The Nature of Scotland – Autumn 2011 – Issue 13

A’ coimhead sìos air
Camas a’ Choire
Bhreacain.
Looking down on the
Gulf of Corryvreckan
Prince’s whirlpool
The Gaelic word coire, from which
the English ‘corrie’ derives, originally
meant a ‘cauldron’. In the domestic
situation it has naturally evolved into the
modern Gaelic word for a kettle. But
it’s also an important element in naming
the Scottish landscape, as the word
was adopted for the cauldron-shaped
features cut by ice in our hills and
mountains.
Its use in naming the famous tidal
race of Coire Bhreacain (anglicised as
‘Corryvreckan’), between the islands
of Sgarba and Jura, is based on the
turbulence of the water there. The
whirlpool is reminiscent of the contents
of a cauldron bubbling above a fire.
According to oral tradition, the
‘cauldron of Breacan’ refers to a
Scandinavian prince. He’s said to have
drowned after an unsuccessful attempt
to anchor his ship there for three days
and nights, in an attempt to win the
hand of a daughter of the Lord of the
Isles.
www.snh.gov.uk 31