Shetland
Scottish Gaelic name | Sealtainn[Note 1] |
---|---|
Pronunciation | ˈʃalˠ̪t̪ɪɲ |
Scots name | Shetland |
Old Norse name | Hjaltland |
Meaning of name | 'Hiltland' |
Coat of arms | |
Location | |
OS grid reference | HU4363 |
Coordinates | 60°20′N 1°20′W / 60.333°N 1.333°W |
Physical geography | |
Island group | Northern Isles |
Area | 1,466 km2 (566 sq mi) |
Highest elevation | Ronas Hill 450 m (1,480 ft) |
Administration | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Country | Scotland |
Council area | Shetland Islands Council |
Demographics | |
Population | 22,920 (2019) |
Population density | 15/km2 (39/sq mi) |
Largest settlement | Lerwick |
Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom.
The islands lie about 80 km (50 mi) to the northeast of Orkney, 170 km (110 mi) from mainland Scotland and 220 km (140 mi) west of Norway. They form part of the border between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the
The archipelago has an oceanic climate, complex geology, rugged coastline, and many low, rolling hills. The largest island, known as "
Humans have lived in Shetland since the Mesolithic period. Picts are known to have been the original inhabitants of the islands, before the Norse conquest and subsequent colonisation in the Early Middle Ages.[5] During the 10th to 15th centuries, the islands formed part of the Kingdom of Norway until they were annexed into the Kingdom of Scotland due to a royal dispute involving the payment of a dowry.[6] In 1707, when Scotland and England united to form the Kingdom of Great Britain, trade between Shetland and continental Northern Europe decreased. The discovery of North Sea oil in the 1970s significantly boosted Shetland's economy, employment and public-sector revenues.[7] Fishing has always been an important part of the islands' economy.
The local way of life reflects the Norse heritage of the isles, including the Up Helly Aa fire festivals and a strong musical tradition, especially the traditional fiddle style. Almost all place names in the islands have Norse origin.[8] The islands have produced a variety of prose writers and poets, who have often written in the distinctive Shetland dialect. Numerous areas on the islands have been set aside to protect the local fauna and flora, including a number of important seabird nesting sites. The Shetland pony and Shetland Sheepdog are two well-known Shetland animal breeds. Other animals with local breeds include the Shetland sheep, cow, goose, and duck. The Shetland pig, or grice, has been extinct since about 1930.
The islands' motto, which appears on the Council's coat of arms, is "Með lögum skal land byggja" ("By law shall the land be built").[a] The phrase is of Old Norse origin, is mentioned in Njáls saga, and was likely borrowed from provincial Norwegian laws such as the Frostathing Law.
Etymology
The name Shetland may derive from the Old Norse words hjalt ('hilt'), and land ('land'). Another possibility is that the first syllable is derived from the name of an ancient Celtic tribe.[9][10]
In 43 CE, the Roman author Pomponius Mela made reference in his writing to seven islands he called the Haemodae. In 77 CE, Pliny the Elder called these same islands the Acmodae. Scholars have inferred that both of these references are to islands in the Shetland group. Another possible early written reference to the islands is Tacitus' report in Agricola in 98 CE. After he described the Roman discovery and conquest of Orkney, he added that the Roman fleet had seen "Thule, too".[Note 2] In early Irish literature, Shetland is referred to as Insi Catt — "the Isles of Cats" (meaning the island inhabited by the tribe called Cat). This may have been the pre-Norse inhabitants' name for the islands. Cat was the name of a Pictish people who occupied parts of the northern Scottish mainland (see Kingdom of Cat); and their name survives in the names of the county of Caithness and in the Scottish Gaelic name for Sutherland, Cataibh, which means "among the Cats".[13]
The oldest known version of the modern name Shetland is Hetland; this may represent "Catland", the Germanic language softening the C- to H- according to Grimm's law. It occurs in a letter written by Harald, earl of Orkney, Shetland and Caithness, in ca. 1190.[14] By 1431, the islands were being referred to as Hetland, after various intermediate transformations. It is possible that the Pictish "cat" sound contributed to this Norse name. In the 16th century, Shetland was referred to as Hjaltland.[15][16] [Note 3]
Gradually, the Scandinavian
used for Shetland.Most of the individual islands have
Geography and geology
Shetland is around 170 km (106 mi) north of Great Britain and 230 km (143 mi) west of Bergen, Norway. It covers an area of 1,468 km2 (567 sq mi) and has a coastline 2,702 km (1,679 mi) long.[2]
Lerwick, the capital and largest settlement, has a population of 6,958 and about half of the archipelago's total population of 22,920 people[3] live within 16 km (10 mi) of the town.[20]
