Hill list
Marilyn
Definition
A Marilyn is any British or Irish hill with at least 150 metres of topographic prominence — meaning it rises at least 150m above the lowest contour that separates it from any neighbour. Marilyns have no minimum height: a 200m coastal stack qualifies. 625 Scottish Marilyns; 2,011 in the full British and Irish list.
Etymology & origin
Coined by Alan Dawson in his 1992 book The Relative Hills of Britain as a pun on Munro / Marilyn (Monroe). The name was deliberately humorous — Dawson wanted to differentiate his prominence-based approach from the height-based traditional lists. The Marilyn concept later spread internationally; equivalent prominence-based lists exist for almost every mountainous country.
Context & usage
Marilyns are the most-bagged hill list outside the Wainwrights. The 'hagging' practice (spelled differently from Munro bagging) has its own community at TACit Press and the Hall of Fame. Over a hundred people have done 1,000+ Marilyns; only a handful have done all 2,011.
The prominence-based approach captures what makes a hill feel like a separate hill, regardless of altitude. The 2nd-highest summit on a long ridge looks like a bump from below; a 250m isolated coastal peak with cliffs all round looks like a mountain. The Marilyn list rewards the second category and quietly ignores most of the first.
The Scottish Marilyn list includes some surprising entries: St Kilda's Conachair (430m, Marilyn), the Old Man of Hoy (137m — not technically a Marilyn but cited often as the principle in action), most of the Outer Hebrides islands' high points. It also includes Conic Hill on Loch Lomondside (357m), Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh (251m), and Tinto in Lanarkshire (711m, also a Donald) — accessible Central Belt walks that are quietly excellent hill days.
Related terms
Munro
A Munro is a Scottish mountain over 3,000ft (914.4m) in height with sufficient prominence to be considered a separate hill rather than a subsidiary summit. The current list contains 282 Munros, ranging from Ben Nevis (1,345m) to Beinn Teallach (915m). The list is maintained by the Scottish Mountaineering Club.
Corbett
A Corbett is a Scottish hill between 2,500ft (762m) and 3,000ft (914.4m) with at least 500ft (152m) of drop on all sides. The 500ft re-ascent rule separates Corbetts from subsidiary summits along the same ridge. There are 222 Corbetts in total.
Graham
A Graham is a Scottish hill between 2,000ft (610m) and 2,500ft (762m) with at least 150 metres of drop on all sides. Currently 231 Grahams. Some older guidebooks call them Fionas after the original compiler.
Donald
A Donald is a Scottish hill in the Lowlands (south of the Highland Boundary Fault) over 2,000ft (610m). 89 in total. The list excludes the Highland 2,000-footers (which appear on the Graham or Corbett lists depending on prominence) and the Cheviots.
Where to next
Reviewed 2026-05-28