Little Cumbrae
Location
Little Cumbrae
Little Cumbrae shown within Scotland
OS grid reference	NS148517
Names
Gaelic name	Cumaradh Beag
Norse name	Kumrey Litla
Meaning of name	"Little Island of the Cymry"[1]
Area and summit
Area	313 hectares (1.21 sq mi)
Area rank	84
Highest elevation	Lighthouse Hill 123 metres (404 ft)
Population
Population (2001)	0
Groupings
Island group	Islands of the Clyde
Local Authority	North Ayrshire
References	[2][3][4]
If shown, area and population ranks are for all Scottish islands and all inhabited Scottish islands respectively.

Little Cumbrae (Scottish Gaelic: Cumaradh Beag) is an island in the Firth of Clyde, in North Ayrshire, Scotland. The island is known locally as Wee Cumbrae.

Little Cumbrae seen from the Haylie Brae on the mainland. Note Great Cumbrae in the foreground at the right and Arran beyond.

[edit] Etymology

Cumbrae (and its Gaelic equivalent Cumaradh), the common element of both Great Cumbrae and Little Cumbrae shares the same root as Cymry ("Britons"). It is a reference to the old Brythonic inhabitants of Strathclyde.^[1]

[edit] Geography

Little Cumbrae lies barely a kilometre to the south of its larger neighbour, Great Cumbrae. The islands are collectively referred to as The Cumbraes. In stark contrast to its neighbour, green and fertile Great Cumbrae, Little Cumbrae is a rough and rocky island. With its many cliffs and rocky outcrops, Little Cumbrae bears more of a resemblance to a Hebridean island than to some of its neighbours in the Clyde.

A number of uninhabited islets skirt the island's east coast, Castle Isle, the Broad Islands and Trail Isle.

Today the island's main settlement is at Little Cumbrae House on the eastern shore, facing the Scottish mainland.

[edit] History

Robert II is said to have built a castle on the island which was demolished by Cromwell's soldiers in 1653.^[5]

Little Cumbrae was privately purchased in 2003 and there were plans for its development as a memorial park, nature reserve and corporate escape, but the island was sold again in July 2009 for £2 million.^[6] The buyers of the island, Scottish millionaire couple of Indian extraction, Sarwan and Sunita Poddar, opened there a yoga and meditation centre with the help of yoga guru Swami Baba Ramdev^{[7] [8]}. There have also been rumours of the new owners planning to rename it "Peace Island", but those have been denied^[9][10].

[edit] Lighthouse

Cumbrae Lighthouse was built in 1793 by Thomas Smith who was under commission from the Commissioners of the Northern Lights. The lighthouse lies on a broad raised beach on the western shore of the island looking out into the Firth.

Prior to the creation of the lighthouse, Little Cumbrae had an open fire light atop Lighthouse Hill. This extremely old structure can still be seen.

[edit] Footnotes

Coordinates: 55°43′17″N 4°57′18″W / 55.72131°N 4.95503°W / 55.72131; -4.95503