Scalloway on the west coast, which was the capital until 1708, has a population of fewer than 1,000 people.[21]
Only 16 of about 100 islands are inhabited. The main island of the group is known as
The uninhabited islands include
The geology of Shetland is complex, with numerous
Much of Shetland's economy depends on the oil-bearing sediments in the surrounding seas.[27] Geological evidence shows that in around 6100 BC a tsunami caused by the Storegga Slide hit Shetland, as well as the west coast of Norway, and may have created a wave of up to 25 m (82 ft) high in the voes where modern populations are highest.[28]
The highest point of Shetland is
It has been estiimated that there are about 275 sea stacks in Scotland of which circa 110 are located around the coasts of Shetland. For many of them there is no record of there having been any attempt by rock climbers to ascend them.[30][31]
Shetland has a
In October 2018, legislation came into force in Scotland to prevent public bodies, without good reason, showing Shetland in a separate box in maps, as had often been the practice. The legislation requires the islands to be "displayed in a manner that accurately and proportionately represents their geographical location in relation to the rest of Scotland", so as make clear the islands' real distance from other areas.[34][35][36]
Climate
Shetland has an oceanic temperate maritime climate (Köppen: Cfb), bordering on, but very slightly above average in summer temperatures, the subpolar variety, with long but cool winters and short warm summers. The climate all year round is moderate owing to the influence of the surrounding seas, with average night-time low temperatures a little above 1 °C (34 °F) in January and February and average daytime high temperatures of near 14 °C (57 °F) in July and August.[37] The highest temperature on record was 27.8 °C (82.0 °F) on 6 August 1910 at Sumburgh Head[38] and the lowest −8.9 °C (16.0 °F) in the Januaries of 1952 and 1959.[39] The frost-free period may be as little as three months.[40] In contrast, inland areas of nearby Scandinavia on similar latitudes experience significantly larger temperature differences between summer and winter, with the average highs of regular July days comparable to Lerwick's all-time record heat that is around 23 °C (73 °F), further demonstrating the moderating effect of the Atlantic Ocean. In contrast, winters are considerably milder than those expected in nearby continental areas, even comparable to winter temperatures of many parts of England and Wales much further south.
The general character of the climate is windy and cloudy with at least 2 mm (0.08 in) of rain falling on more than 250 days a year. Average yearly
Because of the islands'
Climate data for Shetland Isles (S. Screen)[b], elevation 82 m (269 ft), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1930–present | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 12.8 (55.0) |
11.7 (53.1) |
13.3 (55.9) |
16.1 (61.0) |
20.7 (69.3) |
22.2 (72.0) |
23.4 (74.1) |
22.1 (71.8) |
19.4 (66.9) |
17.2 (63.0) |
13.9 (57.0) |
12.6 (54.7) |
23.4 (74.1) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 6.1 (43.0) |
5.8 (42.4) |
6.7 (44.1) |
8.3 (46.9) |
10.6 (51.1) |
12.6 (54.7) |
14.4 (57.9) |
14.7 (58.5) |
13.0 (55.4) |
10.4 (50.7) |
8.1 (46.6) |
6.6 (43.9) |
9.8 (49.6) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 4.1 (39.4) |
3.8 (38.8) |
4.6 (40.3) |
6.1 (43.0) |
8.1 (46.6) |
10.3 (50.5) |
12.2 (54.0) |
12.6 (54.7) |
11.1 (52.0) |
8.5 (47.3) |
6.2 (43.2) |
4.5 (40.1) |
7.7 (45.9) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 2.2 (36.0) |
1.8 (35.2) |
2.4 (36.3) |
3.8 (38.8) |
5.6 (42.1) |
8.1 (46.6) |
10.1 (50.2) |
10.5 (50.9) |
9.1 (48.4) |
6.6 (43.9) |
4.3 (39.7) |
2.5 (36.5) |
5.3 (41.5) |
Record low °C (°F) | −8.9 (16.0) |
−7.4 (18.7) |
−8.3 (17.1) |
−5.7 (21.7) |
−2.2 (28.0) |
−0.6 (30.9) |
3.5 (38.3) |
2.8 (37.0) |
−0.6 (30.9) |
−3.3 (26.1) |
−5.7 (21.7) |
−8.2 (17.2) |
−8.9 (16.0) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 150.4 (5.92) |
122.7 (4.83) |
109.2 (4.30) |
67.8 (2.67) |
56.9 (2.24) |
59.8 (2.35) |
67.7 (2.67) |
88.6 (3.49) |
105.8 (4.17) |
130.6 (5.14) |
143.2 (5.64) |
149.7 (5.89) |
1,252.3 (49.30) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 22.0 | 19.2 | 19.3 | 14.7 | 11.7 | 11.5 | 12.1 | 13.1 | 16.1 | 20.3 | 21.5 | 22.6 | 204.1 |
Average snowy days | 10 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 48 |
Average relative humidity (%)
|
87 | 86 | 86 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 90 | 89 | 87 | 87 | 89 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 27.4 | 57.6 | 97.7 | 141.2 | 191.9 | 147.7 | 128.6 | 132.4 | 99.5 | 75.1 | 38.3 | 20.6 | 1,158 |
Source 1: NOAA (relative humidity and snow days 1961–1990)[44]
| |||||||||||||
Source 2: KNMI[45] |
- Ð, which is the regular uppercase form of eth.
