Lihou

In common with several nearby islands, such as Jethou and Brecqhou, the name contains the Norman suffix -hou, which means a small hill or a mound. The name could have developed from the Breton words lydd or ligg, which means in or near water. Historically there have also been a number of alternative forms of the name, including Lihoumel, which was attested as early as the twelfth century, Lihou is also a common surname on Guernsey, with records suggesting that the name has been in use in the Channel Islands since at least the eighteenth century, The name is also attested further afield, in a number of other countries, such as Australia, where for example Sergeant James Lihou, the son of a migrant from Guernsey, enlisted in the Australian forces in 1916 and was killed in action in 1918 in France. There are also numerous instances of people with the surname having migrated from the Channel Islands to the United States. ==Geography and climate==

Lihou is the furthest west of the Channel Islands and at low tide it is linked to the nearby L'Erée headland on Guernsey by a stone causeway. Apart from shingle beaches the island has a high ridge running approximately north–south. Lihou is mainly composed of weathered rock below which is granite and gneiss bedrock. Lihou shares the weather features of Guernsey, with winter temperatures falling to in February and summers with a high of in August. Two small islets close to the island, Lissroy and Lihoumel, are breeding places for a number of endangered species of bird, including Eurasian oystercatchers and common ringed plovers. Numerous other species of bird and plant are found on Lihou such as peregrine falcons and sea storksbill. The Guernsey Environment Department does not allow visitors to go to the two islets and the shingle bank at certain times of the year in order to allow the birds to breed. Approximately north of the island is a submerged ledge called Grand Etacre, which was considered to be a hazard to navigation in the nineteenth century. Lihou island was identified as a Site of Nature Conservation Importance in 1989 and as part of an Important Bird Area, which includes parts of the shoreline of Guernsey. This has created a marine reserve for the extensive variety of wildlife including more than 200 species of seaweed on the shores of Lihou, and more than 150 species of birds observed in the area. The geology of Lihou Island is rather complex but closely associated with neighbouring Guernsey. ==History==

The history of Lihou is closely linked to the history of Guernsey in particular and the Channel Islands in general. The earliest evidence of habitation is Mesolithic objects recovered from archaeological digs of the 1990s, along with Neolithic era tombs on the nearby mainland. The recorded history of Lihou began in 933 AD when the Channel Islands were seized from Brittany by the ruler of Normandy. Lihou and the nearby Neolithic tombs were traditionally believed to have been meeting places for local witches and fairies. especially when a priory was established on Lihou dedicated to St Mary (known locally as Our Lady of Lihou). A number of dates have been suggested for the establishment of the priory, with estimates ranging from as early as 1114 Ownership of the island was granted to the abbey by Robert I, Duke of Normandy in the early part of the eleventh century. The priory is thought to have been constructed with contributions from the Guernseymen, who appear to have been fairly affluent at the time. or 1304, a priory servant called Thomas le Roer was alleged to have murdered one of the monks. The Bailiff and several assistants attempted to apprehend Le Roer, but he did not surrender, and was subsequently killed by Ranulph Gautier, one of the Bailiff's assistants. had the priory destroyed to prevent French forces from capturing the island during the Seven Years' War. In 1961 Lieutenant-Colonel Patrick Wootton purchased Lihou. Wootton had plans to develop the island, beginning in the following year by clearing the area of the old farmhouse in preparation for the building of a new farmhouse, with construction work continuing into 1963. The ruins of the priory are possibly the most extensive religious relic in Guernsey. and in 1998, when several twelfth-fourteenth century graves were unearthed. ==Economy==

Historically, Lihou was an important location for a commercially significant industry based around the harvesting of seaweed (or vraic in the local language, Guernésiais). Records suggest considerable activity as early as the beginning of the nineteenth century. The economic mainstay of the island is now ecological tourism, based around the farmhouse, which is operated by the Lihou Charitable Trust, although overall responsibility for the island remains with the Environment Department of the States of Guernsey. Lihou and several other small Channel Islands such as Herm and Sark issued their own stamps until 1969, when the States of Guernsey assumed responsibility for postal services in the Bailiwick, which had previously been provided by the UK Government. ==Protection==

The whole of the building known as the Priory of St Mary, Lihou and surrounding area was listed as a Protected Monument on 26 March 1938, reference PM236. From 1 March 2006, Lihou and the L'Erée headland were designated a part of Guernsey's first Ramsar wetland site. ==References==