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- Old Gaelic airer Goídel (border region of the Gaels)
- Modern Gaelic Earra-Ghàidheal
- Administrative centre
The county town was historically Inveraray; Lochgilphead later claimed to be the county town, as the seat of local government for the county from the nineteenth century. Neither town was the largest settlement geographically nor in terms of population however.
- Chapman County Code - ARL
- Landmarks and Places of Interest
- Area 8,055 Sq.km (3,110 Sq.mi)
- Succeeded by
1975 - area being split between Highland and Strathclyde Regions. A local government district called Argyll and Bute was formed in the Strathclyde region, including most of Argyll and the Isle of Bute.
The Ardnamurchan, Ardgour, Ballachulish, Duror, Glencoe, Kinlochleven and Morvern areas of Argyll were detached to become part of Lochaber District, in Highland. They remained in Highland following the 1996 revision.
- County Flower - Foxglove, Digitalis purpurea
Argyll (sometimes anglified as Argyllshire) is a maritime county in the west of Scotland, a registration county of Scotland and additionally between 1890 and 1975 it was a county for local government purposes.
Argyll's neighbouring counties are Inverness-shire, Perthshire, Dunbartonshire, Renfrewshire, Ayrshire and Bute. Renfrewshire and Ayrshire are the other side of the Firth of Clyde. Bute is a county of islands in the firth.
The surface of the county is generally wild and mountainous but includes fertile tracts of valleys which afford productive arable land and good pasture. Of the numerous islands included within the limits of the county, the principal are Mull, Jura, Islan, Coll, Tiree, Colonsay, Lismore, and Oronsay, with several smaller islands. Between these islands and the mainland are several extensive sounds. The coasts are deeply indented with arms of the sea constituting salt-water lochs of considerable extent.
Cattle, of the West Highland breed, and sheep are the chief livestock raised. Limestone and coal are wrought and granite and marble are quarried. Some lead and copper are mined. The principal manufacture is wool, and also flax. There are several distilleries, tanneries, and some bleach fields. The herring-fishery in Loch Fine is on an extensive scale.
Largest towns
- Oban,
- Dunoon
- Campbeltown.
The Small Isles of Muck/Muick, Rum/Rhum, Canna and Sanday were part of the county, until they were transferred to Inverness-shire in 1891 by the boundary commission appointed under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889. The island of Egg/Eigg was already in Inverness-shire.
Parishes
- Acharacle or Aharacle -- see Ardnamurchan
- Appin -- see Lismore
- Ardchattan
- Ardgour -- see Ballachulish
- Ardnamurchan
- Arisaig -- see Ardnamurchan
- Ballachulish and Corran of Ardgour
- Bowmore or Kilarrow (Insular)
- Campbeltown
- Cara -- see Gigha
- Coll -- see Tyree
- Colonsay & Oronsay -- see Jura
- Craignish
- Cumlodden
- Dalavich -- see Kilchrenan and Dalavich
- Dunoon & Kilmun
- Duror -- see Lismore
- Gigha and Cara (Insular)
- Glassary
- Glenarary -- see Inverarary
- Glencoe & Ballachulish -- see Lismore
- Glenorchy & Inishall
- Inishall -- see Glenorchy
- Inveraray & Glenaray
- Inverchaolain
- Iona (Insular)
- Jura and Colonsay (Insular)
- Kilarrow -- see Bowmore
- Kilberry -- see Kilcalmonell
- Kilbrandon & Kilchattan
- Kilbride -- see Kilmore and Kilbride
- Kilcalmonell and Kilberry
- Kilchattan -- see Kilbrandon & Kilchattan
- Kilchenzie -- see Killean
- Kilchoman (Insular)
- Kilchrenan and Dalawich
- Kildalton (Insular)
- Kilfinan
- Kilfinichen & Kilvickeon (Insular)
- Killean and Kilchenzie
- Kilmallie
- Kilmartin
- Kilmelfort -- see Kilninver
- Kilmeny (Insular)
- Kilmodan
- Kilmore and Kilbride
- Kilmore (Insular)
- Kilmorich -- see Lochgoilhead
- Kilmun -- see Dunoon
- Kilninian & Kilmore (Insular)
- Kilninver and Kilmelfort
- Kilvickeon -- see Kilfinichen
- Kinlochspelvie (Insular)
- Kintra -- see Ardnamurchan
- Lismore
- Lochgilphead
- Lochgoilhead and Kilmorich
- Morvern
- Muckairn
- North Knapdale
- OA
- Oban -- see Kilmore and Kilbride
- Portnahaven (Insular)
- Saddell and Skipness
- Salen (Insular)
- Skipness -- see Saddell
- Southend
- South Knapdale
- Strachur and Stralachlan
- Stralachlan - see Strachur
- Strontian -- see Ardnamurchan
- Tarbert
- Tobermory
- Torosay
- Tyree
Click HERE for a full size map of the Parishes, select full view, and use the magnifier to see detail.
The principal districts
- Ardnamurchan on the Atlantic,
- Ardnamurchan Point being the most westerly headland of Scotland;
- Morven or Morvern, bounded by Loch Sunart, the Sound of Mull and Loch Linnhe;
- Appin, on Loch Linnhe, with piers at Ballachulish and Port Appin;
- Benderloch, lying between Loch Creran and Loch Etive;
- Lorne, surrounding Loch Etive and giving the title of marquess to the Campbells;
- Argyll, in the middle of the shire, containing Inveraray Castle and furnishing the titles of earl and duke to the Campbells;
- Cowall, between Loch Fyne and the Firth of Clyde, in which lie Dunoon and other favorite holiday resorts;
- Knapdale between the Sound of Jura and Loch Fyne;
- Kintyre or Cantyre, a long narrow peninsula (which, at the isthmus of Tarbert, is little more than 1m. wide), the southernmost point of which is known as The Mull, the nearest part of Scotland to the coast of Ireland, only 13m. distant. ... "
(Extracted from Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th ed., Vol. 2, Cambridge, 1910)
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