- ^ Weather station is located 1.7 miles (2.7 km) from the Lerwick port centre.
Settlements
The main Tier 1 settlements,[46] i.e. locality areas having the greatest population and/or service provision/facilities, are:
Settlement | Population (mid-2020 est.)[47] |
---|---|
Lerwick |
6,760 |
Scalloway |
1,170 |
Brae |
750 |
Sandwick | <500[a] |
Aith | <500[a] |
Mid Yell | <500[a] |
Baltasound | <500[a] |
Symbister | <500[a] |
List of islands by largest population:
Island | Population[48][49] | ||
---|---|---|---|
1991 | 2001 | 2011 | |
Shetland Mainland | 17,562 | 17,550 | 18,765 |
Whalsay | 1,041 | 1,034 | 1,061 |
Yell | 1,075 | 957 | 966 |
West Burra | 817 | 753 | 776 |
Unst | 1,055 | 720 | 632 |
Bressay | 352 | 384 | 368 |
Trondra | 117 | 133 | 135 |
Muckle Roe | 115 | 104 | 130 |
East Burra | 72 | 66 | 76 |
Fair Isle | 67 | 69 | 68 |
Prehistory
Due to the practice, dating to at least the early Neolithic, of building in stone on virtually treeless islands, Shetland is extremely rich in physical remains of the prehistoric eras and there are over 5,000 archaeological sites all told.[51] A midden site at West Voe on the south coast of Mainland, dated to 4320–4030 BC, has provided the first evidence of Mesolithic human activity in Shetland.[52][53] The same site provides dates for early Neolithic activity and finds at Scord of Brouster in Walls have been dated to 3400 BC.[Note 5] "Shetland knives" are stone tools that date from this period made from felsite from Northmavine.[55]
Pottery shards found at the important site of
Numerous brochs were erected during the
History
The expanding population of Scandinavia led to a shortage of available resources and arable land there and led to a period of Viking expansion so the Norse gradually shifted their attention from plundering to invasion.[62] Shetland was colonised during the late 8th and 9th centuries,[63] the fate of the existing indigenous Pictish population being uncertain. Modern Shetlanders still retain the Norse DNA with many family trees showing the Norse patronymic system(-sson/son, -dottir/daughter). Modern DNA studies such as the Viking Health Study are severely flawed as they only account for a tiny fraction of the population.[64]
The islands converted to
In 1194, when
Increased Scottish interest
From the mid-13th century onwards Scottish monarchs increasingly sought to take control of the islands surrounding their seas. The process was begun in earnest by
Absorption by Scotland
In the 14th century, Orkney and Shetland remained a Norwegian possession, but Scottish influence was growing.
From the early 15th century onward Shetlanders sold their goods through the
18th and 19th centuries
The trade with the North German towns lasted until the Act of Union 1707, when high salt duties prevented the German merchants from trading with Shetland. Shetland then went into an economic depression, as the local traders were not as skilled in trading salted fish. However, some local merchant-lairds took up where the German merchants had left off, and fitted out their own ships to export fish from Shetland to the Continent. For the independent farmers of Shetland this had negative consequences, as they now had to fish for these merchant-lairds.[83]
Population increased to a maximum of 31,670 in 1861. However, British rule came at a price for many ordinary people as well as traders. The Shetlanders' nautical skills were sought by the
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 established a uniform system of county councils in Scotland and realigned the boundaries of many of Scotland's counties: Zetland County Council, which was created in 1890, was established at County Buildings in Lerwick.[90]
20th century
During World War I, many Shetlanders served in the Gordon Highlanders, a further 3,000 served in the Merchant Navy, and more than 1,500 in a special local naval reserve. The 10th Cruiser Squadron was stationed at Swarbacks Minn (the stretch of water to the south of Muckle Roe), and during a single year from March 1917 more than 4,500 ships sailed from Lerwick as part of an escorted convoy system. In total, Shetland lost more than 500 men, a higher proportion than any other part of Britain, and there were further waves of emigration in the 1920s and 1930s.[86][91]
During World War II, a Norwegian naval unit nicknamed the "Shetland Bus" was established by the Special Operations Executive in the autumn of 1940 with a base first at Lunna and later in Scalloway to conduct operations around the coast of Norway. About 30 fishing vessels used by Norwegian refugees were gathered and the Shetland Bus conducted covert operations, carrying intelligence agents, refugees, instructors for the resistance, and military supplies. It made over 200 trips across the sea, and Leif Larsen, the most highly decorated allied naval officer of the war, made 52 of them.[92][93] Several RAF airfields and sites were also established at Sullom Voe and several lighthouses suffered enemy air attacks.[91]
Oil reserves discovered in the later 20th century in the seas both east and west of Shetland have provided a much-needed alternative source of income for the islands.
