No. 47 2026 Norse Seafaring in Western Scotland: Sea Routes and Navigation Marks Shane McLeod and Alexandra Sanmark Journal of the North Atlantic Journal of the North Atlantic The Journal of the North Atlantic (Online ISSN #1935-1933, Print ISSN #1935-1984), with an international editorial board, is a collaborative publishing effort of the Eagle Hill Institute, PO Box 9, 59 Eagle Hill Road, Steuben, ME 04680-0009 USA. Phone 207-546-2821. E-mail: office@eaglehill. us. Website: www.eaglehill.us/jona. Copyright © 2026, all rights reserved. On-line secure subscription ordering: rate per year is $40 for individuals, $32 for students, $250 for organizations. Authors: Instructions for authors are available at www.eaglehill.us/jona. The Eagle Hill Institute (Federal ID # 010379899) is a tax exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation of the State o f Maine, USA. The Journal of the North Atlantic (JONA) is a multi-disciplinary, peer-reviewed and edited archaeology and environmental history journal focusing on the peoples of the North Atlantic, their expansion into the region over time, and their interactions with their changing environments. The journal—published online in the BioOne.org database and on the JONA website, and indexed in a full range of journal databases—serves as a forum for researchers, and as an information resource for instructors, students, and the intellectually curious who would like to learn about the latest research and study opportunities within the region. The journal publishes a wide diversity of research papers, as well as research summaries and general interest articles in closely related disciplines, which, when considered together, help contribute to a comprehensive multi-disciplinary understanding of the historical interplay between cultural and environmental changes in the North Atlantic world. Specifically, the journal’s focus includes paleo-environmental reconstruction and modelling, historical ecology, archaeology, ecology of organisms important to humans, anthropology, human/ environment/climate interactions, climate history, ethnography, ethnohistory, historical analyses, discussions of cultural heritage, and place-name studies. The journal publishes individual papers on an article-by-article basis. Whenever a manuscript has completed its peer review process and the article galley has been approved by the author, it will be immediately published online in the BioOne database and on the JONA website. This publishing model is also available for special volumes such as conference and symposium proceedings or other collections of papers. In effect, this means that articles are grouped online over time, i.e., the table of contents of volumes will grow as articles are posted online, which has the advantage of rewarding prompt authors, while enabling tardier authors to retain the option of being included in a special volume without delaying its publication. The Journal of the North Atlantic’s publishing format is versatile enough that authors can include supplementary files with their articles. These supplements may include dataset, figure, and table files (e.g., files requiring a larger than normal journal page size, such as large maps), as well as text and protocol files, audio and video files (e.g., for ethnographic studies), and even Powerpoint files. The Journal of the North Atlantic is indexed in the Web of Science (clarivate.com), EBSCO.com, and by way of author entries in Google Scholar and Researchgate. It is included in full-text in BioOne.org and JSTOR.org. Board of Editors Jette Arneborg, National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark Gerald F. Bigelow, Archaeology Institute, University of the Highlands and Islands, Kirkwall, Orkney, UK Rosie Bishop, Museum of Archaeology, University of Stavanger, Norway Colin Breen, University of Ulster, Coleraine, Northern Ireland Alison Cathcart, Division of History, Heritage and Politics, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK Mike J. Church, Department of Archaeology, Durham University, Durham, England, UK Jane Downes, Orkney College UHI, Kirkwall, Orkney, Scotland, UK Andrew J. Dugmore, Institute of Geography, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK Mark Gardiner, School Of History And Heritage, University of Lincoln, UK Erika Guttmann-Bond, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands Ramona Harrison, Department of Archaeology, History, Cultural Studies and Religion, University of Bergen, Norway Agnar Helgason, deCODE Genetics, Reykjavík, Iceland Joerg-Henner Lotze, Eagle Hill Institute, Steuben, ME, USA • Publisher Niels Lynnerup, Laboratory of Biological Anthropology, The Panum Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark Christian Koch Madsen, National Museum and Archives of Greenland, Nuuk, Greenland Ingrid Mainland, University of the Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute, Orkney College, Kirkwall, Orkney, UK Meriel McClatchie. School of Archaeology, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland Thomas H. McGovern, Dept. of Anthropology, Bioarchaeological Lab, Hunter College, New York, NY, USA Natascha Mehler, Department of Medieval Archaeology, University of Tübingen, Germany Helgi D. Michelsen, Tjóðsavnið, The Faroe Islands National Museum, Faroe Islands Jacqui A. Mulville, School of History and Archaeology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, UK Anthony Newton, School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK • Editor Astrid E.J. Ogilvie, Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA Sam Rexing, Eagle Hill Institute, Steuben, ME • Production Editor Alexandra Sanmark, Institute for Northern Studies, University of the Highlands and Islands, Perth, UK J. Edward Schofield, Dept. of Geography & Environment, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Scotland Niall Sharples, Cardiff Universty, Cardiff, Wales, UK Ian A. Simpson, Department of Archaeology, Durham University,(Hon Research Fellow), Durham, UK Przemyslaw Urbanczyk, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology, Warsaw, Poland Eileen Tisdall, Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK Orri Vésteinsson, Institute of Archaeology, Reykjavík, Iceland Alex Woolf, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland, UK James Woollett, Université Laval Québec, QC, Canada Cover Photograph: View of Loch Gruinart from Kilnave Chapel, Islay. Photograph © Shane McLeod. “Skálholt Map” courtesy of The Royal Library, Copenhagen, Denmark Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 1 2026 JOURNAL OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC 47:1–44 Norse Seafaring in Western Scotland: Sea Routes and Navigation Marks Shane McLeod1, * and Alexandra Sanmark1 Abstract – This article explores the navigation and seafaring strategies used by Norse mariners in and around the islands off the west coast of Scotland. To do so we draw upon a diverse range of sources including saga accounts, placenames, archaeological remains, early historical maps as well as logistical considerations. This diachronic perspective is inspired by Christer Westerdahl’s “maritime cultural landscapes” methodology as well as recent studies of prehistoric seafaring. It is demonstrated, through close examination of the available evidence, that the Norse mariners had very well-developed strategies to avoid dangers as well as maximize their efficiency at sea to ensure that journeys were as safe and fast as possible. Topics explored include the types of ships used, navigation markers, sailing routes, sailing distance and time, landing places and pilots. Introduction This article examines Norse navigation and seafaring in the areas of Scandinavian settlement in western Scotland (c. 795–1263 AD1), covering the Inner and Outer Hebrides, Arran and the islands in the Firth of Clyde, as well as the associated mainland coasts. It is one of the outcomes of the major research project The Norse and the Sea: The Maritime Cultural Landscape of Scandinavian Scotland2 and builds on our recent article on seafaring in the Northern Isles of Scotland (Sanmark and McLeod 2024). These two publications effectively work in tandem, with the first providing a detailed discussion of aspects of Norse navigation including pilots, mental mapping, and the use of the cardinal points, while this one investigates aspects such as the use of sailing routes, stopping points and navigation markers, as well as the different ship types in use in western Scotland. The interdisciplinary approach employed allows us to begin moving beyond assumptions and general statements to gain a better understanding of how the Norse managed the sailing feats that allowed them to raid, trade and settle and the strategies employed, both in Scotland and Scandinavia. Further publications on topics such as early-warning beacons (McLeod 2025), portages and inland waterways as well as maritime resources are in progress, which together will provide a more complete picture of Norse seafaring and navigation strategies in Scotland. The period of study begins around the time of the first recorded viking raid in Scotland, i.e. the attack on the monastery in Iona in 795 (Mac Airt 1951:118). The date of the earliest Norse settlement in western Scotland is debated and hard to pinpoint. Written evidence suggests that some settlement took place in the early ninth century—if the Scandinavian kingdom of Lathlind/Lathlinn mentioned in the Annals of Ulster and The Fragmentary Annals was located in Scotland. Some scholars have put forward The Hebrides as a possibility (e.g. Ó Corráin 1998), although others prefer Norway for its location (Kruse 2017 for review of literature). Archaeological evidence currently suggests Norse settlement, including culturally Scandinavian burials, building and artifact types, from the 850s onwards (Graham-Campbell and Batey 1998:155, Sharples 2023:75–76). Regardless of the location 1Institute for Northern Studies, University of the Highlands and Islands, Perth, UK. *Corresponding author: Shane.McLeod@uhi.ac.uk Associate Editor: Alison Cathcart, University of Stirling. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 2 of Lathlind, Norse settlement in western Scotland may have originally been piecemeal and differing between areas, with Norse language and culture slowly spreading and becoming dominant in most, if not all, of the region (Graham-Campbell and Batey 1998:71–74). According to Orkneyinga saga, Norwegian king Haraldr hárfargi (possible reign 872–932) as well as Orkney Earls Sigurd the Stout (r. 991–1014) and Thorfinn the Mighty (r. 1016–1065) held overlordship of the islands on the west coast of Scotland, but it is not certain these claims were ever fulfilled. Major campaigns in 1098 and 1102 by King Magnus Óláfsson berfoettr (r. 1093–1103) established overlordship over local kings and magnates (Forte et al. 2005:236–240, Hollander 2002:668–687). Following this, the degree of Norwegian overlordship of the region fluctuated and instead there was a series of competing local rulers with fluid territorial boundaries, all of whom were technically subservient to the king of Norway. This remained the case until 1263 when King Hakon Hakonarson (r. 1217–1263) attempted to reimpose control and stop Scots incursions. Hakon’s death at this time in the aftermath of the Battle of Largs effectively ended Norwegian involvement in western Scotland and the territory was ceded to the Kingdom of Scotland in 1266 via the Treaty of Perth (Dasent 1894:347–364, Forte et al. 2005:256–264). Unlike Orkney and Shetland, western Scotland never formed part of a Norwegian earldom, nor is there an indication that western Scotland became one of the Norwegian tributepaying skattlands (Crawford 1987:88, Imsen 2014:79–88, Woolf 2007:300–308). There are however references to some tribute payments to Norway, and the exiled king of Man Godred Olafsson spent time at the Norwegian court between 1161 and 1164, before being helped to regain his kingdom, showing that close ties continued at the time (Hollander 2002:784; Power 2005:24). Moreover, the islands became known to the Norse as suðreyjar—southern isles—but were at least occasionally united under the kings of Man, leading to some ambiguity about the precise southern boundary of the Diocese of Sodor which was founded in 1154 and placed under the Norwegian archdiocese of Nidaros (Jónsson 1893:244, McDonald 2019:1–3, 276, Pálsson and Edwards 1981:26, 59–60, Vigfusson 1887b:339). Methods and sources Much previous research on Norse seafaring has focused on the details of ships and boats, including excavations, reconstructions, and re-enactment of sailing voyages (Bill 2007, Crumlin-Pedersen 2010, Englert and Ossowski 2009, Vikingeskibsmuseet). Less attention has been paid to navigation, sailing strategies, harbors and landing places, and instead sea crossings tend to be described in very general terms (Sanmark and McLeod 2024, with references). One reason for this shortage of research is presumably the sparsity of source materials. In order to overcome this problem, we have applied a new methodology, building above all on the work of archaeologist Christer Westerdahl and his proposed “maritime cultural landscapes” (e.g. Westerdahl 1989, 1992, 2006). This method involves an interdisciplinary approach encompassing a range of source materials, from archaeology to written evidence, place-names and maps. Although the majority of the written evidence dates from the Middle Ages, supplementary data from later time periods has also proven useful (cf. Sanmark and McLeod 2024). The medieval written sources that provide insight into western Scotland are few and mainly consist of Icelandic sagas dating from the 13th century onwards. Although there is not a specific saga dealing with suðreyjar, enough saga texts survive to provide some information about general conditions and the seafaring strategies used in this area. Among the most interesting sources are the detailed accounts of the campaigns and sailing routes Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 3 of the Norwegian kings Magnus Olafsson and Hakon Hakonarson in their respective sagas Magnúsar saga berfætts in Heimskringla and Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar3. Both accounts provide useful information on sailing conditions and strategies. Magnúsar saga berfætts may be considered a less reliable source to Norse activity in western Scotland as it was written down about a century after the events (Hollander 2002:xvi–xix, 677, Pálsson and Edwards 1981:9, 86). Hákonar saga on the other hand is particularly useful since it was committed to writing within two years of the events described and may therefore include eye-witness accounts (Schach 1993:259). Moreover, the inclusion of contemporary stanzas in Hákonar saga naming individual islands in a logical sequence from a sailing perspective suggest that the broad outline of the sea route is likely to be accurate (Power 2005:12). Overall, the authors seem to have been familiar with the region and the two sagas have therefore been seen as rather reliable accounts (Dasent 1894:347–364, Hollander 2002:674–678, Power 2005:12). Another important source for this study is an