The River Tay is the longest river in Scotland and the seventh-longest in Great Britain, flowing 117 miles from the western Highlands to the North Sea at the Firth of Tay.
The river rises on the slopes of Ben Lui in western Scotland, travelling eastward through Loch Dochart, Loch Iubhair and Loch Tay before continuing through Strathtay in central Scotland. It flows southeasterly through Perth, where it becomes tidal, eventually reaching its mouth south of Dundee. The Tay holds the distinction of being the United Kingdom’s largest river by measured discharge, draining a catchment of approximately 2,000 square miles. Its name derives from the Scottish Gaelic Tatha, likely from a Brythonic root meaning ‘silent one’, ‘strong one’ or simply ‘flowing’. The river has shaped the geography and settlement patterns of central Scotland for millennia, serving as a vital artery through the Highlands and a defining feature of Perth and Kinross.