The population stood at 17,814 in 1961.[95]
Economy
Today, the main revenue producers in Shetland are
As of February 2021, information on the Promote Shetland Web site indicated that "Shetland is less reliant on tourism than many Scottish islands" and that oil was an important sector of the economy. The "process of gradually transitioning from oil to clean renewable energy ... production of clean hydrogen" was also emphasized. Fishing remained the primary sector and was expected to grow.[100]
Fishing
Fishing is central to the islands' economy today, with the total catch being 75,767 t (83,519 tons) in 2009, valued at over £73.2 million.
A report published in October 2020 was optimistic about the future of this sector in: "With new fish markets in Lerwick and Scalloway, and plans to expand its aquaculture offerings in Yell, Shetland is preparing for more growth in its biggest industry".[102]
As of February 2021, the Promote Shetland Web site stated that "more fish is landed in Shetland than in England, Wales and Northern Ireland combined', that "Shetland harvests 40,000 tonnes of salmon a year, worth £180 million" and that "6,500 tonnes of mussels are grown in Shetland, more than 80 per cent of the total Scottish production".[103]
Energy and fossil fuels
Oil and gas were first landed in 1978 at Sullom Voe, which has subsequently become one of the largest terminals in Europe.[7][104] Taxes from the oil have increased public sector spending on social welfare, art, sport, environmental measures and financial development. Three quarters of the islands' workforce is employed in the service sector,[105][106] and the Shetland Islands Council alone accounted for 27.9% of output in 2003.[107][108] Shetland's access to oil revenues has funded the Shetland Charitable Trust, which in turn funds a wide variety of local programmes. The balance of the fund in 2011 was £217 million, i.e., about £9,500 per head.[109][Note 9]
In January 2007, the Shetland Islands Council signed a partnership agreement with
A status report on hydrogen production in Shetland, published in September 2020, stated that Shetland Islands Council (SIC) had "joined a number of organisations and projects to drive forward plans to establish hydrogen as a future energy source for the isles and beyond". For example, it was a member of the Scottish Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association (SHFCA). The ORION project, previously named the Shetland Energy Hub, was underway; the plan was to create an energy hub that would use clean electricity in the development of "new technologies such as blue and green hydrogen generation".[115]
In December 2020 the Scottish government released a hydrogen policy statement with plans for incorporating both
Farming and textiles
Farming is mostly concerned with the raising of
Knitwear is important both to the economy and culture of Shetland, and the Fair Isle design is well known. However, the industry faces challenges due to plagiarism of the word "Shetland" by manufacturers operating elsewhere, and a certification trademark, "The Shetland Lady", has been registered.[121]
Crofting, the farming of small plots of land on a legally restricted tenancy basis, is still practised and is viewed as a key Shetland tradition as well as an important source of income.[122] Crops raised include oats and barley; however, the cold, windswept islands make for a harsh environment for most plants.
