 The origin of Hirta , which long pre @-@ dates St Kilda , is similarly open to interpretation . Martin ( 1703 ) avers that " Hirta is taken from the Irish <unk> , which in that language signifies west " . Maclean offers several options , including an ( unspecified ) Celtic word meaning " gloom " or " death " , or the Scots Gaelic h @-@ Iar @-@ <unk> ( " <unk> " ) . Drawing on an Icelandic saga describing an early 13th @-@ century voyage to Ireland that mentions a visit to the islands of " Hirtir " , he speculates that the shape of Hirta resembles a stag , ( Hirtir meaning " stags " in Norse ) . Steel ( 1998 ) quotes the view of Reverend Neil Mackenzie , who lived there from 1829 to 1844 , that the name is derived from the Gaelic <unk> <unk> ( " high island " ) , and a further possibility that it is from the Norse Hirt ( " shepherd " ) . In a similar vein , Murray ( 1966 ) speculates that the Norse <unk> , pronounced ' <unk> ' ( " herd island " ) , may be the origin . All the names of and on the islands are fully discussed by Coates ( 1990 ) . 
