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A sense of exclusion can be felt when any of the 46 out of the 72, 1:50000 OS maps, covering the area where Scottish Gaelic was widely spoken until the late 19th century, are consulted. This territory is known as the Gàidhealtachd (GEHaltuchk). These maps record most place-names in a roughly recognisable spelling and grammar. Many names are easy to translate without recourse to toponymic or etymological research. But Gaelic place-names cannot always be understood accurately without some knowledge of grammar.

This book builds a framework for organising knowledge to help a better recall of Gaelic toponymy. Readers will learn about many aspects of place and how these have been uniquely recorded in the language. They will perceive landscape through a Gaelic lens. Landscape will become more legible and meaningful when seen through an indigenous perception.

Place-name elements and adjectives common to many features have been organised into types. Categories cover the physical, biological, visual and cultural parts of landscape. Knowing about these name types encourages a more connected understanding of Highland landscape and culture than learning from place-name inventories alone. Some categories cover areas of interest specific to walkers, sailors, anglers, botanists and ornithologists. These will enrich understandings of landscape and place. Instead of just identifying a place, the aim is to connote a name with its meaning, in the landscape context to which it has been assigned.