Шотландияның Барра аралдарының оңтүстік аралы - Бернерей

Southernmost island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland

the Scottish island

Barra Head, also known as Berneray (Beàrnaraigh; ), is the southernmost island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland. Within the Outer Hebrides, it forms part of the Barra Isles archipelago. Originally, Barra Head only referred to the southernmost headland of Berneray but is now a common name for the entire island. The highest point of the island is Sotan, a Marilyn. There are numerous prehistoric structures on the island and permanent occupation by 20–50 individuals occurred throughout the historic period, peaking in the 19th century. The economy of the residents was based on agriculture, fishing and fowling. The cliffs provide nesting sites for seabirds in such profusion that Berneray has been designated as a Special Protection Area. The Barra Head Lighthouse, designed by Robert Stevenson, has operated since 1833. From 1931 to 1980 Barra Head was inhabited only by the lighthouse keepers and their wives but the lighthouse is now automated and the island completely uninhabited. The rough seas that surround the island have been used to test prototype lifeboats.

The derivation of the modern name is straightforward, the Old Norse name meaning "Bjorn's island" becoming Beàrnaraigh in Gaelic and then "Berneray" as an anglicisation. However, as is often the case with Hebridean island names, there are a number of additional complications. There are two fuller Gaelic names – Beàrnaraigh Cheann Bharraigh and Beàrnaraigh an Easbaig meaning "Berneray of Barra Head" and "Berneray of the Bishop" respectively. The Inverness shire Ordnance Survey Name Book, volume 2, of 1876 1878, notes that "The Island of Berneray is sometimes called Barra Head but Berneray is the correct designation."

Berneray lies to the west of the Sea of the Hebrides and south of Mingulay across the Sound of Berneray, which has a strong tidal stream. Most of the island consists of gneiss, although the lighthouse was constructed of rock from a small granite quarry. Due to glacial action the sea channel to the east is significantly deeper than the open ocean to the west, reaching up to
The rocky north coast has a small landing place at Leac na Fealia to the west and a small jetty at Achduin further east. From there a track leads westward and upward across the slope of the island to the lighthouse. To the west of Achduin the land is relatively flat and low lying, the area known as "The Aird" ending at Nisam Point which overlooks the little islands of Rubha Niosaim and Sgeir Mhor.</blockquote>

Berneray was inhabited from prehistoric times until the 20th century; Historic Scotland have identified eighty three archaeological sites on the island, the majority being of a pre medieval date. There are four chambered tombs, five cists and five other sites assumed to be burial cairns, suggesting a significant settlement in the Neolithic and Bronze Age. The fort of Dùn Briste (the broken fort) lies to the north west and a second site nearby dating to the Iron Age was largely destroyed during the construction of the lighthouse. A century later Edward MacQueen wrote that he believed it had served "as a pharos or watch tower". There is also the presumed site of a chapel near MacLean's Point (just east of the landing place) where an incised cross, tentatively dated to between the sixth and ninth centuries was found. Archaeological evidence of the Norse presence in the Hebrides is scant, but boat shaped stone settings found not far from the chapel may be graves from this period of occupation. Referring to his own time, Martin suggested that life on "Bernera" was not unduly difficult. "It excels other islands of the same extent for cultivation and fishing. The natives never go a fishing while Macneil or his steward is in the island, lest seeing their plenty of fish, perhaps they might take occasion to raise their rents."

Barra Head Lighthouse identifies the southern entrance to The Minch, roughly halfway between the Eilean Glas and Rinns of Islay lighthouses. The 58 feet (18 m) stone tower stands on the west side of the island, at the top of a very steep cliff, making the light 211.23 m above sea level, with a range of There is no shallow water west of Berneray to break the blow of the Atlantic storms and small fish are sometimes thrown onto the grass on the cliff top. In 1836 Sir Archibald Geikie recorded the movement of a block of gneiss across 5 feet (2 m) of ground during a violent storm. Designed by Robert Stevenson and built by James Smith of Inverness the light was first exhibited on 15 October 1833. The oil burning light was converted to incandescent in 1906 and the lighthouse was converted to automatic operation on 23 October 1980, when the last keepers were withdrawn. The departure of the last of the crofting families meant an end to regular links by sea and the regular mist and fog rendered signalling unreliable. A system of wireless communications with Castlebay on Barra was therefore proposed and installed by 1925. The pier was built in the late 1930s with the approach of war, when a sophisticated radar system was installed to guard the Western Approaches. This involved the landing of hundreds of steel girders and drums containing steel cables used to create three large radar masts, and a robust "Scots Derrick" was erected to crane them ashore. A Blenheim bomber crashed into the cliffs nearby during World War II, but the wreck was not discovered until many years later by a rock climber.

In the early 1970s a research project sponsored by BP into a prototype safety boat for Barra Head also assisted the RNLI in developing the Atlantic 21 class lifeboat. The boat used was a Halmatic Atlantic 21 MKIII modified for long range operations and with full offshore capability. The project involved multi organisation co operation and included Halmatic themselves, HM Coastguard and the Royal Marines Amphibious Trials and Testing Unit. In 2008 the Barra RNLI Life Boat, Edna Windsor was featured on a series of Royal Mail stamps. The first class stamp shows the Severn class lifeboat in action in the Sound of Berneray south west of Barra in a swell and a wind.

The National Trust for Scotland purchased the island in 2000 from a local crofters' syndicate called the Barra Head Isles Sheepstock Company who had owned the island since 1955. In 2009 the NTS removed all the sheep from the island, citing the difficulties of maintaining the flock in such a remote location. Berneray and Mingulay form an important breeding site for around a hundred thousand pairs of seabirds, and are especially important for the razorbill, the two islands having at least 2.0% of the UK's breeding population in 1985. Other species present include a variety of gulls, guillemots, puffins, kittiwakes, shags and (since 1899) fulmars. The island is largely covered by maritime grassland, with some machair and heath. Primrose, violets, yellow flag iris and celandine grow abundantly and grey seals are regularly seen by the landing cove. The island is designated as an SSSI