Located 12 nautical miles (22 kilometres) south of Barra, it is known for an extensive Gaelic oral tradition incorporating folklore, song and stories[6] and its important seabird populations, including puffins, black-legged kittiwakes, and razorbills, which nest in the sea-cliffs,[7] amongst the highest in the British Isles.

[10] After the last retreat of the ice around 20,000 years ago, sea levels were lower than at present and circa 14,000 BP it was joined to a single large island comprising most of what is now the Outer Hebrides.

There is one large beach on the eastern side of the isle, where the only settlement of note ('The Village') was located, and a tiny cove at Skipsdale (Old Norse: ship valley).

Bagh na h-Aoineig (Scots Gaelic: bay of the steep promontory) on the western side is a deep cleft in the sea-cliffs[1] once thought to be the highest in the UK[4] which rise to 213 m (699 ft) above sea level at Builacraig.

There are several outlying islets including the twin rocks of Sròn a Dùin to the south-west, Geirum Mòr and Geirum Beag to the south between Mingulay and the nearby island of Berneray, and Solon Mòr ('Big Gannet'), Solon Beag ('Little Gannet'), Sgeirean nan Uibhein, Barnacle Rock and a smaller stack called The Red Boy, all to the north between Mingulay and Pabbay.

[4] In historic times the Hebrides have been heavily influenced by Celtic, Norse and Scots culture and this is evident in the variety of names the isle possesses.

"Mingulay" is derived from Mikil-ay, the Old Norse for "Big Island" although this is misleading as it is only the second largest of the Barra Isles behind Vatersay, which is lower lying and appears smaller from the sea.

Lowland Scots speakers in their turn have variously described the island as "Mewla"[15] or "Miuley"[16] (which are both approximations of the Gaelic pronunciation), "Megaly"[17] and "Micklay"[18] before finally settling on the current variant.

[19] Early Christianity influenced Mingulay (for example the nearby islands of Pabbay and Berneray both have cross-inscribed slabs) but no direct evidence has yet been found.

By the 1266 Treaty of Perth they reverted to the Scottish crown control under the tutelage of the quasi-autonomous Lordship of Garmoran (ruled by the MacRory, a faction among the rulers of the Kingdom of the Isles).

The lack of a resident priest meant that services were often organised by the lay community, but the local culture and traditions of songs and story-telling were rich and varied.

Since Protestantism was extended to the savage parts of Scotland, it has perhaps been one of the chief labours of the Ministers to abolish stated observances, because they continued the remembrance of the former religion.

[23] However, the Highland Clearances seemed to have the effect of increasing Mingulay's population as families evicted from Barra sometimes chose to re-settle there rather than take the emigrant ships to Nova Scotia.

The lack of a sheltered landing meant that the island could be unreachable for weeks at a time, and loading and unloading goods was at best strenuous and at worst hazardous.

Writing about the collapse of similar populations in the Hebrides, Neat (2000) suggests: one common thread would appear to be the unwillingness of even the most stoical and historically-aware communities to continue an existence based upon endless physical hardship when the opportunity of an easier livelihood elsewhere is there to be taken.

The Congested Districts Board installed a derrick to assist with the landings at Aneir at the south end of the Bay in 1901, but the design was flawed and its failure was a further disappointment.

Lady Gordon Cathcart took legal action but the visiting judge took the view that she had neglected her duties as a landowner and that "long indifference to the necessities of the cottars had gone far to drive them to exasperation".

[4] Vatersay has sheltered anchorages and was only 300 metres (330 yd) from Barra[2] (until the construction of a causeway in 1990)[1] and Neil MacPhee wrote "it is better a thousand times to die here than to go through the same hardships which were our lot" on Mingulay.

Russell was clearly a man who liked his own company, choosing to live on the island alone all autumn and winter with his pet ferrets and cats, and joined by two shepherds for the spring and summer only.

In 1951 she attempted to sell the island herself, but without success until 1955 when a local crofters' syndicate called the Barra Head Isles Sheepstock Company completed the purchase.

[4] In 2000 Mingulay was acquired by the National Trust for Scotland through a bequest by J. M. Fawcitt "to provide an area of natural beauty in memory of her parents and the courage of her late brother, Bernard.

[4] In recent years, to help limit the spread of bird flu, access to the puffin colonies has been restricted through the use of sections of metal fences but it is still possible to get quite close to the burrows.

[34] The island (along with neighbouring Berneray) has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports breeding populations of several species of seabirds.

[1] The "Mingulay Boat Song" was composed by Hugh S. Roberton, the founder of the Glasgow Orpheus Choir, in 1938, and first recorded by the Francis McPeake family of Ulster.

[36] Written in the style of Hebridean work songs[37] to the tune Creag Guanach from Lochaber,[38] it invites the listener to imagine the boatsmen of the island singing in time to the pulling of their oars.

Chorus[39] It has been recorded by numerous artists including Robin Hall and Jimmy MacGregor[40] in 1971, The Idlers and Richard Thompson in 2006,[41] and by Kris Delmhorst on her 2003 Songs for a Hurricane album.

These include "Oran do dh'Eilean Mhiulaidh" (Song to the Isle of Mingulay) written by Neil MacPhee the Vatersay raider (see above), after the abandonment of the island, and "Turas Neill a Mhiughlaigh" (Neil's Trip to Mingulay) written by Father Allan MacLean (known locally as the "Curate of Spain" having attended the Scots College in Valladolid), possibly during the period 1837–40 when he lived on Barra.