Media
Television signals in Shetland are received from the Bressay TV transmitter. [123]Shetland is served by a weekly local newspaper, The Shetland Times and the online Shetland News [124] with radio service being provided by BBC Radio Shetland and the commercial radio station SIBC.[125]
Tourism
Shetland is a popular destination for cruise ships, and in 2010 the
According to the Promote Shetland organisation's website, tourism increased "by £12.6 million between 2017 and 2019 with more than half of visitors giving their trip a perfect rating".[103]
Extremely popular in many countries, with seven series having been filmed and aired by early 2023, Shetland (TV series) was inspired by the Ann Cleeves books about the fictional Detective Inspector Jimmy Perez. This has created an interest in Shetland[130] and some tourists visit because they wish to see the places where the series is set and filmed. In 2018, series star Douglas Henshall said in an interview, "When we were there filming, there's people from Australia and different parts of America who had come specifically because of the show ... It's showing all over the world. Now you get a lot of people from Scandinavia on these noir tours".[131][132]
An October 2018 report stated that 91,000 passengers from cruise ships arrived that year (a record high), an increase over the 70,000 in 2017. There was a drop in 2019 to "over 76,000 cruise ship passengers".[133][134]
Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic
Tourism dropped significantly in 2020 (and into 2021) due to restrictions necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the major decline in the number of cruise ships that continued to operate worldwide.[135]
As of early February 2021, the Promote Shetland website was still stating this information: "At present, nobody should travel to Shetland from a Level 3 or Level 4 local authority area in Scotland, unless it's for essential purposes". That page reiterated the government recommendation "that people avoid any unnecessary travel between Scotland and England, Wales, or Northern Ireland".[136]
A September 2020 report stated that "The Highlands and Islands region has been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to date, when compared to Scotland and the UK as a whole". The tourism industry required short term support for "business survival and recovery" and that was expected to continue as the sector was "severely impacted for as long as physical distancing and travel restrictions".[137] As of 31 December 2020, the usage of ferries and buses was restricted to those traveling for essential purposes.[138] The Island Equivalent scheme was introduced in early 2021 by the Scottish government to financially assist hospitality and retail businesses "affected by Level 3 coronavirus restrictions". Previous schemes in 2020 included the Strategic Framework Business Fund and the Coronavirus Business Support Fund.[139]
Quarries
- Brindister: 60°06′52″N 1°12′57″W / 60.114475°N 1.215874°W
- Scord: 60°08′32″N 1°15′42″W / 60.142287°N 1.261629°W Scalloway 05
- Sullom: 60°26′24″N 1°22′56″W / 60.439953°N 1.382306°W
- Vatster: 60°12′46″N 1°13′15″W / 60.212887°N 1.220861°W
Transport
Transport between islands is primarily by ferry, and Shetland Islands Council operates various inter-island services.[140] Shetland is also served by a domestic connection from Lerwick to Aberdeen on mainland Scotland. This service, which takes about 12 hours, is operated by NorthLink Ferries. Some services also call at Kirkwall, Orkney, which increases the journey time between Aberdeen and Lerwick by 2 hours.[141][142] There are plans for road tunnels to some of the islands, especially Bressay and Whalsay; however, it is hard to convince the mainland government to finance them.[143]
Sumburgh Airport, the main airport in Shetland, is located close to Sumburgh Head, 40 km (25 mi) south of Lerwick. Loganair operates flights to other parts of Scotland up to ten times a day, the destinations being Kirkwall, Aberdeen, Inverness, Glasgow and Edinburgh.[144] Lerwick/Tingwall Airport is located 11 km (6.8 mi) west of Lerwick. Operated by Directflight in partnership with Shetland Islands Council, it is devoted to inter-island flights from the Shetland Mainland to Fair Isle and Foula.[145]
Scatsta Airport was an airport near Sullom Voe which allowed frequent charter flights from Aberdeen to transport oilfield workers. The airport closed on 30 June 2020.[146]
Public bus services are operated in Mainland, Trondra, Burra, Unst and Yell, with scheduled dial-a-ride services available in Bressay and Fetlar. Buses also connect with ferries leading to Foula, Papa Stour, and Whalsay.[147][148]
The archipelago is exposed to wind and tide, and there are numerous sites of wrecked ships.[149] Lighthouses are sited as an aid to navigation at various locations.[150]
Government
The Shetland Islands Council is the local government authority for all the islands and is based in Lerwick Town Hall.
Shetland is sub-divided into 18 community council areas[151] and into 12 civil parishes that are used for statistical purposes.[152]
|
Walls and Sandness
|
Education
As of early 2021, Shetland had 22 primary schools, five junior high schools, and two high schools: Anderson High School and Brae High School.[154][155]
Shetland College UHI is a partner of the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI). UHI's Centre for Rural Creativity partners with Shetland Arts Development Agency to provide courses on film, music and media up to Masters level at Mareel. The North Atlantic Fisheries College (NAFC) also operates in partnership with UHI offering "a range of training courses relevant to the maritime industries".[154]
The Institute for Northern Studies, operated by UHI, provides "postgraduate teaching and research programmes"; one of the three locations is at Shetland.[156]
Sport
The Shetland Football Association oversees two divisions — a Premier League and a Reserve League — which are affiliated with the Scottish Amateur Football Association.[157] Seasons take place during summer.
The islands are represented by the Shetland football team, which regularly competes in the Island Games.