extended account of Icelanders blown off course by a storm in 1202, found in saga Hrafns Sveinbjarnarsonar4. The Icelanders were on their way from Iceland to Norway but ended up in the Hebrides where they experienced some very stormy conditions (Tjomsland 1951:26–29). This episode in Hrafns saga moreover contains poetic stanzas said to be authored by Grímr Hjaltason with a man called Eyjólfr and “composed during the journey, probably for recitation in the Hebrides” (Jesch 2015:327). The saga itself was written within approximately a decade of Hrafn’s death in 1213, with the author declaring “we are here undertaking to write about some events which took place in our lifetime among men known to us, and which we know to be true” (Tjomsland 1951:ix–x, 1). In addition, Orkneyinga saga, composed in c. 1200, includes passing references to seafaring and navigation between the Northern Isles and western Scotland (Pálsson and Edwards 1981). This saga is said to be “trustworthy” as a source for the 12th and the 13th centuries and some of the material “clearly derives from Orcadian narratives of recent events” (Jesch 2005b:14). This means that although sagas are rather late, literary accounts and all with various biases, the events discussed in Hákonar saga, Hrafns saga and Orkneyinga saga cited in this article were contemporaneous with the events described and provide useful insights carefully considered in this article. Moreover, the accounts reflect continuing knowledge of these routes over t ime. This study also draws on other written sources with relevant information on seafaring. One such example is the version of Landnámabók produced by lawman Haukr Erlendsson, which dates from the early 14th century (Benediktsson 1968, Jesch 2005a:119–120). Another important source is King Valdemar’s Itinerary Nauigatio ex Dania per mare Balthicum ad Estoniam, preserved in the 13th-century Liber Census Daniae written down for King Valdemar II of Denmark (r. 1202–1241). This source describes the sea route from the province of Blekinge in southernmost modern-day Sweden, northwards along the Swedish east coast, across to the Åland Islands, the south coast of Finland and finally to Tallinn in Estonia (Sporrong 2009:26–27, Zwick 2016:55–60). Archaeological evidence from the Norse period is found throughout the study area and the types examined in this article include above all furnished burials of Scandinavian type (some of which are boat burials) and Norse settlements (in date and “style”). So far, the settlements that are definitely proven to be Norse are tantalisingly few, but there are a large number of probable Norse settlements, many of which are multiperiod sites (Graham- Campbell and Batey 1998:155–205). However, the known Norse burial and settlement remains are overwhelmingly in coastal locations (Fig. 1a–b), demonstrating the links between people and the sea and suggesting continuous usage of marine resources. These aspects are naturally also highlighted by the make-up of the Norse settlement region, based on placeJournal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 4 Figure 1. a) settlements (certain and probable) and burial sites in northern western Scotland, dating from the Norse period; b) settlements (certain and probable) and burial sites in southern western Scotland, dating from the Norse period (McLeod 2015a, Sanmark 2017:197–199, Trove). Note the overwhelming distribution along the coast. All islands referred to in this article are named in these maps. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 5 Figure 1 cont. a) settlements (certain and probable) and burial sites in northern western Scotland, dating from the Norse period; b) settlements (certain and probable) and burial sites in southern western Scotland, dating from the Norse period (McLeod 2015a, Sanmark 2017:197–199, Trove). Note the overwhelming distribution along the coast. All islands referred to in this article are named in these maps. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 6 name distribution, in western Scotland, which covered a large costal area and many islands (see e.g. Crawford 1987:Fig. 25). This stresses the need for good local knowledge of dangers at sea, suitable landing places, navigation marks and sailing routes, aspects which are little known today, but will all be examined below. Place-names derived from Old Norse (hereafter ON) and Gaelic form another highly useful body of evidence. Some of these names appear in Icelandic sagas but the majority are found in the c. 1540 Rutter of Alexander Lindsay (Taylor 1980) and first edition Ordnance Survey (hereafter OS) maps discussed below. Place-names can be problematic to interpret, particularly in western Scotland where the many Norse place-names have gone through a transition into Gaelic. It can also be difficult to ascertain if a Gaelic place-name was coined before or after this transition, or indeed if it survives from the pre-Norse era when Gaelic was spoken in the southern Hebrides (Gordon 1963:90–91, Macniven 2015:12–16, Whyte 2023:135–136). Despite these difficulties, place-names do provide clues, for example, to the locations of landing places, portages and inland water routes (cf. Stylegar and Grimm 2003). Moreover, placenames combined with topographical information and archaeological evidence can provide a meaningful understanding of the past landscape and how it was used. The detailed study of Tiree by John Holliday is particularly valuable for this purpose (Holliday 2021). In this sense, as further discussed below, place-names provided sailing instructions along the coast and can therefore be seen to have been deeply embedded into the mental mapping strategies used by the Norse (cf. Jennings and Kruse 2024:72, Sanmark and McLeod 2024:7–10). It has moreover been argued that Norse settlers in Scotland brought an “onomasticon”, i.e. a “toolbox of appropriate names” which they used in order to name a specific type of feature and that for this reason parallel naming traditions were applied in Norway and Scotland (Jennings and Kruse 2024:72). This is particularly interesting as this suggests that similar mental mapping strategies were applied in both areas. Further support of widely applied mapping strategies is found in Hrafns saga which stated that a ship “drifted to the south so that they saw birds from Ireland” (Tjomsland 1951:26 [our emphasis]). Such use of wildlife for navigation purposes is also found in the sailing directions of Landnámabók where references are made to the observation of birds and whales (Benediktsson 1968:33–35). Finally, later sources, such as rutters, travel writing and historical maps constitute valuable material for this article. Of key significance is the Lindsay Rutter, a sailing guide for pilots possibly compiled for King James V of Scotland’s expedition around the coast of his kingdom. The Rutter provides details on distances, depths, tidal directions and suitable havens, and warns pilots of where sailing dangers can be encountered (Taylor 1980:5, 45). This information may gain extra credibility as the creator was described as “an excellent Pilot and Hydrographer” (Taylor 1980:9). Similarly in 1549 Donald Monro, a priest living in the Hebrides, wrote the Description of the Western Isles of Scotland, in which he portrays each island, some of the sailing conditions, as well as the places where supplies could be found, together with harbors suitable for galleys, or warships (Monro 1549). Also of use are early maps, including Blaeu’s Atlas of 1654, the result of a survey done in the late sixteenth century (Blaeu 1654a, Holliday 2021:62), and the two maps of western Scotland by Joseph Huddart published in 1794 (Huddart 1794a, 1794b). Furthermore, the map of the isle of Lewis produced by the 18th-century Orcadian hydrographer and cartographer Murdoch Mackenzie provides important insights (Mackenzie 1750). These types of sources are of particular interest for this study as they were produced in the time of non-motorised crafts and therefore demonstrate what strategies were used for successful handling of the sea in these types of boats and ships. They can also provide many navigational details that were significant for Norse sailors, such as the strength and Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 7 direction of tides and currents, shifting sand banks, suitable places to wait for the right sailing conditions, safe harbors and anchorages, as well as the best sailing routes between islands and submerged rocks (Mackenzie 1750, Taylor 1980). These sources can usefully be combined with earlier, perhaps less detailed, materials. It is thought that general climatic and large-scale environmental conditions, including currents, have been stable for approximately the last seven thousand years (Rahnstorf 2002, Scourse et al. 2024). Consequently, the tides and currents shown on these early maps are probably similar to those of the Norse period and so aid our understanding of seafaring in western Scotland. One major difference, however, is that boats and ships of the Norse period had a considerably shallower draft, which allowed the vessels to get closer to shore before running aground, than those in later periods (Bill 1999:197), so a greater number of harbors and landing places are likely to have been available to the Norse than are marked on early modern maps. Norse period boats could also more easily be pulled up on the beach than larger and heavier boats of later periods. Other historical maps that have been consulted include the first edition OS maps dating from the late 19th century. Information from all these sources have been plotted in ArcGIS, together with archaeological data collected from the Trove database, as well as other relevant publications. Together, these diverse source materials are used to examine Norse seafaring around western Scotland, building on longstanding traditions of navigation observed in this area (cf. Blankshein 2021, Sturt 2006). The intention is not to suggest that sailing conditions are constant and can be studied in this fashion, but instead that the different types of evidence can provide insight into navigation and seafaring in a time before motorised crafts and modern navigational aids (for a full discussion with references, see Sanmark and McLeod 2024). Sizes and numbers of ships The sizes of the vessels used by the Norse in western Scotland constitutes another important element to consider as this will have affected the preferred routes and potential shortcuts and landing places. There is rather limited data on vessels, but the four boat burials from Scotland provide a useful starting point. The vessel from Kiloran Bay measured approximately 11 metres in length and is therefore the largest found in a Norse burial in Scotland (similar in size to the vessel in the Balladoole burial on the Isle of Man, Graham- Campbell and Batey 1998:120). The boat from Swordle Bay was considerably smaller at only 5.1 metres long (Harris et al. 2017:194). For the size of the vessels at Carn a’Bharraich, Oronsay, and Machrins, Colonsay, there is no information. The figures that are available are similar to the boat burials in the Northern Isles of Scotland; the boat from Wick of Aith, Fetlar, Shetland was 6–8 metres long, the boats in the burials at Westness in Rousay, Orkney were 5.5 and 4.5 metres respectively, while the boat from the Scar burial, Sanday, Orkney, measured 7.15 metres in length (Batey 2016:41, Kaland 1993:315). This means that the boats found in Scottish burials were rowing boats or small sailing vessels, rather than war or cargo ships. The fragmentary remains of the boats, often consisting of just rivets, makes it difficult to determine if they had a mast and sail, but the Swordle Bay boat is clearly interpreted as a rowing boat (Harris et al. 2017:194). The large ocean-going ships that were most likely used for sailing to and from Scandinavia and other long journeys, were presumably too precious to be placed in burials in this area where suitable trees for boat building were scarce. The lack of suitable oak trees may moreover have led to the construction of smaller sized vessels in the Hebrides compared to Norway (Rixson 1998:75–76, 115). Similarly, the boat timber found in Loch na h-Àirde in the Isle of Skye radiocarbon dated to c. 1100 is estimated to have come from a four-oared rowing boat, c. 5.85m in length (Martin and Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 8 Martin 2018:151). Stem posts from Eigg (Small Isles, Hebrides) suggest slightly larger sailing vessels than for the rest of Norse Scotland, as the 14-metre-long coastal transport and trading vessel Skuldelev 3 recovered from the Roskilde Fjord is considered the nearest comparator (Crumlin-Pedersen 1986:220, Dael and Sørensen 2021:295). These stemposts were, however, intended for boat building or repair, rather than burial. On a larger scale, the Skuldelev 2 ship can provide a good indication of the size of ships used for ocean travel in and around western Scotland during the 11th century. This ship was built of oak from the Dublin area felled in c. 1042 and is therefore likely to have travelled through western Scotland on its journey to Denmark where it was scuttled. The ship was approximately 30 metres long and had 30 pairs of oars and a crew of 65 to 70 people (Vikingeskibmuseet:Skuldelev 2). Written sources can also offer some clues to the size of ships used on the Scottish west coast. For the end of the Norse period we are told in Hákonar saga that King Hakon had a large dragon-headed ship (ON “skip”), made entirely of oak, with 37 rúm (“benches”) specially built at Bergen for the voyage to the Hebrides in 1263. According to the saga, many other great ships were also well fitted out (Dasent 1894:342, Vigfusson 1887b:329). Ormrinn langi, Long Serpent, of Norwegian King Olav Tryggvason (r. 995–1000) was a dreka (“dragon ship”) and reported in Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar to have had 34 benches/pairs of oars and is therefore likely to have been at least 34m long (Hollander 2002:221, Munch 1853:40). If these figures are correct, this makes Hakon’s ship slightly longer than Ormrinn langi, and considerably longer than the 30-metre long Skuldelev 2. Even if this flagship was the largest of Hakon’s ships, together with Skuldelev 2, it probably give a reasonable indication of the size of some of the ships. Some further data on ship sizes comes from the sagas: most of the ships in Hakon’s fleet from Norway, Orkney, Man and the Hebrides are said to have been “great” (flest stór) (Dasent 1894:347–348, Vigfusson 1887b:335). At the smaller scale, the Annals of Ulster record that the crews of three ships of Norse from the Isles were killed in 1098, numbering “a hundred and twenty or a little more”, equating to around 40 people per ship (Mac Airt and Mac Niocaill 1983:533). These ships may therefore have been c. 20m in length. In conclusion, the evidence suggests that a mixture of ships were in use, some were large ocean-going vessels, while others were more suited to inter-island travel. Using smaller ships gave both advantages and disadvantages. A major disadvantage was less success in naval combat, at least according Orkneyinga saga’s description of a battle in the Pentland Firth in c. 1046 between Earls Rögnvald and Thorfinn. Despite having more ships, Thorfinn eventually lost the battle “mostly because the ships in the two fleets differed so much in size” (Pálsson and Edwards 1981:65). However, smaller ships were well suited to an island environment where they could be easily manoeuvred (Rixson 1998:75–76, 115). When Hakon’s fleet lay at the isle of Gigha, waiting for “a fair wind” he sent south some light ships (létti-skip s.) presumably as they were still able to be sailed or rowed while Hakon’s larger vessels had to wait for stronger winds (Dasent 1894:350, Vigfusson 1887b:338). The usefulness of small ships is also suggested by an episode in Egils saga, which describes Egil’s escape from King Eirik after an incident at the Gulaþing in Norway. Egil fled in a small ship (skúta) while the pursuers were in snekkju. The king’s men were starting to catch up with Egil when they reached “a fairly shallow fording-point” during low tide. This does not end well for the snekkju: “Egil and his men headed [Þeir Egill hleyptu skútunni] for the shallow channel, and the warships ran aground there and lost sight of them.” (Rixson 1998:115, Scudder 2000:101, our emphasis). The small ships found in the Hebrides could go into waters even shallower than the snekkja (type of Scandinavian warship) could manage. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 9 Smaller, lighter ships would have also been easier to use at the many portage sites and inland waterways in western Scotland (Fig. 2). As in Scandinavia the use of portages is suggested by place-names and topography such as low-lying isthmuses. The ON place-name element seen to indicate portages is eið, which is found across the areas of Norse settlement in Scotland (Heggstad et al. 1975:86, McCullough 2000, cf. Nymoen 1995:34–35, Waugh 2010:545). A common Gaelic term for a portage site in western Scotland is tairbeart, which comes from “tairm-beart, literally ‘over-bringing’”, a perfect description of portaging, regardless of whether a ship or goods were being transported across the isthmus (Dorward 1995:126). There are reports of two Norwegian kings using portages while travelling in western Scotland. The first is King Magnus Óláfsson and his journey in 1098 found in both Orkneyinga saga and Heimskringla. Orkneyinga saga states that Magnus “had a skiff [skúta] hauled across the narrow neck of land at Tarbert [on Kintyre]” during his campaign in the area (Pálsson and Edwards 1981:86). Magnus is said to have remained in the boat, at the helm, in order to show that Kintyre was an island and therefore, as per his agreement with the Scottish king, it could be claimed for Norway (Pálsson and Edwards 1981:86). The Heimskringla description of the same event also mentions that a skúta, translated as cutter/light skiff/small craft, was used for the portage of Kintyre in c. 1098 (Hollander 2002:677, Vigfusson 1887a:71). These two accounts may be unreliable as Orkneyinga saga and Heimskringla were not committed to writing until around a century after the event in question (Hollander 2002:xvi–xix, 677, Pálsson and Edwards 1981:9, 86). The veracity of this event may perhaps also be disputed as the portage does not appear in the earliest surviving account of Magnus’ reign, Ágrip af Nóregskonungasǫgum, although this work devotes only a single paragraph to the entire Scottish campaign (Driscoll 2008:69). However, the portage presumably sounded plausible enough to include, and if it did occur it was exactly the type of colourful story that is likely to have been remembered and passed down orally before being recorded. If so, a light ship was presumably chosen to make it easier to pull over land, with Magnus on board, and it is unlikely to be representative of the ships in the fleet that had sailed from Norway. The second king is Hakon, as Hákonar saga stated that the fleet sent by him into Loch Lomond, via the portage of interest here at Tarbert near Arrochar, was under the control of local kings, and this may have enabled the use of smaller local ships (Dasent 1894:354). Moreover, the same saga tells us that King Dougal/Duggall/Dubhghall mac Ruaidhrí of Argyll and the Isles joined Hakon’s fleet in a létti-skúta (“light cutter”) (Dasent 1894:347, Vigfusson 1887b:335). Based on the terminology, this may have been similar to the skúta described to have been used for Magnus’s portage (Vigfusson 1887a:71). Finally, the number of ships in a fleet could vary significantly. The large ships of kings Magnus and Hakon, referred to above, were parts of big fleets of around 120 ships intent on subduing the Hebrides and Man (Dasent 1894:347–348, Vigfusson 1887b:335). Similarly, in the earlier period when kings Olaf and Ivar returned to Dublin in 871 following their successful siege of Dumbarton in the Firth of Clyde, they are reported in the contemporary Annals of Ulster to have had 200 ships (Mac Airt and Mac Niocaill 1983:327). Although the numbers provided for fleet sizes in the written sources are unlikely to be exact, they at least give an indication of how large contemporary observers thought these were. The fleets mentioned above were led by kings and effectively used for invasion and the number of ships is therefore not indicative of a typical fleet. For example, in the mid-12th century Svein Asleifarson (d. 1171) of Orkney conducted many successful raids to the Hebrides, Man and Ireland and on one of them he was said to have only had “five big ships” (Pálsson and Edwards 1981:215). Similarly, a successful raid on Iona by NorJournal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 10 Figure 2. Place-names in western Scotland containing ON eið and Gaelic tairbeart. ©Crown Copyright/ database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 11 wegians in 1210 was achieved with only 12 ships, as reported in Bǫglunga saga and the Icelandic annal Konungsannál (Hauksson et al 2013:132–133, Power 2005:38). Moreover, from a purely Hebrides and Argyll perspective, Somerled/Sumarliði/Somhairle (d. 1164, hereafter Somerled), who started as the leader of Argyll, is said to have had a fleet of 80 ships in his inconclusive naval battle against King Godred of Man in 1156, and 53 in his successful battle against Godred in 1158 (Anderson 1922:231, 239). As King of the Isles and Man it is moreover reported that Somerled was able to gather a fleet of 160 ships on his ill-fated attack on Renfrew in 1164, but this included men, and presumably ships, from Dublin (Anderson 1922:254–255), while his grandson was one of the leaders of a force of 76 ships which devastated Derry in 1212 (Mac Carthy 1893:253). These numbers suggest that powerful local Hebridean leaders were able to assemble sig nificant fleets. The Dangers of Seafaring in Western Scotland Although the Viking Age was part of the less stormy period known as the Medieval Warm Period, particularly the ninth and tenth centuries (Dawson et al. 2011:34), sources show that sailing and navigation in the North Atlantic, including western Scotland, can be challenging and dangerous (Crumlin-Pedersen 2010:15). Early explorers from Scandinavia may not have had much direct knowledge of the differences between Scandinavian and Scottish waters and coasts, or the internal differences within these areas, even if existing oral traditions and mental maps had been shared with them. This is important as some major variations can be observed. The coastline of western Norway, the North Atlantic islands, Scotland, Ireland, and parts of England are “exposed to strong winds and ocean swell” with rocky coastlines, and “a strong tidal impact” (Crumlin-Pedersen 2010:15). This situation is very different from that of the enclosed Baltic Sea basin, familiar to sailors from large parts of modern Denmark and Sweden, which is “virtually non-tidal” (Crumlin-Pedersen 2010:15). The Scottish coastline tends to be rugged and often without a foreshore, which again is a marked difference from parts of Scandinavia, above all Sweden and Denmark (Crumlin-Pedersen 2010:15–16). Such variations and associated difficulties were highlighted by staff members of the Roskilde Viking Ship Museum in Denmark, who based their experience on their voyage from Dublin to Denmark in the Sea Stallion of Glendalough. This particular vessel is a reconstruction of the Skuldelev 2 ship recovered from the Roskilde Fjord in Denmark which had been built near Dublin (Tríona Sørensen and Søren Nielsen, Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde, pers. comm, Vikingeskibmuseet:Skuldelev 2). Weather conditions were naturally also important and affected sailing and the “accuracy of navigation” (Bernáth et al. 2014:16). Good winds and clear days could enable speedy journeys, with the Sea Stallion of Glendalough travelling at 13 knots in favourable conditions, allowing it to travel up to 159 nautical miles in a day. Long-distance voyages also tended to be avoided out of season (Ravn 2016:105, Sanmark and McLeod 2024:6, with references). The sagas provide several examples of such awareness among sailors, such as when King Hakon was in the Hebrides and had to lie in wait for the right sailing conditions as he “was late in getting a fair wind from Gudey [Gigha]” (Dasent 1894:350). Hakon also encountered storms on his campaign in 1263, most famously while anchored at the Cumbrae Isles in the Firth of Clyde before the Battle of Largs, but also on his return voyage when he was forced to wait in Loch Snizort, Isle of Skye, for the wind to change (Dasent 1894:355–356, 363). In such circumstances, knowledge of the sea and local area was crucial in order to optimise travel plans. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 12 The dangers of storms are also made clear by the episode in Hrafns saga describing the Icelandic ships being blown off course (Helgadóttir 1987:19–22). Unexpected storms posed great threats to ships and could force them to find a safe anchorage until the weather improved. Such a situation is vividly described in one of Grímr’s poems relating to Cape Wrath, arguably composed soon after the event: The wave goes rushing on; now it blows sharp from the south; strong waves grow big; there is no small labour (for us) off Cape Wrath. The keel becomes yielding; the storm drives men into a steep place — now the mountains on the sea are swollen. The ship goes all the time as finely as can be. (Helgadóttir 1987:102). The prose text adds further details on these rather terrifying events, stating that “They saw a wave so huge that they thought the end would come should it strike them from the side” and “they had never been out in such heavy sea as that which they encountered off Hvarf [Cape Wrath] in Scotland” (Tjomsland 1951:26). In addition, it has been suggested that the mountainous waves referred to as hafgerðingar (“sea-hedges”) found e.g. in one manuscript of Hrafns saga and also in Landnámabók, are direct references to the stormy conditions on Hebridean voyages (Jesch 2015:327–329). It could even be argued that bad weather contributed to the ending of Norwegian overlordship in western Scotland in 1263, as two storms in quick succession, or perhaps the same storm, had a devastating impact on King Hakon’s forces. Ten of the 60 ships sent into Loch Lomond were wrecked in a storm and one of the Norse leaders died (Dasent 1894:355). It was soon afterwards, or concurrently, that Hakon’s main fleet was anchored off the Cumbraes and hit by “hail and tempest” (Dasent 1894:355). As a result, the anchor cables of Hakon’s flagship and another vessel were tangled up and three ships driven onto the shore at Largs on the Scottish west coast where the crews were attacked by the waiting Scots forces (Dasent 1894:355–357). The ferocity of this gale and its consequences were so bad that it was blamed on witchcraft (Dasent 1894:356). The outcome of the minor battle at Largs may indeed have been very different if Hakon’s forces had not been decimated and exhausted by storms. There were other dangers too for sailors in western Scotland, for example the Corryvreckan whirlpool between Jura and the small island of Scarba. This is a notoriously treacherous stretch of water, as emphasised by Lindsey’s Rutter where it is described as “the most dangerous stream knowing in all Europe” from which “thair is no refuge but death onlie” (Taylor 1980:54). Similarly, Monro noted that Corryvreckan was “above the power of all sailing and rowing, with infinit dangers” (Monro 1549:6).5 This whirlpool is also marked on early maps, including those by Blaeu (1654b), Roy (1747–55) and Huddart (1794a). It is therefore curious that it does not appear in any saga accounts set in western Scotland, unlike the Swelkie whirlpool in the Pentland Firth which is referred to in both Orkneyinga saga and Hákonar saga (Dasent 1894:364, Pálsson and Edwards 1981:138). Another comparison is Sumburgh Roost, a very strong tidal race south of Sumburgh Head, the southernmost tip of Shetland Mainland. This also appears in Orkneyinga saga on a few occasions, always in association with dangerous sailing conditions with ships lost or narrowly avoiding being sucked into the whirlpools. The ON name for Sumburgh Roost was dynrøst, which can be translated as “roaring/thundering whirlpool”, and seen as a sign of warning possibly built into mental maps (Cleasby & Vigfusson 1874:111, Crawford 1987:19, Pálsson and Edwards 1981:159, Sanmark and McLeod 2024:15). We have previously highlighted that both the Swelkie and Corrvreckan seem to have been connected to oral mythological traditions which were woven into mental sailing maps (Sanmark and McLeod 2024:15). This may have been Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 13 the case with the Sumburgh Roost too, suggested by the name dynrøst. This term contains the ON element dynr = “din, noise” that appears e.g. in the Old Swedish term þordyn. The literal translation is “Thor-din” denoting a “thunderclap” (Cleasby & Vigfusson 1874:111, Zoëga 2004:100) and it is therefore possible that the ON name for Sumburgh Roost was connected to the god Thor. Altogether, this suggests that the dangers of Corryvreckan were well preserved in oral traditions so that that this route was avoided, at least during the few voyages for which we have saga evidence. Corryvreckan was moreover easier to bypass as the narrow gulf between the islands of Jura and Scarba was not a major sailing route, unlike the location of the other two whirlpools. Other particularly dangerous places for sea voyages are evident from early maps. Examples include Mackenzie’s warning around the Butt of Lewis “The Stream of Tide scarce sensible here” with similar wording found south of the Eye Peninsula by Stornoway on the east coast of Lewis (Mackenzie 1750). There are further warnings about the strength of tides in other waters known to have been sailed by the Norse, including the Sound of Islay which according to the 1540 Rutter is good for ships “except it is a stronge dangerous stream”. Kyle Rhea, a narrow sound between Skye and the Scottish mainland, is another such example, described by the same source as “a dangerous stream” (Taylor 1980:51–52). In order to overcome these circumstances, mental mapping drawing on