Kinlochleven

Kinlochleven
Kinlochleven
Kinlochleven
Location within the Lochaber area
Population760 (2020)
OS grid referenceNN186618
Council area
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townKINLOCHLEVEN
Postcode districtPH50
Dialling code01855
PoliceScotland
FireScottish
AmbulanceScottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament

Kinlochleven (/ˌkɪnlɒxˈlvən/) (Scottish Gaelic: Ceann Loch Lìobhann) is a village located at the end of end of Loch Leven, Lochaber, Scottish Highlands. To the north lie the Mamores ridge; to the south lie the mountains flanking Glen Coe.

Kinlochleven as it is now known, was formed from two previously separate small communities divided by the River Leven following construction of an aluminium smelter; Kinlochmore to the north in Inverness-shire and Kinlochbeg to the south in Argyll. The processing plant was powered by a hydroelectric scheme situated in the mountains above, and made Kinlochleven the first village in the world to have every house connected to electricity, coining the phrase "The Electric Village". In 1991, the village (according to annual census returns) had just over 1000 inhabitants in some 420 households. Today, Kinlochleven is a notable tourist destination for hiking, mountaineering and stopping-point on the West Highland Way.