Churches and religion
The Reformation reached the archipelago in 1560. This was an apparently peaceful transition and there is little evidence of religious intolerance in Shetland's recorded history.[159]
In the 2011 census, Shetland registered a higher proportion of people with no religion than the Scottish average.[158] Nevertheless, a variety of religious denominations are represented in the islands.
The Methodist Church has a relatively high membership in Shetland, which is a District of the Methodist Church (with the rest of Scotland comprising a separate District).[160]
The Church of Scotland had a Presbytery of Shetland that includes St. Columba's Church in Lerwick.[161] On 1 June 2020 the Presbytery of Shetland merged with the Presbytery of Aberdeen becoming the Presbytery of Aberdeen and Shetland. In addition there was further church reorganisation in the islands with a series of church closures and all parishes merging into one, covering the whole of Shetland.
The
The Scottish Episcopal Church (part of the Anglican Communion) has regular worship at: St Magnus' Church, Lerwick; St Colman's Church, Burravoe; and the Chapel of Christ the Encompasser, Fetlar, the last of which is maintained by the Society of Our Lady of the Isles, the most northerly and remote Anglican religious order of nuns.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a congregation in Lerwick. The former print works and offices of the local newspaper, The Shetland Times, has been converted into a chapel. Jehovah's Witnesses has a congregation and Kingdom Hall in Lerwick.
Politics
Shetland is represented in the
This seat has been held by the
In the
The political composition of the Shetland Islands Council is 21 Independents and 1 Scottish National Party.[168]
In the 2014 referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom, Shetland voted to remain in the United Kingdom by the third largest margin of the 32 local authority areas, by 63.71% to 36.29% in favour of the Union.
In the
The Wir Shetland movement was set up in 2015 to campaign for greater autonomy.[169] In September 2020, the Shetland Islands Council voted 18–2 to explore replacing the council with a new system of government which controls a fairer share of the islands revenue streams and has a greater influence over their own affairs, which could include very lucrative oil fields and fishing waters.[170]
In 2022, as part of the
Flag
Roy Grönneberg, who founded the local chapter of the
Local culture and the arts
After the islands were officially transferred from Norway to Scotland in 1472, several Scots families from the Scottish Lowlands emigrated to Shetland in the 16th and 17th centuries.[174][175] Studies of the genetic makeup of the islands' population, however, indicate that Shetlanders are just under half Scandinavian in origin, and sizeable amounts of Scandinavian ancestry, both patrilineal and matrilineal, have been reported in Orkney (55%) and Shetland (68%).[175] This combination is reflected in many aspects of local life. For example, almost every place name in use can be traced back to the Vikings.[176] The Lerwick Up Helly Aa is one of several fire festivals held in Shetland annually in the middle of winter, starting on the last Tuesday of January.[177] The festival is just over 100 years old in its present, highly organised form. Originally held to break up the long nights of winter and mark the end of Yule, the festival has become one celebrating the isles' heritage and includes a procession of men dressed as Vikings and the burning of a replica longship.[178]
Shetland also competes in the biennial International Island Games, which it hosted in 2005.[179]
The
Language
The
Music
Shetland's culture and landscapes have inspired a variety of musicians, writers and film-makers.
The annual Shetland Folk Festival began in 1981 and is hosted on the first weekend of May.[187]
Writers
Walter Scott's 1822 novel The Pirate is set in "a remote part of Shetland", and was inspired by his 1814 visit to the islands. The name Jarlshof meaning "Earl's Mansion" is a coinage of his.[188] Robert Cowie, a doctor born in Lerwick published the 1874 work entitled Shetland: Descriptive and Historical; Being a Graduation Thesis on the Inhabitants of the Shetland Islands; and a Topographical Description of the Country. Menzies. 1874.