place-names and oral traditions must have been used, as well as pilots (cf. Sanmark and McLeod 2024). The stopping points: Landing places, settlements and burials Returning to a primary focus of this article, the Norse sailing routes, the stopping points (or way stations, Sheehan et al. 2001), such as harbors, landing places/havens, settlements and burials must be examined. It has been noted that Norse harbors in the North Atlantic had minimal infrastructure and are therefore difficult to find (Mehler et al. 2015). So far, the only Norse-era landing place or harbor with possible archaeological evidence in western Scotland is at Rubh’ an Dùnain in the south of the Isle of Skye (NRHE ID 11028).6 This included a short canal leading to Loch na h-Àirde (Fig. 3), which acted as an inner-harbor with two nausts, and two loch-side quays all below a dun overlooking the sea (Martin and Martin 2018). It is important to stress that the visible structures are undated, but a timber from a clinker-built boat found in the loch has been radiocarbon dated to c. AD 1100. This is where the boat timber from c. AD 1100 was found (Martin and Martin 2018:151). Other “inner-harbor” sites in Eigg and Mull have also been suggested, but so far without conclusive evidence (Martin and Martin 2018:154–156, Petre 2020). Indeed, the suggested Viking-Age inland loch at Laig in Eigg seems unlikely in view of recent fieldwork (Lu et al. 2025, Sanmark et al. 2024). As has been demonstrated for the Northern Isles, the available evidence from the west suggests a strong connection between Norse period settlements and the sea (Sanmark and McLeod 2024:3–5, 19, with references, Fig. 1a–b). Among the very few archaeologically attested Norse settlements are Cille Pheadair (NRHE 139161, Parker Pearson et al. 2018, Fig. 4a) and Bornais (NRHE 108290, Sharples 2021) both in South Uist, and Udal in North Uist (Ballin Smith 2012, NRHE 10330, Fig. 4b, for an overview of Norse settlements in the Outer Hebrides see Sharples 2025). Other examples include Little Dunagoil on the Isle of Bute (NRHE 90299), the Viking-Age seasonal structures close to a furnished burial at Machrins, Colonsay (NRHE 37923, Fig. 4c) and the possible Norse settlement at Galson in Lewis (NRHE 4357). All these sites, as well as many other potential Norse settlements, suggested both by archaeological and toponymic evidence, are situated along the coast, often close to beaches that most likely served as landing places (Figs. 4a–c). Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 14 Figure 3. Canal leading to Loch na h-Àirde at Rubh’ an Dùnain in the south of the Isle of Skye. Photograph: Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 15 Figure 4. Some examples of Norse settlements in western Scotland showing their location in close proximity to beaches. a) The settlement at Cille Pheadair, South Uist; b) The settlement at Udal, North Uist; c) The seasonal settlement and burials at Machrins, Colonsay. Please note that the exact location of the boat burial is unknown and, based on Antiquarian reports, more burials may have been found. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 16 Figure 4 cont. Some examples of Norse settlements in western Scotland showing their location in close proximity to beaches. a) The settlement at Cille Pheadair, South Uist; b) The settlement at Udal, North Uist; c) The seasonal settlement and burials at Machrins, Colonsay. Please note that the exact location of the boat burial is unknown and, based on Antiquarian reports, more burials may have been found. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 17 Figure 4 cont. Some examples of Norse settlements in western Scotland showing their location in close proximity to beaches. a) The settlement at Cille Pheadair, South Uist; b) The settlement at Udal, North Uist; c) The seasonal settlement and burials at Machrins, Colonsay. Please note that the exact location of the boat burial is unknown and, based on Antiquarian reports, more burials may have been found. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 18 No. 47 This pattern is further strengthened by the coastal locations of the culturally Scandinavian burials in the study area, the majority of which are thought to have been connected to settlements, as has been shown in Scandinavia (Harrison and Ó Floinn 2014:292–297). Some such examples from Scotland include the burial at Sumburgh Airport (Shetland) located 300m from the Pictish/Viking-Age settlement at Old Scatness (NRHE 552, 556), the Buckquoy burials and settlement in Orkney (NRHE 1802), the burials and likely settlement at Reay in Caithness (Graham-Campbell and Batey 1998:125–127), as well as the Scandinavian-style burials, including cremation, at the Whithorn monastic site (NRHE 63298, Hill 1997:189). If burials, usually overlooking sandy beaches, are indeed suggestive of settlements, this not only greatly increases the number of potential settlement sites in western Scotland, but also the number of landing sites in common usage. Indeed, the four boat burials known from western Scotland are direct evidence of landing places being used at least once, when the boat was brought to the burial, and presumably on many other occasions. These burials, all dating from c. AD 850 – 950, are found at Swordle Bay in Ardnamurchan (NRHE 22360), Carn a’Bharraich in Oronsay (NRHE 37816), and Kiloran Bay (NRHE 38173) and Machrins (NRHE 37900), both in Colonsay (McLeod 2015a and references therein). Other burial sites are also highly suggestive of landing places, such as those at Kneep/Cnip and Valtos/Bhaltos in Lewis (NRHE 4007, 4001, Fig. 5a) which are situated above the large beaches, Tràigh na Beirigh (Reef Beach) and Tràigh na Clibhe (Cliff Beach) respectively. This also applies to the two burials overlooking Lamlash Bay in Arran (NRHE 40078, 40201, Fig. 5b), as well as Nisabost in Harris (Fig. 5c). Further evidence of landing places is provided by place-names, for example the names containing the ON element skip (“ship”) (Zoëga 2004:374, Fig. 6). Sgibinis, from Skipness (“ship promontory”) is found at the eastern end of the wide Kiloran Bay where the boat burial was excavated. The same name type also occurs in Kintyre (Fig. 7), South Uist, Tiree and by Fort William (Rixson 1998:108). Further place-names containing skip, include Sgibadale (“ship dale”) in Lewis, and Skiport (“ship port”) in South Uist (Fig. 6). Other significant place-names referring to maritime activities include acairseid, the Gaelic place-name for a harbor or anchorage, derived from ON akkarsaeti (“anchor seat”) as well as names containing acair (“anchor”), with examples in Mull, Barra and South Uist (MacBain 1922,1982; Stahl 2000:100–101; Fig. 6). Some of these are at modern harbors, such as Eilean na h-Acairseid (Island of the Anchorage/Harbor) by Mallaig, demonstrating the long-term use of many of the sites. The ON element bryggja (“boat landing place”, “landingstage”, “pier”, or “quay”) are also important for the identification of landing places. Place-names with this element are found in Tiree, South Uist and Colonsay and the landscape settings of all these names, close to navigable water, support their interpretation as “pier” names (Holliday 2021:298–299, Zoëga 2004:74, Fig. 6). Tiree is particularly interesting in this respect, especially the central area by the settlement aptly named Baugh, from ON á vági “settlement at the bay”. North of the large beach known as Tràigh Bhàgh (“Bay Beach”) are three names containing the element bryggja (Holliday 2021:298, 370–372, Zoëga 2004:74, Fig. 8). An Dusprig is seen to derive from ON *dysjabryggju (“landing place of the cairns”) and is situated in a “narrow inlet” known to be a very good harbor in the 20th century, but with rocks around the entrance. It is possible that the “cairns” were used by sailors to guide them into this harbor (Holliday 2021:462). Nearby Eibrig (ON *eyrarbryggju, “gravel landing place”) denotes a gravelly area by the sea (Holliday 2021:467) while Ìbrig, possibly from ON *iðribryggju (“inner landing place”) is only reachable at high water (Holliday 2021:241, 370–372, 511–512). In South Uist two bryggja names, Staoinebrig and Loch Altabrug, are found in close proximJournal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 19 No. 47 Figure 5. Some examples of Norse burial sites in western Scotland showing their location in close proximity to beaches. a) The burial sites at Kneep/Cnip and Valtos/Bhaltos, Lewis; b) The burial sites at Millhill and Kingscross Point, Arran; c) The burial site at Nisabost, Harris. ©Crown Copyright/ database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 20 Figure 5 cont. Some examples of Norse burial sites in western Scotland showing their location in close proximity to beaches. a) The burial sites at Kneep/Cnip and Valtos/Bhaltos, Lewis; b) The burial sites at Millhill and Kingscross Point, Arran; c) The burial site at Nisabost, Harris. ©Crown Copyright/ database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 21 Figure 5 cont. Some examples of Norse burial sites in western Scotland showing their location in close proximity to beaches. a) The burial sites at Kneep/Cnip and Valtos/Bhaltos, Lewis; b) The burial sites at Millhill and Kingscross Point, Arran; c) The burial site at Nisabost, Harris. ©Crown Copyright/ database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 22 Figure 6. Place-names in western Scotland containing skip, bryggja and acair/acairseid. Kross names are discussed elsewhere in this article. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/ EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 23 ity to each other. Staoinebrig, a settlement by a small loch, probably comes from ON steinn (‘stone’) and bryggja and translates as “stone pier” (Zoëga 2004:74, 406, Andrew Jennings, UHI Shetland, pers. comm.). Loch Altabrug, less than 1km to the north, is more difficult to interpret but the ending here too is bryggja (Zoëga 2004:74, 406, Andrew Jennings, UHI Shetland, pers. comm). Finally, there is Cnoc Eibrig in Colonsay, which can be translated as “hill of the pier” (Andrew Jennings, UHI Shetland, pers. comm.). This interpretation is strengthened by the local topography, as there is a very prominent natural hill overlooking a flat area that led down to the sea in two directions, and thus potentially formed part of a longer communication route.7 The Gaelic generic place-name element laimhrig moreover provides intriguing information about sea and land access in the Norse period. Laimhrig is seen to refer to a landing place and frequently occurs as a place-name (Stahl 2000:101). This term is presumably a borrowing from ON (contra Cox 1997:54–55), from a compound beginning with hlað (“load”), either hlaðberg or hlaðhammar which translates as “loading rock” or “steeply sloping rocks permitting direct boat access” (Henderson 1910:197, MacBain 1982:222, Stahl 2000:101). The name has been noted in Barra (Stahl 2000:101) and is also found in the Bay of Laig in Eigg, where the two Viking-Age stemposts were found in a peat bog in the late 19th century (MacPherson 1878). Here a small headland is named Sròn Laimhrige, translated as “Point of the Landing Place” and implies a landing site at Laig, inland from the current beach (cf. MacPherson 1878:596, Fig. 9). The name Laig itself is also important Figure 7. View of Skipness Point, Kintyre, with the Isle of Arran visible across Kilbrannan Sound. Taken from Skipness Castle by Alexandra Sanmark. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 24 as its Gaelic form is Lathaig, which suggests that the etymology of Laig is ON hlaðvik (“loading bay”) (Sanmark et al. 2024:5). This name certainly fits well with the wide beach and shallow bay below the farm (cf. Fig. 4a–c and 5a–b). Sailing Routes The aspects of ships and seafaring discussed so far are all important as they affect journey planning and sailing routes. Westerdahl identified three types of sea routes, with terminology from routes used along the coast of Norway: 1) The inner coastal route (ON Figure 8. Place-names in Tiree containing skip, bryggja and acair/acairseid, as well as Crossapol and other names mentioned in the text. Kross names are discussed elsewhere in this article. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 25 innleið8) used by rowing boats, which “hugs” the coast and made use of portages at inner parts of promontories; 2) the outer coastal route, for boats with sail, which “followed” or “hugged” the coastline with “supporting havens at the outer parts of characteristic promontories or islands”; and 3) the outer route (ON útleið9) far out to sea, from which the coastline is no more than a thin contour at the horizon; only prominent navigation marks, such as high mountains, are visible in clear weather. Westerdahl saw sea routes as “bundles” of possible routes within a limited space rather than a set course (Westerdahl 2006:96–97; for a full list of place-names indicative of sailing routes, see Westerdahl 1989:324–327; for a recent evaluation of sailing routes in Norway see Jarrett 2025). The route options can be traced through e.g. navigation marks, channels, portages, evidenced in place-names, topography, archaeology and written sources (Westerdahl 2006:96–97, 100). The most visible remains of old sea routes today are certain types of navigation marks such as cairns, as has been demonstrated for King Valdemar’s Itinerary (Westerdahl 2006:87, 96). There are also placenames suggestive of sailing routes, most obviously names containing ON leið (“sound/ route”) such as Ledskär (“sound/route skerry”) in Sweden (Westerdahl 2006:191–192). One such possible name is found on the Scottish west coast: Leidag outside Oban, suggested to derive from *leiðvík (“bay of the sailing route”) (Jennings and Kruse 2024:81). The two saga accounts describing the sailing routes taken by kings Magnus Óláfsson and Hakon Hakonarson from Norway through western Scotland deserve detailed examination in this context (Dasent 1894:347–364, Hollander 2002:674–678, Power 2005:12)10. It is Figure 9. The Bay of Laig, Eigg, and the former loch as suggested by Martin & Martin 2018: Figure 14, but see Lu et al. 2025. Interpretation of place-names added. Legend: Red circle: find of Viking-Age boat stems according to Trove; green square: Pictish square cairns; green semi-circle: mound; black semi-circle: burial cairn (after Sanmark et al. 2024, Fig. 3). Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 26 important to note that in both campaigns large fleets can be envisaged. These must have had rather different requirements, and therefore different stopping points, than the presumably more commonly occurring smaller fleets and lone ships. One possible example of a smaller fleet is the raiding party by Svein Asleifarson referred to above. The large fleets needed a far greater number of provisions and sizable sheltered areas in which to anchor. Despite these differences, with regards to tides, winds and sailing dangers, the prerequisites for larger fleets are likely to be similar for smaller fleets and the voyages of Magnus and Hakon therefore provide indications of more generally used Norse sailing routes. Beginning with the account of Magnus’ c. 1098 voyage and concentrating on the islands/ peninsulas named in the contemporary poems included in Heimskringla, the route consists of visits to Lewis, Uist, Skye, Tiree, Mull, Sanday, Islay, Kintyre, Man and finally Anglesey in north-west Wales (Hollander 2002:675–677). The one island which cannot be identified with certainty is “Sanday”. Alan Macniven suggested this referred to Oronsay as its location makes sense along Magnus’ route. This is based on the assumption that the stanzas were ordered accurately and supported by the fact that Oronsay was a known safe anchorage in later centuries (Macniven 2020:162–163). The saga does not provide any detail on the exact location of the fleet’s anchoring spots off each of these islands, but Macniven argued that the acairseid names give a likely indication. He noted that the route taken by Magnus passes many acairseid sites, which may have been used as stopping points although specific sites were not discussed (Macniven 2020:162, Fig. 6). That such a well-thought-out route was used suggests a high degree of information and planning, and possibly the use of pilots with local knowledge. King Hakon, on his voyage in 1263, used a different route than Magnus on his southward journey, staying closer to the mainland coast (Dasent 1894:361–363). According to Orkneyinga saga, Magnus did the same on his return to Norway from the Hebrides (Pálsson and Edwards 1981:85). Hakon rounded Cape Wrath and stopped at the unidentified “Asleif’s-wick” on the mainland coast before making his way west to Lewis. He later turned east to the Isle of Rona, through the Sound of Skye and the Sound of Mull, and on to the isles of Kerrera, Gigha, Arran and the Cumbraes (Dasent 1894:347–353). On his return journey, he chose roughly the same way through the Sound of Islay but took shelter in Loch Snizort in northern Skye during a storm (Dasent 1894:361–363). This route too passes a number of acairseid sites (Macniven 2020:162 for map). It is moreover interesting to note that Hakon’s route from Rona southwards is similar to the 16th-century route outlined in Lindsey’s Rutter, thus tentatively supporting long-term use of these sea routes. Lindsey’s route seems particularly relevant here as it was possibly also designed for a large fleet, in this case that of King James V (Taylor 1980). Beyond these major expeditions, sailing itineraries are not available for the Norse period, although individual islands in the Hebrides are sometimes mentioned in the written sources. Examples include Svein Asleifarson’s various voyages to the Hebrides, Man and Ireland for raiding and sanctuary. Indeed, “Asleif’s-wick” mentioned above suggests that a bay associated with Svein’s activities still bore his name when King Hakon stopped there in 1263, almost a century after Svein’s death (Dasent 1894:347). Such naming traditions are not unusual as islands with personal name specifics are regularly found on the Norse Sea route between Scandinavia and Ireland. These place-names are seen to refer to stories now lost, but which have become part of sailors’ mental maps (Jennings and Kruse 2024:72). Although Svein’s full itinerary is not provided, islands he visited included Tiree and Lewis. Sailing between Orkney and the Hebrides, and indeed onto Man and Ireland, moreover, appears to have been commonplace for some Orcadians, at least according to Orkneyinga saga (Pálsson and Edwards 1981:127, 147). Despite the sparse evidence, it must be presumed that travel between Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 27 the Hebridean islands by settled Norse groups were a regular occurrence, and they must also have sailed regularly between Man, Ireland and the Scottish mainland. A similar pattern can be observed for the Columban Community in Iona during the time of Adomnán (Sharpe 1995). Pilots In order to identify sailing routes, sounds and ideal havens (for a list of haven attributes see Jarrett 2025:20), pilots with local knowledge were most likely needed in the difficult waters of western Scotland, and their use is well documented among seafarers (Mack 2013). It is therefore interesting to note that the ON word for pilot was leidsögumaðr which translates as “route-speaker”, thus describing the activity well (cf. Heggstad et al. 1975:265, Westerdahl 2006:76). Near-contemporary evidence for the use of pilots in western Scotland can be found in Hákonar saga as Hakon sent a ship from Norway to Shetland to find pilots in advance of his voyage to the Hebrides via both Shetland and Orkney (Dasent 1894:342). Unfortunately, the saga does not tell us whether these pilots were Shetlanders with knowledge of sailing also in Orkney and the Hebrides or perhaps Hebrideans currently in Shetland. Further information on the roles of pilots and their importance is found in the episode of the ill-fated voyage in Hrafns saga (Tjomsland 1951). Gudmund, the bishop-elect of Hólar in Iceland, asked Hrafn to join his planned journey to Norway as “Hrafn was best fitted for the voyage because of his knowledge and the esteem he enjoyed abroad” (Tjomsland 1951:25). The saga stated that when the ships were caught in the storm and blown off-course: “they had come into so great danger, the crew did not know what to do” (Tjomsland 1951:27). Therefore, according to the account of the incident in Guðmundar saga, “the Bishop-elect spoke to Hrafn, and asked him to act as pilot” (Turville-Petre and Olszewska 1942:58) because his, according to Hrafns saga, “good luck and knowledge would be of great help to them” (Tjomsland 1951:27). Hrafn was able to “pilot them the safest course he could. And so they sailed through the night, and he piloted them with great skill and luck” (Tjomsland 1951:28). At dawn, they reached a safe harbor on “Sandey”, which presumably refers to the sheltered bay between the islands of Sanday and Canna, part of the Small Isles in the Inner Hebrides (Jesch 2015:324, Power 2005:41–43). This saga episode highlights how essential a skilled and knowledgeable pilot could be. Sailing at night is, however, unlikely to have been a regular activity, as a clear night sky was needed for navigating by stars and coastal landmarks (Ellmers 1981). The success of night sailing presumably also depended on the latitude, as long crossings most likely took place in the summer months, when stars would not have been visible due to the light nights in many parts of the North Sea and the North Atlantic. On the other hand, navigation marks would have been visible for longer at this time of year. Local knowledge became slightly less crucial in the early modern period when rutters and maps began to be published, supplying mariners with key information. Lindsey’s Rutter for example, when read in conjunction with the sections on “Courses of tydes”, “Floodis and Ebbs” and “Hauens, Soundis and Dangeris”, provided the basic information a sailor required for a safe journey (Taylor 1980:52–53). It moreover includes route suggestions and sailing distances in sections such as “Courses and Kennings from the Mull of Cantyir unto Solway” and “From Arren to Buit north nothest, viij myles” (Taylor 1980:52). This is exactly the type of information that in the Norse period was likely to have been provided by a pilot. Sailing distance and time Early modern sources described distances in units of length, such as miles and leagues (Taylor 1980, Mackenzie 1750), while in the Norse period, the length of a journey was instead measured in time. This is illustrated for example by the Haukr Erlendsson version of LandJournal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 28 námabók which sets out some common sailing routes from Iceland. Part of this text reads: From Reykjanes in the south of Iceland it is three days’ sea-journey south to Slyne Head in Ireland, and from Langanes in the north of Iceland it is four days’ sailing to Svalbard in the north of the gulf, and from Kolbeinsey [an island north of Iceland] it is one day’s sailing north to the uninhabited areas of Greenland (Benediktsson 1968:33–35, our emphasis). Other sources also refer to set numbers of days’, or nights’, sailing. Hákonar saga for example stated that it was two nights’ sailing between Norway and Shetland (Dasent 1894:345). Further insight is gained from King Valdemar’s Itinerary which uses the medieval Danish term ukæsio, which has been interpreted as a “distance-per-time unit” roughly corresponding to 7.8km and is evidenced across Scandinavia. The time allowed per ukæsio is not known, but the term is seen to refer to the changing of the rowing-crews at sea and the number of ukæsio units given per leg in the Itinerary is thus argued to represent the distance that could be covered by a day’s rowing. The “standard distance” between stopping points in the Itinerary seems to be four ukæsio units, suggesting that the average was 33km per day. (Heide 2005:4, Rasmussen 1982:249, Sporrong 2009, Westerdahl 2006:98–99, Zwick 2016:59–61). For western Scotland, Macniven noted that some of the acairseid names are situated 25–35km apart, thus roughly correlating with the possible “standard” ukæsio units. This was seen to suggest that the Scandinavian system was in use in Scotland too (Macniven 2020:161). In addition to the ukæsio units, time had an even bigger role to play in Norse-period navigation as the techniques employed by mariners relied on a deep understanding of the movement of the sun and the stars, which in essence involves the measurement of time (Holtsmark 1982, Lárusson 1982). Time is also deeply embedded in route planning as this requires a clear grasp of tidal patterns determined by the moon, which in turn affected currents as well as seasonal travel arrangements (Blankshein 2021:746, Sanmark and McLeod 2024:6). Navigation marks Navigation marks of different kinds were established along sea routes in Scotland as well as Scandinavia (see Westerdahl’s criteria for sailing routes: Westerdahl 1992:9). Natural landmarks were frequently used for this purpose, such as the prominent landmasses Cape Wrath (“turning point”) and The Mull of Kintyre (Jennings and Kruse 2024:72, 77, Nicolaisen 1978:46). Both features are indeed mentioned in the descriptions of King Hakon’s sailing expedition (Dasent 1894:347, 352). Another example from western Scotland is found in Orkneyinga saga, which records that “When Svein [As-leifarson] had reached almost due west of the Point of Stoer [ON staur], he told his men not to wear themselves out any more at the oars, but to change course and hoist sail” (Pálsson and Edwards 1981:195). Staur (“post, stake”) is a prominent sea stack, c. 50km south of Cape Wrath as the bird flies (Jennings and Kruse 2024:79). As Svein was sailing from Orkney, perhaps aiming for the “inner coastal route”, he must have turned at Cape Wrath and then made use of this prominent landmark as an indicator of when to change direction. The staur sea stack is also mentioned in Hrafn’s voyage, when this landmark helped sailors identifying the north-west coast of the Scottish mainland (Tjomsland 1951:26). Jennings and Kruse argued that the name was brought from Norway, but with a slightly altered meaning as sea stacks do not occur in this area. Staur names in Norway instead referred to poles erected as navigation points (Jennings and Kruse 2024:79). Another type of navigation mark that seems to have been integrated into traditions and mental maps are large stones with names referring to (old) men or women. One well known Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 29 example is Kerlingarsteinn [“hag’s stone”] where Hakon’s fleet is said to have remained in the month of August. This name appears to survive in the Gaelic Sgeir na Caillich “hag’s skerry” by the Isle of Skye (Jennings and Kruse 2024:79, Randall 2020:23). This skerry sits within the sound known as Kyleakin, which may be derived from “Hakon’s ‘strait” and is thus another possible name deriving from a specific event and brought into mental mapping traditions (Jennings and Kruse 2024:79, Randall 2020:23). Another “hag” name is found at the Bay of Laig in Eigg, where a hill close to the beach bears the name Sithean na Cailliech (“Fairy hill of the hag”). This may represent another parallel naming tradition brought and applied to routes in Scotland as navigation marks referring to “(old) man” (ON karl) and “married/old woman” (ON kerling) are well known from Scandinavia (Jennings and Kruse 2024:79). For example, Kjerringa and Kallen is a well-known pairing of place-names along the Norwegian west coast (Jennings and Kruse 2024:79). In Sweden, names such as Käringön (“hag’s island”) are recognized navigation marks (Westerdahl 2006:89). Another important type of navigation mark are islands known as “Sight island” (from ON sjón “sight”), e.g. Shuna by Lismore and Shona by the Isle of Luing. From Shuna one can see far into Loch Linnhe; and from Shona into the Sound of Jura. Also on this occasion, there are Scandinavian naming parallels, such as Sjona in Nordland, Norway (Jennings a nd Kruse 2024:80–81). With settlement in Scotland, the Norse began adding to the potential navigation marks, for example with their burials, which could be of a fairly monumental nature. As shown above, these burials were primarily situated along the coast and therefore visible to sailors hugging the coast (Sanmark and McLeod 2024:10–11, Fig. 1a–b). Perhaps the best such example in western Scotland is the cremation burial at Kingscross Point on the Isle of Arran, probably dating from the mid-late ninth century (Graham-Campbell and Batey 1998:96). The site is on a high promontory overlooking Lamlash Bay in the Firth of Clyde. When excavated in 1909 the mound was roughly boat-shaped with one end pointed towards Holy Isle (Balfour 1909, McLeod 2015a). As can be deduced from the viewshed from the mound (Fig. 10 and 5b), due to its high location the site overlooks a large maritime area, which in turn makes it possible that the mound was visible from that same area. The mound is likely to have been larger, and in particular higher, when it was first constructed and may therefore have served as a navigation mark to sailors entering Lamlash Bay. The waters overlooked by the burial are notable as an important route for access to the River Clyde and further afield. The bay moreover provided a calm and safe harbor, as is evident by its use in 1263 when King Hakon and his fleet “lay [anchored] in the Sound of Arran between it [Holy Island] and Lamlash” (Dasent 1894:352). Holy Island is significant as a number of Norse runic inscriptions are recorded there (Samnordisk runtextdatabas 2020, Sc 3–7, 12–13). As well as sheltering the bay Holy Island also provided alternative approach and departure routes to the bay, one of the key characteristics identified by Greer Jarrett for a good haven (Jarrett 2025:42). It is interesting to note that another culturally Scandinavian burial, in a mound with a sword and shield, is known from the other end of Lamlash Bay at Millhill (Harrison 2000). If this burial originally had some form of marker, then Lamlash Bay would have been marked at each end (Fig. 5a), advertising that it was a sheltered harbor. Although Kingscross Point is the most prominent culturally Scandinavian burial on the west coast, others may also have been used as navigation marks. An unusual aspect of Norse burial in western Scotland not known elsewhere in Britain is the use of standing stones seemingly as grave markers (McLeod 2015b:302). At Ballinaby in Islay a pair of oval brooches, presumably from a burial, were found ”under a large standing stone” (Anderson 1880:71), while near Bovre, in Barra, a burial including oval brooches and a drinking horn amongst other items were found under a mound with a standing stone on top of it (Edge Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 30 Figure 10. Viewshed from the Norse burial at Kingscross Point in the Isle of Arran. ©Crown Copyright/ database right 2013. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 31 and Williams 1863:229). Bovre and Balinaby are close to the shore and the standing stones would have been visible to passing sailors. In both instances it is at least possible that the stones were raised by the Norse. Although there are numerous reasons for placing a coastal burial by a standing stone (or vice versa), perhaps to mark the burial and possibly make the funeral location easier to locate for dispersed inter-island communities, the extra visibility afforded by stones to passing ships and their usefulness as navigation marks connected to stories should not be discounted (McLeod 2015b:302). Harbor-marks and crosses That navigation marks were erected by the Norse and employed by sailors is moreover suggested by saga evidence. An interesting ON term that appears in the Hebridean episode in Hrafns saga and the equivalent episode in Guðmundar saga is hafnarmark (translated as “harbour-mark”) (Helgadóttir 1987:22, 104, Tjomsland 1951:29). Hrafns saga tells us that when Hrafn stepped in as pilot the travelling party “came into a good harbour on an island called Sanday, and there the merchants raised a harbour mark” (Helgadóttir 1987:21, Tjomsland 1951:28). A poem by Grímr, cited in the saga in relation to the same episode, provides slightly different information: The active partner of kings himself raised up a harbour-mark and did a good deed for strong-built craft (Helgadóttir 1987:104). There is moreover a later poem by Grímr that may be about the voyage in the Hebrides, which records that they succeeded in steering the ship to the harbor-mark, thus further emphasising that it was a guide for navigation: Here, strong man, we succeeded in steering the ship with Bishop-elect Guðmundr to the harbour-mark (Helgadóttir 1987:105). It is unclear what such a hafnarmark looked like and exactly how it was used. Johan Fritzner argued that they were erected at harbors to guide seafarers (Fritzner 1867:230), while Cleasby and Vigfusson suggested that it was “a kind of beacon, being a pyramid of stone or timber…or in the shape of a cross” (Cleasby and Vigfússon 1874:307).11 The latter point is derived from the biskupasögur, while the idea of a hafnarmark as a beacon may be inspired by 19th century traditions (Cleasby and Vigfusson 1874:307). Considering that the poetry contained in Hrafns saga is likely to be a first-hand account of the event, it appears that a harbor-mark was an object that could be raised or created by those already at the harbor. As the poet considers this to have been “a good deed“ (Tjomsland 1951:29), it implies that the harbor-mark, together with the parallel naming traditions, helped the pilot/captain of the ship navigate their way to a safe harbor. Perhaps it was raised as the struggling ship, which had been caught in a storm and sailed through the night, was spotted by someone on Sanday who realised that they needed help. This in turn suggests that the harbor-mark was easily visible, and that it was something that those on the ship recognised, despite not being locals, as indicating a safe harbor. Although this saga episode is the only reference to a harbor-mark on the west coast, these markers may have been rather common and integrated into mental mapping instructions. This is indeed suggested by place-name evidence from various parts of Scandinavian Scotland, as will be examined below. Place-names in Scotland containing ON kross are particularly interesting as their locations are strikingly similar (Fig. 8, 11, 12), and Scandinavian names containing this element Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 32 are listed among common navigation marks. Scandinavian examples include Korshamn/ Korshavn/Krosshamn (“cross harbor”), Korsholmarna (“cross islands”) and Korsudden (“cross promontory”) (Westerdahl 1989:167-171, 1992:9, 2006:93–95). On the exposed west coast of Northmaven in Shetland Mainland we find the place-name Crossvoesand, which derives from ON *Krossvágssandr and is seen to refer to a cross erected as a “sailing mark” (Stewart 1987:228). No cross is known today, but the name is located within the sheltered bay named Hamnavoe (“harbor bay”). An undated pier is recorded supporting the suitability of this as a landing place (NRHE 270792). Other place-names containing ON Figure 11. Crossapol in the Isle of Coll. Note the wide bay and the chapel location where a stone cross once stood. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 33 kross are found in similar locations on the west coast of Scotland, suggesting a clear pattern and significance attached to the location. The name Crossapol, derived from ON *Krossból (“farm of the cross”), found in the neighbouring islands of Coll and Tiree, is such an example (Beveridge 1903:49, Holliday 2021:446–447).12 The two Crossapol sites are striking as they are situated in large bays with long beaches, next to very low-lying areas consisting of sand and wetlands, which may well have been open water or portages in the Norse period (Fig. 8 and 11). Next to Crossapol in Coll there is a burial ground with possible medieval chapel remains and a “shaft of a sculptured cross of great beauty” was noted here in 1861 (Beveridge 1903:49, NRHE 21611, for the relationship between early medieval chapels and Figure 12. Corsapol in the Isle of Islay situated by Loch Gruinart. Note the medieval chapels and crosses, which may have been used as navigation markers. ©Crown Copyright/database right 2011. An Ordnance Survey/EDINA supplied service. All rights reserved 2010. Map: Alexandra Sanmark and Shane McLeod. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 34 water in the Hebrides see Thomas 2025:84–86). The bay to the south of the farm is known as Crossapol Bay, supporting the significance of this location. On the eastern edge of the bay another chapel is said to have once stood (NRHE 21595). Finally, another possible navigation marker in Tiree, perhaps similar to Crossapol, is Crisnis in Balephetrish on the northern side of the low-lying area, known as the Reef. Crisnis may be derived from ON *Krysines (“headland of the cross”) although another meaning may be *Kristnes (“promontory of the Church land”) (Fig. 8) (Holliday 2021:91, 438). Further examples of place-names containing ON kross are found along the western seaboard. One such example is Corsapol in Islay (Macniven 2015:303), again close to a major inlet, Loch Gruinart, which judging by the current drained wetlands went much further inland in the past (Fig. 12 and 13). An early medieval chapel, Cill Eileagain, is recorded nearby, overlooking the water route (NRHE 37372). On either side of Loch Gruinart are further possible navigation crosses. Kilnave Chapel, also dates from Middle Ages and in the churchyard stands a carved stone cross of possible 8th-century date (NRHE 37474). On the eastern side of the loch, another cross may once have been erected on a promontory, as suggested by the place-name Crois Mhòr (“large cross”) (NRHE 82786). Crosbost (also from ON krossbólstaðr), is another example, located on the shore of Loch Liurboist in Lewis, a sea loch which reaches far into the island (Johnston 1991:257–259).13 In Scandinavia, some of the Kors (“Cross”) names and stone crosses are seen to relate to medieval pilgrimage routes (Westerdahl 2006:93, 95) and it is of course possible that these names in Scotland had religious Figure 13. View of Loch Gruinart, Islay, from Kilnave Chapel. Photograph: Alexandra Sanmark. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 35 connotations too. In addition, Norwegian stone crosses have been seen to fulfil this function (Westerdahl 1992:9, 2006:93–95). In this context, it is interesting to note that the early medieval cross slabs at Portmahomack, Shandwick and Nigg in Ross and Cromarty have also been seen as possible navigation marks. These monuments, c. 2 to 3m in height, are found in ”elevated positions” above landing places overlooking the Moray Firth and Cromarty Firth respectively (Carver 2016:187). Other possible indications of raised navigation marks from the Norse period are the names containing ON stafr (“staff”) seen for example on the island of Staffa by Iona and by Dunstaffnage Castle, north of Oban. This element too has a Norwegian naming parallel, such as numerous Stavnes names, which translates as “headland with pole or staff”. This name type is typically found in harbors situated along sailing routes and seen to represent raised poles showing the way to safe harbors and at times trading sites (Jennings and Kruse 2024:79, 81, cf. Westerdahl 1989:165–166). Finally, further insight into the use of stone navigation marks or “harbor marks” can be provided by Scandinavian evidence. The late Viking Age (late 10th to 11th century) runestones can be added here, alongside their role as memorial monuments (Källström 2015, 2019). It is well established that runestones were placed by roads and bridges, and have been seen as marking these, both because of their location and specific words used in the inscriptions (such as Old Swedish brautaʀkuml, “road marker”) (Brink 2000, Källström 2015, 2019:73, Westerdahl 2006:70–72). Runestones are also located by harbors, jetties and landing places and some of these have inscriptions containing OSw mærki, a synonym to the ON mark used in hafnarmark (e.g. U 459, U 460 and U 463; Källström 2015, 2019:73). One such example is runestone U 512, which is situated on a major water route and a connecting land route at Stortjäran in the parish of Fasterna, Uppland. The inscription itself makes it clear that the stone was erected “by a jetty/pier” (Runic Swedish [H]er skal standa stæinn við[r] bryggiu [ON bryggja]) and therefore marking the landing site (Källström 2015:74–75, Samnordisk runtextdatabas 2020:U 512). Other runestones have further interesting combinations of runic terminology and location. G 203 from Hogrän on the island of Gotland stands in an elevated position and has an inscription which contains the following: “Here may the stone stand as a landmark, brightly on the rock, and in front of the bridge” (Runic Swedish Hiar mun standa stæinn at mærki, biærtr a bergi, en bro fyriʀ; our emphasis, Samnordisk runtextdatabas 2020:G 203, Källström 2015:75–76, Magnus Källström, Swedish National Heritage Board, Stockholm, pers. comm.). The inscription is seen to suggest that this landmark was brightly painted thus making it even more visible from afar (Källström 2019:75–76). Another possible example of such an inscription is found on a large bedrock by Lagnö, Aspö, in Södermanland. The text refers to mærki þessa “these markers” where this piece of bedrock, together with the one known standing stone, is seen to signpost a Viking-Age landing place, reconstructed through modelling of past sea-levels (Källström 2019:77–78, Samnordisk runtextdatabas 2020: Sö 175). Finally, the worked, triangular runestone situated by the royal estate on Adelsö island in Lake Mälaren, across the water from the Viking-Age town of Birka is also referred to as a mærki in its inscription. This stone was situated by a harbor with the remains of a stonebuilt pier, which judging by its location in relation to the reconstructed water levels is seen to be of 8th century date (Källström 2019:67, 75–76, Samnordisk runtextdatabas 2020:U 11) and excavations suggest the stone is connected to this harbor. Magnus Källström argued that the stone was given its shape and position because it was intended as a navigation mark for the harbor (Brunstedt 1996, Källström 2019:80). In Figure 14 the location of the runestone in relation to the natural harbor and bay can be seen, demonstrating that its position is strikingly similar to the locations of the Crossapol names in Coll, Tiree and Shetland. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 36 The Adelsö runestone (U 11), together with three other runestones (Samnordisk runtextdatabas 2020:U 6, U 7, and U 8), marks a major maritime route leading to Birka. This is based on Källström’s reinterpretation of the parts of the inscription: Rētt lēt rīsta Tōliʀ bryti ī rōð(i) kunungi. This is usually translated as “Tólir the steward of Roðr had them [the runes] rightly carved for the king”, where Roðr has been seen as the district name Roden, but which Källström has interpreted as “fairway” thus creating the text: “Tólir the steward had them [the runes] rightly carved in the fairway for the king” (Källström 2019:81–84, Magnus Källström, Swedish National Heritage Board, Stockholm, pers. comm., our emphasis). If correct, this suggests organization and the marking of routes in order to guide travelers on the water. That such a concept was present in the Viking Age is supported by another reinterpreted runic inscription. This time it is the 9th-century Oklunda inscription in Östergötland, Sweden where the word ruþ was long seen to be refer to a clearing (Fridell and Óskarsson 2011:138, 141, Gustavson 2003:192-196, Lönnqvist and Widmark 1996:151–152, Samnordisk runtextdatabas 2020: Ög N288). More recently, however, it has been argued that this is the same as ON roðr and thus a reference to a “fairway”. This fits in well with the landscape around the site of the inscription (Fridell and Óskarsson 2011:141–143, Heggstad et al. Figure 14. Reconstruction of the Adelsö harbor using the 11th-century sea-level. Brunstedt 1996, reproduced in Källström 2015:80. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 37 1975:347; Sanmark 2020). This review of the Swedish evidence further supports the idea that the stone crosses in Scotland and other, perhaps wooden posts, were used to indicate routes and landing places, some possibly going by the name of “harbor marks”. Conclusions This article has demonstrated, using a wide range of evidence from western Scotland, as well as comparative evidence from northern Scotland and Scandinavia, that Norse navigation strategies were based on mental mapping and oral traditions, which linked into navigation marks and sailing routes. It is worth emphasizing again that these routes should not be seen as fixed entities but rather wide “bands” which could be followed and varied according to the specifics of each journey, such as final destination, weather, tides, and currents. The different sizes of boats/ships, and indeed fleets, in use must have been particularly important for the choice of destinations, landing places and routes. With the conceived popularity of small ships in the Hebrides, portages may have been frequently used to avoid dangerous stretches of water and reduce travel distance. It is moreover interesting to note that ideas of using certain types of place-names and navigation marks seem to have been brought from Scandinavia to Scotland. This may well have been a natural development, driven by practicality, but one which would have been very helpful to mariners, as place-names could provide essential information for the journey. This idea is also extended to the use of stones, perhaps named hafnarmark, as markers of safe harbors, which is suggested by runestones in Sweden and the placenames containing ON kross in both Scotland and Scandinavia. In addition to these, natural landmarks such as Cape Wrath and the Point of Stoer are known to have been used as navigation markers, and certain prominent Norse burials may have also been used for this purpose. This is not to argue for a full-scale import of navigation names and strategies, as local knowledge would have been crucial for navigation purposes, and Norse sailors are therefore likely also to have integrated existing navigation markers and traditions. In conclusion, despite these aids to navigation, sailing in the Hebrides and Clyde estuary, and indeed reaching that far from Scandinavia, was a dangerous undertaking, as highlighted by the severe storms that led to the loss of ships during King Hakon’s expedition and almost led to the sinking of the ship carrying Bishop-elect Guðmundr. In such instances, the work of pilots, people with knowledge of local sailing conditions and dangers, were crucial, as was seen in the efforts of Hrafn in sailing through a storm during the night and delivering Guðmundr to the safe harbor of Sanday, leading members of the crew to write poetry in praise of his exploits. Such dangers made the use of pilots highly valued until written sailing guidance, such as the Rutter of 1540, were available. It is impossible to overestimate how difficult sailing to and through western Scotland was in the pre-modern era, making careful planning, skilled sailors, suitable ships, and people with knowledge of local conditions essential. It is hoped that this article has gone some way to illustrating these issues. Acknowledgements While we are responsible for any errors, we would like to thank Peder Gammeltoft for assistance with providing data for GIS mapping and advice on place-names, Magnus Källström for advice on Swedish runic inscriptions and the English translations of these texts, and Andrew Jennings for advice on the translations of the staoinebrig, bryggja, and leiðvík place-names. Peter Randall provided us with Old Norse texts of Egils saga, Hrafns saga, Bǫglunga saga and Konungsannál, and we are thankful to Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 38 Judith Jesch for discussing hafnarmark/harbor-marks with us. Tríona Sørensen and Søren Nielsen shared their knowledge of various aspects of sailing and navigating, in part based on their voyage through the Hebrides on the reconstruction of Skuldelev 2. Finally, we would like to thank the two peer reviewers for their helpful suggestions, and our editor, Alison Cathcart, for her timely and tireless work. Open Access fees for this article are funded from the UKRI Open Access Block Grant 2024/25. Literature Cited Anderson, A.O. 1922. Early Sources of Scottish History: AD 500-1286. Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh, UK. 762 pp. Anderson, J. 1880. Notes on the contents of two Viking graves in Islay, discovered by William Campbell, Esq., of Ballinaby; with notes of the burial customs of the Norse Sea-Kings, as recorded in the sagas and illustrated by their grave moulds in Norway and in Scotland. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 14:51-89. Balfour, J.A. 1909. The ecclesiastical remains on the Holy Island, Arran. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 43:371-5. Ballin Smith, B. 2012. The Udal: Iain Crawford’s excavations on the machair 1963–1994. Privately published, UK. 23 pp. Batey, C.E. 2016. Viking Burials in Scotland: Two ‘New’ Boat Burial Finds. Pp. 39–45, In V.E. Turner, O.A. Owen and D.J. Waugh (Eds.). Shetland and the Viking World: Papers from the Proceedings of the Seventeenth Viking Congress Lerwick. Shetland Heritage Publications, Lerwick, UK. 300 pp. Benediktsson, J. (Ed.). 1968. Íslendingabók [by ari thorgilsson], Landnámabók. Hið Íslenzka Fornritafélag, Reykjavík, Iceland. 525 pp. Bernáth, B., A. Farkas, D. Száz, M. Blahó, A. Egri, A. Barta, S. Åkesson and G. Horváth. 2014. How could the Viking sun compass be used with sunstones before and after sunset? Twilight board as a new interpretation of the Uunartoq artefact fragment, Proceedings of the Royal Society 470:1-17. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rspa.2013.0787. Beveridge, E. 1903. Coll and Tiree: Their Prehistoric Forts and Ecclesiastical Antiquities. T and A Constable, Edinburgh, UK. 206 pp. Bill, J. 1999. Ships and Seamanship, Pp. 182–201, In P. Sawyer (Ed.). The Oxford Illustrated History of the Vikings. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 304 pp. Bill, J. 2007. Welcome on Board! The Sea-Stallion from Glendalough: A Viking Longship Recreated. The Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde, Denmark. 68 pp. Blankshein, S. 2021. (Sea)ways of perception: An integrated maritime-terrestrial approach to modelling prehistoric seafaring. Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 29:723-761. https://doi. org/10.1007/s10816-021-09536-4. Blaeu, J. 1654a. Blaeu Atlas of Scotland. Available online at Blaeu Atlas of Scotland - Maps - National Library of Scotland (nls.uk). Accessed 22 August 2024. Blaeu, J. 1654b. Mula Insula, quae ex Aebudarum numero una est, et Lochabriae ad occasum praetenditur. The Yle of Mul whiche is one of the Westerne Yles, and lyeth ovir against Lochabyr. Amsterdam. Available online at https://maps.nls.uk/atlas/blaeu/browse/111. Accessed 30 January 2024. Brink, S. 2000. ‘Forntida vägar’. Bebyggelsehistorisk tidsskrift 39:23–64. Brunstedt, S.1996. Alsnu Kungsgård. Forskningsprojekt Hovgården. Arkeologisk undersökning, Uppland, Adelsö socken, RAÄ 46 m.fl., Dnr 764/91. Unpublished report. UV Stockholm. Rapport 1996:71/1(2). Stockholm, UV Stockholm. 138 pp. Carver, M.O.H. 2016. Portmahomack: Monastery of the Picts. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, UK. 224 pp. Cleasby, R., and G. Vigfusson. 1874. An Icelandic-English Dictionary. Clarendon Press, Oxford, UK. 779 pp. Available online at lexicon.ff.cuni.cz/texts/oi_cleasbyvigfusson_about.html. Accessed 5 August 2024. Cox, R.A.V. 1997. Modern Scottish Gaelic reflexes of two Pictish words: *pett and *lannerc. Nomina 20:47-58. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 39 Crawford, B.E. 1987. Scandinavian Scotland. Leicester University Press, Leicester, UK. 274 pp. Crumlin-Pedersen, O. 1986. Aspects of viking-age shipbuilding in the light of the c o n s t r u c t i o n and trials of the Skuldelev ship replicas Saga Siglar and Roar Ege. Journal of Danish Archaeology 5:209–228. Crumlin-Pedersen, O. 2010. Archaeology and the Sea in Scandinavia and Britain. The Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde, Denmark. 184 pp. Dael, M.R., and Sørensen, T. 2021. The Skuldelev 3 Reconstruction, Roar Ege: From reconstruction to retirement, Archaeonautica 21:295–301. Dasent, G.W. (Trans.). 1894. The Saga of Hacon and a Fragment of The Saga of Magnus with Appendices. Llanerch Publishers (1997 facsimile reprint), Burnham-on Sea, UK. 491 pp. Dawson, S., A.G. Dawson, and J.T Jordan. 2011. North Atlantic climate change and Late Holocene windstorm activity in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Scottish Archaeological Internet Report 48. 36 pp. Available online at View of North Atlantic climate change and Late Holocene windstorm activity in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Accessed 17 November 2025. Dorward, D. 1995. Scotland’s Place-names. Mercat Press, Edinburgh, UK. 171 pp. Driscoll, M.J. (Ed & Trans.). 2008. Ágrip af Nóregskonungasǫgum. A twelfth-century synoptic history of the kings of Norway. Viking Society for Northern Research, London, UK. 126 pp. Edge, A.G. and J. Williams. 1863. In Exhibitions and Donations. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaeries of London 2nd Series 2:229-231. Ellmers, D. 1981. Der Nachtsprung an eine hinter dem Horizont liegende Gegenküste: die älteste astronomische Navigationsmethode. Deutsches Schiffahrtsarchiv 4:153–167. Englert A., and W. Ossowski. 2009. Sailing in Wulfstan’s wake. The 2004 trial voyage Hedeby- Gdańsk with the Skuldelev 1 reconstruction, Ottar. Pp. 257–270, In A. Englert, A. Trakadas (Eds.). Wulfstan’s Voyage: The Baltic Sea region in the early Viking Age as seen from shipboard. Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, Roskilde, Denmark. 374 pp. Forte, A., R. Oram and F. Pedersen. 2005. Viking Empires. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 447 pp. Fridell, S. and Veturliði Óskarsson. 2011. Till tolkningen av Oklundainskriften. Saga och sed:137– 150. Fritzner J. 1867. Ordbog over det gamle norske sprog. Feilberg and Landmark, Kristiania, Norway. 874 pp. Gordon, B. 1963. Some Norse place-names in Trotternish, Isle of Skye. Scottish Gaelic Studies 10: 82-112. Graham-Campbell, J., and C.E. Batey. 1998. Vikings in Scotland: An archaeological survey. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, UK. 296 pp. Gustavson, H. 2003. Oklundainskriften sjuttio år efteråt. Pp. 186–198. In W. Heizmann and A. van Nahl (Eds.). Runica – Germanica – Mediaevalia. Ergänzungsbände zum Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde 37. De Gruyter, Berlin, Germany. 1024 pp. Harris, O.J.T., H. Cobb, C.E. Batey, J. Montgomery, J. Beaumont, H. Gray, P. Murtagh and P. Richardson. 2017. Assembling places and persons: A tenth-century Viking boat burial from Swordle Bay, on the Ardnamurchan peninsula, western Scotland. Antiquity 91 (355):191–206. Harrison, S.H. 2000. The Millhill Burial in Context. Artefact, culture and chronology in the ‘Viking west’. Acta Archaeologica 71:65–78. Harrison, S.H., and R. Ó Floinn. 2014. Viking Graves and Grave-Goods in Ireland. National Museum of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland. 783 pp. Hauksson, Þ., S. Jakobsson, and T. Ulset (Eds.). 2013. Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar I, Bǫglunga saga. Hið íslenzka fornritafélag, Reykjavík, Iceland. 329 pp. Heggstad, L., F. Hødnebø and E. Simensen. 1975. Norrøn ordbok, 3rd edn. Det norske samlaget, Oslo, Norway. 518 pp. Heide, E. 2005. Víking – ‘rower shifting’? An etymological contribution. Arkiv för nordisk filologi 120:41–54. Helgadóttir, G.P. (Ed.). 1987. Hrafns saga Sveinbjarnarsonar. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 151 pp. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 40 Henderson, G. 1910. The Norse influence on Celtic Scotland. J. Maclehose, Glasgow , UK. 371 pp. Hill, P. 1997. Whithorn & St Ninian: The Excavation of a Monastic Town 1984-91. Sutton Publishing, Stroud, UK. 643 pp. Holliday, J. 2021. Longships in the Sand. Viking and Later Medieval Settlement on the Island of Tiree. An Iodhlann Press, Scarinish, UK. 724 pp. Holtsmark, A. 1982. Sol, Col. 401–402, In I. Andersson and J. Granlund (Eds.). Kulturhistoriskt lexikon för nordisk medeltid från vikingatid till reformationstid. 16 Allhem, Malmö, Sweden. 708 pp. Hollander, L.M. 2002. (Trans.). Heimskringla: History of the Kings of Norway. University of Texas Press, Austin, USA. 880 pp. Huddart, J. 1794a. A new chart of the West coast of Scotland from the Mull of Galloway to Dunan Point in Sky. Laurie and Whittle, London. Available online at https://maps.nls.uk/coasts/ chart/826. Accessed 30 January 2024. Huddart, J. 1794b. A new chart of the West coast of Scotland from the point of Ardnamurchan to Cape Wrath. Laurie and Whittle, London. Available online at https://maps.nls.uk/coasts/charts/827. Accessed 30 January 2024. Imsen, S. (Ed.). 2014. Rex Insularum: The King of Norway and His “Skattlands” as a Political System c. 1260–1450. Fagbokforlaget, Bergen, Norway. 438 pp. Jarrett, G. 2025. From the masthead to the map: An experimental and digital approach to Viking age seafaring itineraries. Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 32:1–44. Jesch, J. 2001. Ships and Men in the Late Viking Age: The Vocabulary of Runic Inscriptions and Skaldic Verse. Boydell Press, Woodbridge, UK. 330 pp. Jesch, J. 2005a. Geography and Travel. Pp. 119–315, In R. McTurk (Ed.). A Companion to Old Norse- Icelandic Literature and Culture. Blackwell, Oxford, UK. 587 pp. Jesch, J. 2005b. Literature in Medieval Orkney. Pp. 11–24, In O. Owen (Ed.). The World of Orkneyinga saga: The broad-cloth Viking trip. The Orcadian Limited, Kirkwall, UK. 232 pp. Jesch, J. 2015. The Threatening Wave: Norse Poetry and the Scottish Isles. Pp. 320–332, In J.H. Barrett and S.J. Gibbon (Eds.). Maritime Societies of the Viking and Medieval world. Maney, Leeds, UK. 396 pp. Jennings, A. and Kruse. A. 2024. A parallel naming voyage through a familiar seascape, Pp. 70–85, In M. Smith and I Tait (Eds.). History Maker; Essays in Honour of Brian Smith. Shetland Times, Lerwick, UK. 221 pp. Johnston, A.R. 1991. Norse Settlement in the Inner Hebrides 800–1300 with special reference to the Islands of Mull, Coll and Tiree. Unpublished PhD Thesis, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK. 340 pp. Jónsson, F. (Ed.). 1893. Heimskringla: Nóregs Konunga Sogur af Snorri Sturluson, III. S.L. Møllers Bogtrykkeri, Copenhagen, Denmark. 612 pp. Kaland, S.H.H. 1993.The Settlement of Westness, Pp. 308–317, In C.E. Batey, J. Jesch and C.D. Morris (Eds.). The Viking Age in Caithness, Orkney and the North Atlantic. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, UK. 554 pp. Kruse, A. 2017. The Norway to be: Laithlind and Avaldsnes. Pp. 198–231, In C. Cooijmans, A. Macniven and R. Baldwin (Eds.). Traversing the Inner Seas: Contacts and Continuity in and around Scotland, the Hebrides, and the North of Ireland. The Scottish Society for Northern Studies, Edinburgh, UK. 290 pp. Källström, Magnus 2015. Kungen, bryten och märket. Till tolkningen av runblocket U 11 vid Hovgården på Adelsö och något om runstenarnas placering, Saga och sed: Kungl. Gustav Adolfs akademiens årsbok 67–86. Källström, Magnus 2019, Runstenstäkter i Sigtunatrakten och runstenar vid vatten, Situne Dei: Årsskrift för Sigtunaforskning och historisk arkeologi 26–33. Lárusson, M.M. 1982. Gradmåling, Cols. 406–407, In I. Andersson and J. Granlund (Eds.). Kulturhistoriskt lexikon för nordisk medeltid från vikingatid till reformationstid. 5 Allhem, Malmö, Sweden. 708 pp. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 41 Lönnqvist, O., and G. Widmark. 1997. Den fredlöse och Oklundaristningens band. Saga och sed:145– 159. Lu, E., D. Wilken, S. Kalmring, A. Sanmark, A. Jennings and S. McLeod. 2025. Carried through the rushes: FDEMI prospection on the Isle of Eigg, Scotland , ArcheoSciences 49–1:223-226. Available online at http://journals.openedition.org/archeosciences/17352; DOI: https://doi. org/10.4000/14nrv Accessed 20 February 2026. Mac Airt, S. (Trans.). 1951. The Annals of Innisfallen, MS Rawlinson B. 503. Institute for Advanced Studies, Dublin, Ireland. 