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Tongue
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 Tongue, Highland, Scotland | |
  Tongue Location within theSutherland area | |
| Population | 564 [1] (2011 census) |
| OS grid reference | NC591570 |
| • Edinburgh | 180 mi (290 km) |
| • London | 510 mi (821 km) |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LAIRG |
| Postcode district | IV27 |
| Dialling code | 01847 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament |
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| 58°28′34″N04°25′03″W / 58.47611°N 4.41750°W /58.47611; -4.41750 | |
Tongue (Scottish Gaelic:Tunga fromOld Norse:Tunga, alsoOld English: Tunge) is a coastal village in northwestHighland,Scotland,[2] in the western part of the former county ofSutherland. It lies on the east shore above the base of theKyle of Tongue and north of the mountainsBen Hope andBen Loyal on theA836. To the north lies the area ofBraetongue.
Tongue is the main village in a series ofcroftingtownships that runs throughColdbackie, Dalharn, Blandy, and the harbour ofScullomie to the deserted township of Slettel. The village includes a youth hostel, a craft shop, a general store and garage, a bank, a post office and two hotels, the Tongue Hotel and the Ben Loyal Hotel. It is connected to the west side of the Kyle by theKyle of Tongue Bridge and Causeway, built in 1971.
Contrary to popular belief, the nameTongue does not refer to the shape of the Kyle of Tongue (though thekylecan be described as "tongue-shaped"). Rather it is a geographical term inOld Norse which refers to a piece of land shaped like a spit or tongue. That tongue of land projecting into the Kyle is the terminalmoraine of the Kyle of Tongue glacier, and forms the eastern part of the Kyle of Tongue causeway.
In Gaelic,Tunga indicates the village, whereasCaol Thunga indicates the kyle. The village is also known asCeann Tàile and formerly asCirceabol.
The area was an historic crossroad forGaels,Picts andVikings.
Tongue House is the historic seat of theClan Mackay, after they abandonedCastle Varrich (Caisteal Bharraich). The ruins of the castle, built at Tongue in the eleventh century after the clan were expelled from their ancestral Province ofMoray to County Sutherland, are a popular tourist attraction. A battle for succession some time around 1427 to 1433 culminated in theBattle of Drumnacoub, in which two factions of the clan fought on Carn Fada, between the Kyle and Ben Loyal.
The village saw a key battle between aJacobite treasure ship and two ships of the Royal Navy in 1746, which resulted in the Jacobite crew trying to slip ashore with their gold. They were then caught by the Navy, supported by local people who were loyal toHanover, which costBonnie Prince Charlie valuable support in the run-up toCulloden.
In theHighland Clearances, many people who were cleared from the interior of Sutherland moved to this village. The Gaelic poet Ewen Robertson (Scottish Gaelic:Eòghainn MacDhonnchaidh, 1842–95) lived in Tongue his entire life, and is most famous for his song "Mo mhallachd aig na caoraich mhòr" ("My curses on the Border sheep") mocking, among others, theDuchess of Sutherland andPatrick Sellar.[3] The song has been recorded by notable singersJulie Fowlis andKathleen MacInnes. There is a monument to Robertson in Tongue.[4]
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