Mary M. MacDonald ( in
Scottish Gaelic) (1789–1872), who lived in the
crofting community of
Ardtun near Bunessan in the
Ross of Mull and spoke only Gaelic, wrote her hymn "" to a traditional melody. When the words were translated into English in the 1880s, the melody was named after the village of Bunessan by the translator, Lachlan Macbean. A monument to MacDonald can be seen about 1.5 miles east of the village, on the road towards
Craignure. The ruins of the house where she lived are also nearby. "Bunessan" is also used for the
James Quinn hymns, "Christ Be Beside Me" and "This Day God Gives Me," both of which were adapted from the traditional Irish hymn "
St Patrick's Breastplate", and for
Michael Saward's hymn "Baptized In Water". Sometime before 1927 Alexander Fraser heard the melody in the Scottish Highlands and wrote it down so that it came to the attention of
Percy Dearmer,
Ralph Vaughan Williams, and
Martin Shaw. In turn, these editors of the hymn book
Songs of Praise requested
Eleanor Farjeon to write a further hymn text to the tune. This was "
Morning Has Broken", and since 1931 the tune has become most familiarly identified with this hymn. In 1971, a version of "Morning Has Broken" was recorded by English singer
Cat Stevens, helping popularise the tune. ==Music==