596 pp. Available online at Annals of Inisfallen (ucc.ie) Accessed 22 January 2024. Mac Airt, S., and G. Mac Niocaill (Ed and Trans.). 1983. The Annals of Ulster (to A.D. 1131) I. Institute for Advanced Studies, Dublin, Ireland. Available online at The Annals of Ulster (ucc.ie). Accessed 30 April 2024. MacBain, A. 1922. Place Names Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Eneas MacKay, Stirling, UK. 381 pp. MacBain, A. 1982. An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language, 2nd edition (revised) Gairm Publications, Glasgow, UK. 412 pp. Mac Carthy, B. (Ed and Trans.). 1893. Annala Uladh: Annals of Ulster otherwise Annala Senait, Annals of Senat: a chronicle of Irish Affairs from A.D. 431 to A.D. 1540, vol. 2. Her Majesty’s Stationary Office, Dublin, Ireland. Available online at The Annals of Ulster (ucc.ie). Accessed 30 April 2025. McCullough, D.A. 2000. Investigating portages in the Norse maritime landscape of Scotland and the Isles’. Ph.D. dissertation. University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK. 379 pp. McDonald, R.A. 2019. The Sea Kings: The Late Norse Kingdoms of Man ands the Isles. Birlinn, Edinburgh, UK. 426 pp. Mackenzie, M. 1750. Lewis, or north part of Long-Island. In Orcades: or a Geographical and Hydrographical Survey of the Orkney and Lewis Islands. London: Printed by the Author. Available online at Lewis or north part of Long-Island - Coasts of Scotland on marine charts, 1580–1831. Accessed 5 December 2024. McLeod, S. 2015a. Viking burials in Scotland: Landscape and burials in the Viking Age. Available online at https://vikingfuneralscapes.wordpress.com. Accessed 16 April 23. McLeod, S. 2015b. ‘Ardvonrig’, Isle of Barra, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 145:299–305. McLeod, S. 2025. Watching the Waters: Sentinel sites in the Inner Hebrides and western seaboard of Scotland. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 154: in press. Macniven, A. 2015. Vikings in Islay. The place of names in Hebridean settlement history. John Donald, Edinburgh, UK. 419 pp. Macniven, A. 2020. Seaways, Spies and Sagas: Approaching Viking-Age Mariculture in Western Scotland. Pp. 150–169, In A. Pedersen and S.M. Sindbæk (Eds.). Viking Encounters: Proceedings of the Eighteenth Viking Congress, Denmark, August 6–12, 2017. Aarhus University Press, Aarhus, Denmark. 635 pp. MacPherson, N. 1878. Notes on the antiquities from the Island of Eigg. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 12:594–595. Mack. J. 2013. The Sea: A Cultural History. Reaktion Books, London, UK. 272 pp. Martin, C., and P. Martin. 2018. Rubh’ an Dùnain: A multi-period maritime landscape on the Isle of Skye, Inner Hebrides, Scotland. The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology 47:140–158. Mehler, N., M. Gardiner, A. Dugmore, and J. Coolin. 2015. The Elusive Norse Harbours of the North Atlantic: Why They were Abandoned, and Why They are so Hard to Find. Pp. 313–321, In T. Schmidts and M.M. Vučetić (Eds.). Häfen im 1. Millennium AD: Bauliche Konzepte, herrschaftliche und religiöse Einflüsse; Plenartreffen im Rahmen des DFG-Schwerpunktprogramms 1630 “Häfen von der Römischen Kaiserzeit bis zum Mittelalter” im Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseum Mainz, 13. –15. Januar 2014. Verlag des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums, Mainz, Germany. 345 pp. Monro, D. 1549. A Description of the Western Isles of Scotland Called Hybrides. Available online at https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/usebooks/monro-westernislands/index.html Accessed 22 January 2025. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 42 Munch, P.A. (Ed.). 1853. Saga Olafs konungs Tryggvasunar. Kong Olaf Tryggvesöns saga forfattet paa latin henimod slutningen af det tolfte aarhundrede af Odd Snorresøn, munk i Thingeyre kloster paa Island, og siden bearbeidet paa norsk. Efter en hidtil ubenyttet membrancodex i det Kgl. bibliothek i Stockholm, tilligemed et anhang, indeholdende et brudstykke af samme saga, efter en membrancodex i Upsala universitets-bibliothek. Brøgger & Christie’s bogtrykkeri, Christiania. Denmark. 121 pp. Nicolaisen, W.F.H. 1978. Are there connotative names. Names 26:40–47. Nymoen, P. 1995. Sjøveien over land – Om eid og båtdrag i Midt-Nor ge. Spor 1:34–36. Ó Corráin, D. 1998. The Vikings in Scotland and Ireland in the ninth century. Peritia 12:296–339. Parker Pearson, M., M. Brennand, J. Mulville, and H. Smith. 2018. Cille Pheadair: A Norse Farmstead and Pictish Burial Cairn in South Uist. 10th ed. Oxbow, Oxford, UK. 632 pp. Petre, J. 2020. Dun Ara: A Norse-period ‘harbour’ in Mull? Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 149:145–163. Power, R. 2005. Meeting in Norway: Norse-Gaelic relations in the Kingdom of Man and the Isles, 1090–1270. Saga-Book 29:5–66. Pálsson, H., and P. Edwards. (Trans.). 1981. Orkneyinga Saga. The History of the Earls of Orkney. Penguin, London, UK. 251 pp. Rahnstorf, S. 2002. Ocean circulation and climate during the past 20,000 years, Nature 419(6903), https:// link-gale-com.uhi.idm.oclc.org/apps/doc/A187554460/AONE?u=uhipswd&sid=bookmark- AONE&xid=023e180c. Accessed 11 February 2024. Randall, P. 2020. Sacred Islands and a Scandinavian King: An Interdisciplinary Study of Places in the Hebrides Detailed in Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar in Relation to Governance. MLitt Medieval Studies Dissertation, University of St Andrews, UK. 73 pp. Rasmussen P. 1982. Uge søs, Cols. 248–249, In I. Andersson and J. Granlund (Eds.). Kulturhistoriskt lexikon för nordisk medeltid från vikingatid till reformationstid.19. Allhem, Malmö, Sweden. 708 pp. Ravn, M. 2016. Viking-Age War Fleets: Shipbuilding, Resource Management and Maritime Warfare in 11th-century Denmark. Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde, Denmark. 161 pp. Rixson, D. 1998. The West Highland Galley. Birlinn, Edinburgh, UK. 256 pp. Roy, W. 1755. Military survey of Scotland, 1747–1755. Available online at https://maps.nls.uk/roy/ index.html. Accessed 15 April 2024. Samnordisk runtextdatabas. 2020. Institutionen för nordiska språk, Uppsala universitet. http://www. nordiska.uu.se/forskn/samnord.htm Accessed 26 January 2025. Sanmark, A. 2017. Viking Law and Order: Places and Rituals of Assembly in the Medieval North. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, UK. 320 pp. Sanmark, A. 2020. Legal Space in Late Iron Age and Early Medieval Scandinavia. Pp 281–299, In C. Ehlers and H. Grewe (Eds.). “Rechtsräume”: Historische und archäologische Annäherungen. Vittorio Klosterman, Frankfurt am Main, Germany. 336 pp. Sanmark, A., and S. McLeod. 2024. Norse navigation in the Northern Isles. Journal of the North Atlantic 13:1–26. Sanmark, A., S. Kalmring, D. Wilkens, E. Lu, S. McLeod, and A. Jennings. 2024. Fieldwork Report and Post-Excavation Research Design. Bay of Laig, Isle of Eigg, September 2022. Institute for Northern Studies, University of the Highlands and Islands. Available online at Fieldwork Report and Post-Excavation Research Design: Bay of Laig, Isle of Eigg, September 2022 - University of the Highlands and Islands. Accessed 20 February 2026. Schach, P. 1993. Hákonar saga gamla Hákonarsonar. Pp. 259–260, In P. Pulsiano (Ed.). Medieval Scandinavia: An Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis, Garland, NY, USA. 768 pp. Scourse, J., S. Ward, A. Wainwright, S. Bradley, J.K Wilson, and J. Guo. 2024. An interactive visualization and data portal tool (PALTIDE) for relative sea level and palaeotidal simulations of the northwest European shelf seas since the Last Glacial Maximum. Journal of Quaternary Science 39:831–838. Scudder, B. (Trans.). 2000. Egil’s Saga. Pp. 3-184, In The Sagas of Icelanders: A Selection. Penguin Books, London, New York. 782 pp. Sharpe, R. (Trans.). 1995. Adomnán of Iona. Life of St Columba. Penguin, London, UK. 406 pp. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 43 Sharples, N. (Ed.). 2021. The Economy of a Norse Settlement in the Outer Hebrides. Excavations at Mounds 2 and 2A, Bornais, South Uist. Oxbow Books, Oxford, UK. 639 pp. Sharples, N. 2023. The Use of Space in Norse Houses: Some Observations from the Hebrides. Pp. 75–84, In T. Horne, E. Pierce and R. Barrowman (Eds.). The Viking Age: Studies in Scottish Scandinavian Archaeology. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, UK. 340 pp. Sharples, N. 2025. The Vikings in the Hebrides. Windgather Press, Oxford, UK. 252 pp. Sheehan, J., S. Stummann Hansen, and D. Ó Corráin. 2001. A Viking-age maritime haven: A reassessment of the island settlement at Beginish, Co. Kerry. Journal of Irish Archaeology 10:93–119. Sporrong, U. 2009. Kung Valdemars segelled. Rospiggen 69:26–31. Stahl, A-B. 2000. Norse in the place-names of Barra. Northern Studies 35:95–112. Sturt, F. 2006. Local knowledge is required: A rhythmanalytical approach to the late Mesolithic and early Neolithic of the East Anglian Fenland, UK. Journal of Maritime Archaeology 1:119–139. Stylegar, F-A., and O. Grimm. 2003. Place-names as Evidence for Ancient Maritime Culture in Norway. Årbok Norsk Sjøfartsmuseum 2002:79–115. Taylor, A.B. 1980. Alexander Lindsay: A Rutter of the Scottish Seas, c. 1540. Great Britain Maritime Monographs and Reports vol. 44. National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, UK. 64 pp. Thomas, S. 2025. Small Churches in the Hebrides. Pp. 77–93, In J. Arneborg and O. Vésteinsson (Eds.). Small Churches and Religious Landscapes in the North Atlantic c. 900–1300. Brepols, Turnhout, Belgium. 350 pp. Tjomsland, A. (Trans.). 1951. The Saga of Hrafn Sveinbjarnarson: The life of an Icelandic physician of the thirteenth century. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, USA. 65 pp. Trove. Historic Environment Scotland. Available online at https://www.trove.scot. Accessed 17 November 2025. Turville-Petre, G., and E.S. Olszewska (Trans.). 1942. The Life of Gudmund the Good, Bishop of Holar [Guðmundar saga]. The Viking Society for Northern Research, Coventry, UK. 114 pp. Available online at The Life of Gudmund the Good.pdf (vsnrweb-publications.org.uk) Accessed 26 August 2024. Vigfusson, G. (Ed.). 1887a. Orkneyinga Saga and Magnus Saga with appendices. Eyre and Spottiswoode, London, UK. 528 pp. Available online at https://archive.org/details/orkneyingasagaa- 00dasegoog. Accessed 1 February 2024. Vigfusson, G. (Ed.). 1887b. Hakonar Saga and a fragment of Magnus Saga, with appendices. Eyre and Spottiswoode, London, UK. 491 pp. Available online at http://archive.org/details/icelandicsaga02stur/ mode/2up. Accessed 29 April 2024. Vikingeskibsmuseet. Available online at https://vikingeskibsmuseet.dk. Accessed 17 November 2023. Waugh, D. 2010. On eið-names in Orkney and other North Atlantic islands. Pp. 545–554, In J. Sheehan and Ó. Corráin (Eds.). The Viking Age: Ireland and the West. Papers from the Proceedings of the Fifteenth Viking Congress, Cork, 18–27 August 2005. Four Courts Press, Dublin, Ireland. 569 pp. Westerdahl, C. 1989. Norrlandsleden I. Källor till det maritima kulturlandskapet. En handbok i marinarkeologisk inventering. The Norrland Sailing Route I. Sources of the Maritime Cultural Landscape. A Handbook of Maritime Archaeological Survey. Arkiv för norrländsk hembygdsforskning XXIV. Härnösand. Westerdahl, C. 1992. The maritime cultural landscape. The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology 21.1:5–14. Westerdahl, C. 2006. The relationship between land roads and sea routes in the past - some reflections. Deutsches Schiffahrtsarchiv 29:59–114. Whyte, A.C. 2023. Understanding the Norse Period through Place-name Evidence: A case study from the Island of Mull. Pp. 135–42, In T. Horne, E. Pierce and R. Barrowman (Eds.). The Viking Age in Scotland: Studies in Scottish Scandinavian archaeology. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, UK. 340 pp. Woolf, A. 2007. From Pictland to Alba 789–1070. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, UK. 384 pp. Journal of the North Atlantic S. McLeod and A. Sanmark 2026 No. 47 44 1. As this article deals primarily with western Scotland the periodisation is based on that region, between the first raids in the region and the military expedition of Hakon Hakonarson. “Norse” is used to cover the Viking Age, c. 795–1100 and the Late Norse period, c. 1100–1263. 2. Funded by the UK-German Funding Initiative in the Humanities. Project team: Alex Sanmark, Sven Kalmring, Dennis Wilken, Shane McLeod, Andrew Jennings and Erman Lu. 3. Hereafter Hákonar saga. The name of the king will be given as Hakon throughout. 4. Hereafter Hrafns saga. For the prose in English, we use the most recent translation by Anne Tjomsland (1951). For the verses in English and the Old Norse t ext we use the more recent edition by Guðrún Helgadóttir (1987). Zoëga, G.T. 2004. A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic. Dover Publications, Mineola, NY, USA. 572 pp. Zwick, D. 2016. Maritime Logistics in the Age of the Northern Crusades. Dissertation zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades der Philosophischen Fakultät der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Kiel, Germany. 293 pp. 1. As this article deals primarily with western Scotland the periodisation is based on that region, between the first raids in the region and the military expeditio n of Hakon Hakonarson. “Norse” is used to cover the Viking Age, c. 795–1100 and the Late Norse period, c. 1100–1263. 2. Funded by the UK-German Funding Initiative in the Humanities . Project team: Alex Sanmark, Sven Kalmring, Dennis Wilken, Shane McLeod, Andrew Jennings and Erman Lu. 3. Hereafter Hákonar saga. The name of the king will be given as Hakon throughout. 4. Hereafter Hrafns saga. For the prose in English, we use the most recent translation by Anne Tjomsland (1951). For the verses in English and the Old Norse t ext we use the more recent edition by Guðrún Helgadóttir (1987). 5. The number 6 refers to the island number in the online version of the text. 6. NRHE is the National Record of the Historic Environment and the ID number corresponds with that found on the Trove.scot website. Hereafter ’ID’ will be omitted. 7. Moreover, in Tiree both Eibrig and Ìbrig are preceded by Cnoc. 8. “coasting along, course along the shore” (Zoëga 2004:229). 9. “the outer course, at sea”, translated as hafleið (Zoëga 2004:464). 10. Unfortunately, the sailing route on Magnus’ second voyage to the Hebrides in 1102 is not provided (Hollander 2002:683). 11. Cleasby and Vigfússon added that the harbor mark could be “a carved figure in the shape of a man”, but this is derived from Helgakviða Hjǫrvarðssonar (stanza 31 in the latest edition but stanza 30 in earlier editions) where a giantess who has turned to stone at dawn is compared to a harbor-mark, so is not actually a harbor mark description (Cleasby and Vigfússon 1874:307). We are grateful to Judith Jesch for drawing this to our attention. 12. Other suggested navigational names in Tiree are Kenavara, which may derive from *Kirkjunes (“headland of the church”) as well as *Kirkjunes in Balephetris h (Holliday 2021:91). 13. Additional names of interest include Crossapoll in Mull and Crossbister in Unst, Shetland, but their locations are less obvious for a role as navigation marks (Johnston 1991:257–9).