Hugh MacDiarmid, the Scots poet and writer, lived in Whalsay from the mid-1930s through 1942, and wrote many poems there, including a number that directly address or reflect the Shetland environment, such as "On A Raised Beach", which was inspired by a visit to West Linga.[189] The 1975 novel North Star by Hammond Innes is largely set in Shetland and Raman Mundair's 2007 book of poetry A Choreographer's Cartography offers a British Asian perspective on the landscape.[190] The Shetland Quartet by Ann Cleeves, who previously lived in Fair Isle, is a series of crime novels set around the islands.[191] In 2013, her novel Red Bones became the basis of BBC crime drama television series Shetland.[192]
Vagaland, who grew up in Walls, was arguably Shetland's finest poet of the 20th century.[193] Haldane Burgess was a Shetland historian, poet, novelist, violinist, linguist and socialist, and Rhoda Bulter (1929–1994) is one of the best-known Shetland poets of recent times. Other 20th- and 21st-century poets and novelists include Christine De Luca, Robert Alan Jamieson who grew up in Sandness, the late Lollie Graham of Veensgarth, Stella Sutherland of Bressay,[194] the late William J. Tait from Yell[195] and Laureen Johnson.[196]
There is one monthly magazine in production: Shetland.[197] The quarterly The New Shetlander, founded in 1947, is said to be Scotland's longest-running literary magazine.[198] For much of the later 20th century, it was the major vehicle for the work of local writers — and of others, including early work by George Mackay Brown.[199]
Films and television
A number of other films have been made on or about Shetland including A Crofter's Life in Shetland (1932),
The BBC One television series Shetland, a crime drama, is set in the islands and is based on the book series by Ann Cleeves. The programme is filmed partly in Shetland and partly on the Scottish mainland.[202][203]
Wildlife
Shetland has three
Flora
The landscape in Shetland is marked by the grazing of
Fauna
Shetland has numerous seabird colonies. Birds found in the islands include
One of the early
The geographical isolation and recent glacial history of Shetland have resulted in a depleted mammalian fauna and the brown rat and house mouse are two of only three species of rodent present in the islands. The Shetland field mouse is the third and the archipelago's fourth endemic subspecies, of which there are three varieties in Yell, Foula, and Fair Isle.[216] They are variants of Apodemus sylvaticus and archaeological evidence suggests that this species was present during the Middle Iron Age (around 200 BC to 400 CE). It is possible that Apodemus was introduced from Orkney where a population has existed since at the least the Bronze Age.[219]
Domesticated animals
There is a variety of indigenous breeds, of which the diminutive Shetland pony is probably the best known, as well as being an important part of the Shetland farming tradition. The first written record of the pony was in 1603 in the Court Books of Shetland and, for its size, it is the strongest of all the horse breeds.[220][221] Others are the Shetland Sheepdog or "Sheltie", the endangered Shetland cattle[222] and Shetland goose[223][224] and the Shetland sheep which is believed to have originated prior to 1000 AD.[225] The Grice was a breed of semi-domesticated pig that had a habit of attacking lambs. It became extinct sometime between the middle of the nineteenth century and the 1930s.[226]
See also
Lists
- List of counties of the United Kingdom
- List of islands in Scotland
- List of populated places in Shetland
About Shetland
Others
- Hjeltefjorden
- Battle of Florvåg
- Rögnvald Kali Kolsson
- Timeline of prehistoric Scotland
- Prehistoric Scotland
- Constitutional status of Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles
Notes
- ^ Shetland, unlike the rest of Scotland, has "no tradition of Gaelic".[1]
- ^ As with all western dialects of Norse, the stressed a shifts to e and so the ja became je as with Norse hjalpa which became hjelpa. Then the pronunciation changed through a process of reverse lenition of the initial /hj/ to /ʃ/. This is also found in some Norwegian dialects, for example in the word hjå ("with") and the place names Hjerkinn and Sjoa (meaning from *Hjó). Lastly, the l before the t disappeared.[10]
- ^ Shetland Islands Council state there are 15 inhabited islands, and count East and West Burra, which are joined by a bridge, as a single unit. Out Skerries has two inhabited islands: Housay and Bruray.[2]
- ^ The Scord of Brouster site includes a cluster of six or seven walled fields and three stone circular houses that contains the earliest hoe-blades found so far in Scotland.[54]
- Magnus Barelegs.[65]
- Rigsraadet (Council of the Realm), Christian pawned Orkney for 50,000 Rhenish guilders. On 28 May 1470, he also pawned Shetland for 8,000 Rhenish guilders.[77] He had secured a clause in the contract which gave future kings of Norway the right to redeem the islands for a fixed sum of 210 kg of gold or 2,310 kg of silver. Several attempts were made during the 17th and 18th centuries to redeem the islands, without success.[78]
- Haakon VII in which they stated: "Today no 'foreign' flag is more familiar or more welcome in our voes and havens than that of Norway, and Shetlanders continue to look upon Norway as their mother-land, and recall with pride and affection the time when their forefathers were under the rule of the Kings of Norway".[69]
- i.e., circa £68,000 per head.
- ^ The flag is the same design Icelandic republicans used in the early 20th century known in Iceland as Hvítbláinn, the "white-blue".[173]
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- ^ "Street Closed for Filming Television Crime Series". Shetland Times. 9 April 2015. Archived from the original on 17 April 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
- ^ "Scottish actor Douglas Henshall on the perks of filming new BBC crime drama Shetland ... in and around Glasgow". Daily Record. Glasgow. 2 March 2013. Archived from the original on 13 December 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
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- ^ Scott, W. and Palmer, R. (1987) The Flowering Plants and Ferns of the Shetland Islands. Shetland Times. Lerwick.
