Lewis is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, and the largest island of the Western Isles. The total area of Lewis is 683 square miles, around 10% larger than the surface area occupied by the City of London.
Lewis is flat in comparison to Harris, though the west side of the island around Uig has some hills. Lewis largest settlement in the Western Isles, Stornoway, which is the administrative and commercial centre of the isles. The island has diverse habitats that are home to an assortment of flora and fauna, such as the golden eagle, red deer and seals the value of these are recognised in a number of conservation areas.
Lewis has a Presbyterian tradition with a rich history, having once been part of the Norse Kingdom of Mann and the Isles. It is also the tradition seat of one of the branches of the MacLeod clan. With the oldest evidence of modern civilisation dating to St. Columba through the Ui Church in Point.
Life can be different from elsewhere in Scotland with strict Sabbath observance, the extent of spoken Gaelic and numerous other traditions that have survived.Lewis has a rich cultural heritage where local stories still abound today. Music has and continues to play a vitally important part of island life. Lewis is often known as Eilean an Fhraoich, ("The Heather Isle").
Generally, the island settlements are on or near the coasts or sea lochs, being particularly concentrated in the area around Stornoway. There are four parishes in Lewis: Barvas (Barabhas), Lochs (Na Lochan), Stornoway (Steòrnabhagh), and Uig on which the original civil registration districts were based. The district of Carloway which hitherto had fallen partly within the parishes of Lochs and Uig, became a separate civil registration district in 1859 .
The districts of Lewis are Ness (Nis), Carloway (Càrlabhagh), Back, Lochs (Na Lochan), Park (A' Phàirc), Point (An Rubha), Stornoway, and Uig.