Fèis Bharraigh begun in 1981 with the mission to promote, encourage, foster and develop the practice and study of the Scottish Gaelic language

Scottish Gaelic language

Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....

, literature, music, drama and culture on the islands of Barra

Barra

The island of Barra is a predominantly Gaelic-speaking island, and apart from the adjacent island of Vatersay, to which it is connected by a causeway, is the southernmost inhabited island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland.-Geography:The 2001 census showed that the resident population was 1,078...

 and Vatersay

Vatersay

Vatersay is an inhabited island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Vatersay is also the name of the only village on the island.-Location:The westernmost permanently inhabited place in Scotland, Vatersay is linked to Barra by a causeway completed in 1991...

. The Fèis movement came about when a group of parents and other individuals on the Isle of Barra became concerned that local traditions were dying out and that island children were not being taught traditional music in the context of formal education. This first Fèis, which means "festival" in Gaelic, laid down the path for many more Fèisean, inspired by the success of the first Fèis, to spring up around Scotland with each one community led and tailored to local needs. Today there are 41 Fèisean in Scotland.

In 2007, Fèis Bharraigh launched "BarraFest - Live @ the Edge", a weekend festival of traditional and modern Scottish music held on the Tangasdale machair. BarraFest 2008 was held on the 25th and 26th of July.