- ^ Scott, W.; Harvey P.; Riddington R.; and Fisher, M. (2002) Rare Plants of Shetland, Shetland Amenity Trust, Lerwick.
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General references
- Armit, I.; (2003), Towers in the North: The Brochs of Scotland, Stroud, Tempus, ISBN 0-7524-1932-3
- Ballin Smith, B. and Banks, I.; (ed. 2002), In the Shadow of the Brochs, the Iron Age in Scotland, Stroud, Tempus, ISBN 0-7524-2517-X
- Barrett, James H.; "The Norse in Scotland" in Brink, Stefan, (ed. 2008), The Viking World, Abingdon, Routledge, ISBN 0-415-33315-6
- Clapperton, Chalmers M.; (ed. 1983), Scotland: A New Study, Newton Abbott, David & Charles
- Gillen, Con; (2003), Geology and landscapes of Scotland, Harpenden, Terra Publishing, ISBN 1-903544-09-2
- ISBN 0-8160-3004-9
- Fleming, Andrew; (2005), St. Kilda and the Wider World: Tales of an Iconic Island, Windgather Press, ISBN 1-905119-00-3
- Gammeltoft, Peder; (2010), "Shetland and Orkney Island-Names – A Dynamic Group Archived 23 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine", Northern Lights, Northern Words, Selected Papers from the FRLSU Conference, Kirkwall 2009, edited by Robert McColl Millar
- General Register Office for Scotland (28 November 2003) Scotland's Census 2001 – Occasional Paper No 10: Statistics for Inhabited Islands. Retrieved 26 February 2012.
- Haswell-Smith, Hamish (2004). The Scottish Islands. Edinburgh: Canongate. ISBN 978-1-84195-454-7.
- ISBN 1-84018-376-4
- Jones, Charles; (ed. 1997), The Edinburgh history of the Scots language, Edinburgh University Press, ISBN 0-7486-0754-4
- Keay, J. & Keay, J.; (1994), Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland, London, HarperCollins, ISBN 0-00-255082-2
- Mellor, Chris (January 2020). "An illustrated guide to sea stack climbing in the UK & Ireland" (PDF). needlesports. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
- Noble, Gordon; Poller, Tessa & Verrill, Lucy; (2008), Scottish Odysseys: The Archaeology of Islands, Stroud, Tempus, ISBN 978-0-7524-4168-9
- Omand, Donald; (ed. 2003), The Orkney Book, Edinburgh, Birlinn, ISBN 1-84158-254-9
- Nicolson, James R.; (1972), Shetland, Newton Abbott, David & Charles
- Sandnes, Berit; (2003), From Starafjall to Starling Hill: An investigation of the formation and development of Old Norse place-names in Orkney Archived 22 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine, (pdf), Doctoral Dissertation, NTU Trondheim
- Schei, Liv Kjørsvik; (2006), The Shetland Isles, Grantown-on-Spey, Colin Baxter Photography, ISBN 978-1-84107-330-9
- Scottish Natural Heritage, (2008), The Story of Hermaness National Nature Reserve, Lerwick
- Shetland Islands Council, (2005), "Shetland In Statistics 2005", (pdf), Economic Development Unit, Lerwick, Retrieved 19 March 2011
- Shetland Islands Council, (2010), "Shetland in Statistics 2010", (pdf), Economic Development Unit, Lerwick, Retrieved 6 March 2011
- Thomson, William P. L.; (2008), The New History of Orkney, Edinburgh, Birlinn, ISBN 978-1-84158-696-0
- Turner, Val; (1998), Ancient Shetland, London, B. T. Batsford/Historic Scotland, ISBN 0-7134-8000-9
- ISBN 1-84158-323-5, First published 1926.
Further reading
- OCLC 220008309.
- Shepherd, Mike (2015). Oil Strike North Sea: A first-hand history of North Sea oil. Luath Press.
- Withrington, Donald J., ed. (1983). Shetland and the Outside World, 1469–1969. Aberdeen University Studies Series, no. 15. Oxford, United Kingdom: Published for the University of Aberdeen by Oxford University Press. OCLC 8195814.
External links
- Shetland at Curlie
- Shetland Islands Council
- www.shetland.org
- shetlopedia.com, – The Online Shetland Encyclopedia
- HIE Area Profile – Shetland (PDF file) from Highlands and Islands Enterprise
- Shetlink – Shetland's Online Community
- National Library of Scotland: Scottish Screen Archive (selection of archive films about Shetland)