Geology of Skye with the development of an ice cap centred on the Cuillin and Red Hills. The main ice sheet that flowed westwards from the Scottish mainland was diverted around this upland area. The island is covered by large areas of glacial till, left behind when the ice melted. Geology of Skye The geology of Skye in Scotland is highly variable and the island's landscape reflects changes in the underlying nature of the rocks. A wide range of rock types are exposed on the island, sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous, ranging in age from the Archaean through to the Quaternary. The oldest rocks
Scottish island names an anglicisation of "breiðare-øy" meaning "broad beach island". The Norse "holmr", meaning "a small and rounded islet" has become "Holm" in English and there are numerous examples of this use including Corn Holm, Thieves Holm and Little Holm. Etymological details for all inhabited islands and some larger uninhabited ones are provided at Hebrides, Northern Isles, Islands of the Clyde and Islands of the Forth. Based on these tables, for the inhabited off-shore islands of Scotland (and counting Lewis and Harris as two islands for this purpose) the following results apply, excluding Scots/English qualifiers such as "muckle" "east", "little" etc. Scottish