The Boys' Brigade Mountaineering Club

Scafell Pike is the highest mountain in England and the 8th highest in England and Wales. Its exact height is uncertain, as on its summit is a large cairn (over 3 m high) and the height of the ground beneath the cairn is unclear. However, its supremacy remains unchallenged, as the only contender would be its neighbour Scafell, which also has a large cairn on its summit, but is given a height that is 14 m lower. It wasn't until the early 1800s that Scafell Pike (which hadn't been given a name before this) was found to be the highest peak in England. Scafell does appear to be the higher of the two peaks from most valley locations. Sharing part of its name with Scafell, it is usually mispronounced (except by locals), as it should be pronounced Scawfell Pike, according it its original phonetic spelling which started to change after a map with the wrong spelling was published in 1774.

Interestingly, the three peaks currently known as Scafell Pike, Broad Crag and Ill Crag used to be collectively known as the Pikes or the Pikes of Scawfell (Scawfell used to describe a much larger area).

See its entries on Walkhighlands or Wikipedia or view it from above on Google Earth.

Sca is thought to come from Skalli (Old Norse) meaning Bald Head and is applied to a bare summit, similar to the meaning of Moel in Welsh. Fell comes Fjall (Old Norse) meaning Mountain. There is an alternative, but perhaps less plausible, explanation, which is given on the Scafell page, along with an explanation of how it became misspelt and mispronounced.

Pike comes Pik (Old Norse) meaning Peak. Therefore, Scafell Pike probably translates as Peak of the Bald-headed Mountain or Treeless Mountain Peak.