The Minch

(North Minch)

A historical perspective, drawn from the Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland: A Survey of Scottish Topography, Statistical, Biographical and Historical, edited by Francis H. Groome and originally published in parts by Thomas C. Jack, Grange Publishing Works, Edinburgh between 1882 and 1885.

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Minch or North Minch, the belt of sea between the mainland of Scotland and the northern portion of the Outer Hebrides. Extending in a north-north-easterly direction, and forming a continuation of the Little Minch outward to the North Sea, it connects at the SE corner with the channels between the mainland and Skye; has a width of from 23 to 45 miles; and is flanked, on all the E side, by the mainland parts of Ross-shire and Sutherland, on all the W side by Lewis island, inclusive of the northern part of Harris. Its name signifies 'the stormy sea;' its currents are regular and very rapid; its depths are mostly great, and generally so variable as to indicate a very rugged bottom; and its water is exceedingly salt.

An accompanying 19th C. Ordnance Survey map is available, or use the map tab to the right of this page.

Note: This text has been made available using a process of scanning and optical character recognition. Despite manual checking, some typographical errors may remain. Please remember this description dates from the 1880s; names may have changed, administrative divisions will certainly be different and there are known to be occasional errors of fact in the original text, which we have not corrected because we wish to maintain its integrity. This information is provided subject to our standard disclaimer