Eilean Donan (which simply means "island of Donnán") is a small island in Loch Duich in the western Highlands of Scotland, about half a mile from the village of Dornie. It is named after Donnán of Eigg, a Celtic saint martyred in 617. The island is dominated by a picturesque castle which is widely familiar from many photographs and appearances in film and television.

The original castle was built in the early 13th century as a defense against the Vikings. By the late 13th century it had become a stronghold of the Mackenzies of Kintail (later the Earls of Seaforth). In 1511, the Macraes, as protectors of the Mackenzies, became the hereditary Constables of the Castle. In 1539 Iain Dubh Matheson, chief of the Clan Matheson, died while defending the castle against the Clan MacDonald of Sleat on behalf of Clan Macrae and Clan Mackenzie. In April 1719 the castle was occupied by Spanish troops attempting to start another Jacobite Rising. The castle was recaptured, and then demolished, by three Royal Navy frigates on May 10-13, 1719. The Spanish troops were defeated a month later at the Battle of Glen Shiel.

The castle was restored in the years between 1919 and 1932 by Lt. Col. John MacRae-Gilstrap. The restoration included the construction of an arched bridge to give easier access to the castle. In 1983 The Conchra Charitable Trust was formed by the Macrae family to care for the Castle.

Eilean Donan is the home of the Clan Macrae. In 2001, the island had a population of just one person.