| surname | MacPherson / Nic a’ Phearsain |
| forenames | Mary / Màiri |
| nickname | Màiri Mhór nan Oran |
| life | 1821–1898 |
| origin | Skye & Raasay |
| notes | From Companion to Gaelic Scotland – “Born Skeabost, Skye, A nurse by profession, Mary MacPherson was distinguished by her physical weight, prolific poetry and political interests. Imprisoned in Inverness on a charge of theft, she began to protest her innocence in song. Her humiliation led her to support HIghland crofters during the Land Agitation, which became a dominant theme in her verse. After retiring to Skye, she accompanied Charles Fraser-Mackintosh, the pro-crofter MP, on electioneering trips. Her most popular songs contain vivid protrayals of Skye, with references to her own and her people’s suffering. [...]” |
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