Geography of the Isle of Man

Situated in the Irish Sea between the United Kingdom and Ireland, the Isle of Man or Ellan Vannin (Ellan Vannin Veg Veen, or The Dear Little Isle of Man) was, until the thirteenth century, part of the Norwegian Kingdom of the Hebrides.  Its geographic coordinates are: 54 15 N, 4 30 W and its area is slightly more than three times the size of Washington, DC at 227 sq. m..

The Isle of Man measures 33 miles from its northern tip at the Point of Ayre to the Calf of Man in the south.  At its widest point it is 13 miles from the east to the west coast.  Distances to mainland points are 16 miles to the Mull of Galloway (Scotland) and 34 miles to St. Bee’s Head (England).  It is 40 miles to Strangford Lough (Northern Ireland) and 55 miles to Holyhead (Wales).

The ferry and air transport distances are different.  By sea Liverpool is 68 nautical miles from the Island and Heysham, the other main linking port is 58 nautical miles.  London, by air, is 220 nautical miles from the Isle of Man airport at Ronaldsway while Manchester is 95 nautical miles.  Birmingham, Leeds and Liverpool are 145, 105 and 77 nautical miles by air repectively.

The origin of the name of the island, Mann, has long been a puzzle, which has yet to be solved.  It has been suggested that the island took its name from Mannanan beg mac y Leir; but it is more likely that it was the other way around.  In 54 B.C., Caesar called it Mona.  Later, in 858 A.D., Nennius, referred to it as Eubonia.  In the Welsh Annals, of 1154 A.D., the island is called Manaw, while the Scandinavians, in their Sagas referred to it as Mon or Maon.  In many ways it would appear that all of these names are derived from an Indo-European root meaning mountainous or hilly land. 

The bulk of the population lives along the coast, where small bays offer shelter and it is here, that the main towns and villages are located.  Douglas, the present capital, has the largest town (population 23,500).  The island’s interior is made up of hills, heather moorland, mountains and glens.  The highest point of the island is Snaefell (2,036ft).  From there, on a clear day, one may see splendid views over most of the island and across the sea to the neighboring islands.  The upland area of the island is split by a central valley.  In the north of the island there is a flat plain leading off to rugged cliffs which drop down to the sea.  Beautiful wooded glens with tall trees can be found all over the island.

The climate is temperate, without extremes and it is warmed by influence of the Gulf Stream which flows around its shores.  With cool summers and mild winters; the island is overcast about one-third of the time.  Prevailing winds blow from the South West.  Due to the rugged nature of the topography some low lying areas are well sheltered while higher elevations are more exposed to the elements.  Once the winter months are over the weather quickly becomes warmer and from April through to October pleasant weather is the norm.  In the summer, the months of May and June are usually the driest; while May, June and July are the sunniest.  July and August are the warmest.

Currently the population is 73,117 (July 2000 est.) giving the Island one of the lowest population densities (316 people per square mile) in Europe and with about 40% of the Island being uninhabited there is plenty of room to move around in.  The major business center is based in Douglas, the capital, which together with nearby Onchan (8,700), accounts for nearly 50% of the total population.  The other towns are Ramsey (6,900), Castletown, the old capital (2,900), Peel (3,800), Port Erin (3,200) and Port St. Mary (1,900).