Bennachie

The etymology of Bennachie is uncertain. Suggestions include "Initially Beinn a Cioch, the hill of the nipple or pap." It has also been translated as the "‘Mountain of Ce’", a king mentioned in the List of legendary kings of Pictland. == History of the area ==

From 1800 to 1859 common land on the east side of Bennachie was home to a community of squatters known locally as the Colony. A small number of families led a crofting life often doing skilled work, such as dyking and quarrying, for local landowners. After 1859 the Colony dwindled as the common land was broken up and divided amongst the local estates. However, the last of the original colonists, George Esson, lived on the hill until his death in the 1930s. Visitors to Bennachie can explore the remains of the Colony and extensive work is being done on site and amongst local parish records to determine the history of the Colonists. Mither Tap In the 1870s Christian Maclagan, an early Scottish archaeologist, surveyed and conducted excavations at Mither Tap in 1876 and 1881. In 2019 the University of Aberdeen Northern Picts Project conducted an excavation at Mither Tap. == Paths and environment ==

The range of hills is frequently visited by walkers, as it is relatively close to Aberdeen. The Gordon Way is a waymarked trail that traverses the Southern flank of Bennachie between the Visitors Centre in the East and Suie Car Park to the West. Most of the Bennachie range is owned by Forestry and Land Scotland, which maintains a network of paths on and around the hills, several car parks and a visitor centre located at the eastern foot of the range. A volunteer conservation charity, the Bailies of Bennachie, founded in 1973, helps with this work and with other environmental and archaeological activities on the hill. There are several marked paths, including fairly easy ascents of Oxen Craig and Mither Tap that start from the centre. In 2023, the Bailies of Bennachie received the Community Initiative Award at RSPB Scotland's Nature of Scotland Awards 2023. ==See also==

File:Bennachie from the North.jpg|Bennachie from the North. Peaks are from left to right: Mither Tap, Craigshannoch, Bruntwood Tap, Oxen Craig, Watch Craig. File:Oxen craig.jpg|Oxen Craig from Mither Tap File:Mither tap view north.jpg|View north from Mither Tap File:Bennachie panorama by Bruce McAdam.jpg|Bennachie viewed from the South, with the peak of Mither Tap to the right. File:Mither tap summit.jpg|View from the summit of Mither Tap ==References==