Eorsa

Eorsa
Location
Eorsa
Eorsa shown within Argyll and Bute
OS grid reference	NM481378
Names
Meaning of name	uncertain "Jorulof-øy" - Jorulf's island or from "àrsaidh" - ancient
Area and summit
Area	122 ha (0.47 sq mi)
Area rank	136=
Highest elevation	98 m (322 ft)
Population
Population	0
Groupings
Island group	Mull
Local Authority	Argyll and Bute
References
If shown, area and population ranks are for all Scottish islands and all inhabited Scottish islands respectively. Population data is from 2001 census.

Eorsa is an uninhabited island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.

Geography

Loch na Keal - Eorsa can be seen in the middle of the loch, and Ulva in the background

Eorsa lies in Loch na Keal on the west coast of the Isle of Mull, to the east of Ulva. It is part of the Loch Na Keal National Scenic Area, one of 40 in Scotland.

History

Eorsa from the north/northwest with Mull in the foreground and background

Many of the nearby islands, including Inchkenneth, have early ecclesiastical connections. Eorsa may have done too. It once belonged to the Abbey of Iona, and became the property of the Duke of Argyll.

During World War I, the island was used as a British naval anchorage.

Cultural references

The island is the fictional setting of Nigel Tranter's 1952 novel Bridal Path, which was made into film of the same name in 1959. As the comic novel takes the perils of island inbreeding as its theme, it is assumed that Tranter deliberately chose an unpopulated island to avoid giving offence.

Wildlife

Eorsa is separated from Mull by nearly a mile of water at the closest point so there are very few land animals. Locals on Mull joke that the island is "heaving with adders" although that may not be entirely true. Red deer are good swimmers and could easily make the crossing if they wanted to. Its simply a question of whether there is anything the deer want there that can't be found on the mainland.