasay, Inner Hebrides, Scotland by Scotland Paintings

[envexenveritas]

Scottish Train Adventures - Day 5

Skye and Raasay - Day 1

Early morning walk on Raasay

I also found a frog

But I think it might be dead 💀😢

[maltrunners]

Raasay Na Sia (2018) Peated Ex-Rye Single Cask #18/627

Review by: dustbunna Distillery: Isle of Raasay. Bottler: Distillery bottling. Region: Islands (Raasay). ABV: 62.1%. Cask strength. Age: 3 years. Distilled in 2018. Bottled in 2022. Cask type: Ex-rye barrel. Price: $110 USD. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered. Bottle open across approx. 9 months, notes taken leisurely across that period. Bold notes taken beneath the shoulder,…

[amp-whisky]