Skye is the largest island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Its
peninsulas radiate from a mountainous centre dominated by the Cuillins,
the rocky slopes of which provide some of the most dramatic mountain
scenery in the country. The island has been occupied since the
Mesolithic period and its history includes a time of Norse rule and a
long period of domination by Clan MacLeod (Dunvegan Castle, the clan's
seat, pictured) and Clan Donald. The 18th-century Jacobite risings led
to the breaking up of the clan system and subsequent Clearances that
replaced entire communities with sheep farms. Resident numbers declined
from over 20,000 in the early 19th century to just under 9,000 by the
closing decade of the 20th century. The main industries are tourism,
agriculture, fishing and whisky-distilling, and the largest settlement
is Portree, known for its picturesque harbour. There are links to
various nearby islands by ferry and, since 1995, to the mainland by a
road bridge. The abundant wildlife includes the golden eagle, red deer
and Atlantic salmon. Skye has provided the locations for various novels
and feature films and is celebrated in poetry and song.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skye>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1556:
The deadliest earthquake in history killed about 830,000 people
in Shaanxi Province, China.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1556_Shaanxi_earthquake>
1793:
The Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia partitioned the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth for the second time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Partition_of_Poland>
1899:
Pursuant to the adoption of the Malolos Constitution and the
establishment of the First Philippine Republic, Emilio Aguinaldo was
sworn in as the first President of the Philippines.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emilio_Aguinaldo>
1968:
USS Pueblo was seized by North Korean forces, who claimed that
it had violated their territorial waters while spying.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Pueblo_(AGER-2)>
2002:
American journalist Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and later
murdered by Al Qaeda agents.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Pearl>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
blueberrying:
The act of gathering blueberries.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/blueberrying>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
I no longer find such pleasure in that preeminently good society, of
which I was once so fond. It seems to me that beneath a cloak of clever
talk it proscribes all energy, all originality. If you are not a copy,
people accuse you of being ill-mannered. And besides, good society
usurps its privileges. It had in the past the privilege of judging what
was proper, but now that it supposes itself to be attacked, it condemns
not what is coarse and disagreeable without compensation, but what it
thinks harmful to its interest.
--Stendhal
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stendhal>