Orkney, also called the Orkney Islands, is a group of islands located off the northern coast of mainland Scotland. The name "The Orkneys" is sometimes used. It is part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland and is about 10 miles (16 km) north of Caithness. Orkney includes around 70 islands, of which 20 have people living on them. The largest island, called the Mainland, covers 523 square kilometers (202 square miles), making it the sixth-largest island in Scotland and the tenth-largest in the British Isles. Kirkwall is the largest town and the administrative center of Orkney.

Orkney is one of 32 council areas in Scotland. It is also a part of the Scottish Parliament, a lieutenancy area, and an historic county. The local government is called the Orkney Islands Council.

People have lived on Orkney for at least 10,000 years. Early groups included hunter-gatherers from the Upper Palaeolithic and Mesolithic periods, followed by Neolithic and Bronze Age farmers, and later by the Picts during the Iron Age. In 875, the Kingdom of Norway took control of Orkney and settled it with Norse people. In 1472, the Parliament of Scotland took over the Earldom of Orkney after the family of James III’s bride, Margaret of Denmark, failed to pay a promised gift.

Besides the Mainland, most of the other islands are divided into two groups: the North Isles and the South Isles. Orkney has a mild climate and very fertile soil. Most of the land is farmed, and agriculture is the most important part of the economy. Wind and marine energy are becoming increasingly important because Orkney produces more electricity from renewable sources than it uses. Winter temperatures average 4°C (39°F), and summer temperatures average 12°C (54°F).

The people of Orkney are called Orcadians. They speak a unique dialect of the Scots language and have a rich tradition of stories and folklore. Orkney has some of the oldest and best-preserved Neolithic sites in Europe. The "Heart of Neolithic Orkney" is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The area is also home to many types of marine and bird life.

Etymology

Pytheas of Massalia visited Britain possibly between 322 and 285 BC. He described Britain as having a triangular shape, with a northern tip called Orcas. This may have referred to Dunnet Head, from which the Orkney Islands can be seen. In the first century AD, Roman geographers Ptolemy and Pomponius Mela called the islands Orcades (Ancient Greek: Όρκάδες). Tacitus, writing in AD 98, also used the name Orcades, stating that his father-in-law Agricola had "discovered and subjugated the Orcades hitherto unknown." Earlier, both Mela and Pliny had mentioned the islands. The Byzantine writer John Tzetzes also referred to the islands as Orcades in his work Chiliades.

Linguists often suggest that the word "orc-" comes from a Pictish tribal name meaning "young pig" or "young boar." In Old Irish, the islands were called Insi Orc, meaning "islands of the young pigs." In modern Welsh, the archipelago is known as Ynysoedd Erch, and in modern Scottish Gaelic, it is called Arcaibh. The ending -aibh represents a part of the language once used to show position. Some earlier sources suggest the name might come from the Latin word orca, meaning "whale." The Anglo-Saxon monk Bede referred to the islands as Orcades insulae in The Ecclesiastical History of the English People.

In the late ninth century, Norwegian settlers reinterpreted "orc" as the Old Norse word orkn, meaning "seal," and added eyjar, meaning "islands," creating the name Orkneyjar, or "Seal Islands." Over time, the plural suffix -jar was removed in English, leaving the modern name Orkney. According to Historia Norwegiæ, the name Orkney may have come from an earl named Orkan.

The Norse called Mainland, Orkney Megenland ("Mainland") or Hrossey ("Horse Island"). The island was sometimes called Pomona or Pomonia, a name from a 16th-century mistake by George Buchanan. This name was rarely used locally.

The plural "Orkneys" began being used in the 18th century or earlier, as seen in works by Sir Walter Scott. However, since the mid-19th century, locals have mostly stopped using the plural form, though it remains common in publications outside Scotland.

History

Late Upper Palaeolithic stone tools from the Ahrensburgian culture were found on the mainland of Orkney, at places like Stronsay and Brodgar. This suggests that people lived on the islands around or before 8000 BC.

A burned hazelnut shell, found in 2007 during an excavation in Tankerness on the Mainland, was dated to between 6820 and 6660 BC. This shows that groups of people who moved around and lived in the area, called Mesolithic tribes, were present. The oldest known permanent home was at Knap of Howar, a Neolithic farm on Papa Westray, built around 3500 BC. The village of Skara Brae, one of the best-preserved Neolithic homes in Europe, was likely lived in from about 3100 BC. Other Neolithic remains include the Standing Stones of Stenness, the Maeshowe passage grave, the Ring of Brodgar, and other standing stones. Many of these settlements were abandoned around 2500 BC, possibly because the weather changed.

In September 2021, archaeologists found two polished stone balls in a 5500-year-old burial tomb on Sanday. One of the balls was described by Dr. Hugo Anderson as being the size of a cricket ball, perfectly round and finely made.

During the Bronze Age, fewer large stone buildings were constructed, though some ceremonial circles remained in use. Metalworking was slowly introduced to Britain from Europe over a long time. Fewer Orcadian sites from this period are known, but some include the Plumcake Mound near the Ring of Brodgar and places like Tofts Ness on Sanday and the remains of two houses on Holm of Faray.

Excavations at Quanterness on the Mainland uncovered an Atlantic roundhouse built around 700 BC. Similar structures were found at Bu on the Mainland and Pierowall Quarry on Westray. The most notable Iron Age buildings in Orkney are the ruins of round towers called "brochs" and their connected settlements, such as the Broch of Burroughston and Broch of Gurness. Scholars are still trying to understand what these buildings were used for and how they were built. Other structures from this time include underground storage areas and aisled roundhouses, often found near broch sites.

During the Roman invasion of Britain, the "King of Orkney" was one of 11 leaders who reportedly submitted to Emperor Claudius in AD 43 at Colchester. After the Roman fleet left, direct Roman influence on Orkney was limited to trade rather than control. A list of Roman provinces included a questionable entry called "Orcades provincia," which some recent research is re-evaluating.

By the late Iron Age, Orkney was part of the Pictish kingdom. Though fewer remains from this time exist, the rich land and sea resources likely supported the Picts. Later, the Dalriadic Gaels influenced the islands, possibly through Celtic missionaries, as seen in place names like "Papa." The Picts were gradually replaced by North Germanic people from the late 8th century onward. The way this happened is debated, with theories ranging from peaceful coexistence to violence. Some suggest an attack by forces from Fortriu in 681 may have weakened local power and helped the Norse take control.

Orkney and Shetland saw many Norwegian settlers arrive in the late 8th and early 9th centuries. Vikings used the islands as a base for raids against Norway and Scotland. In response, Norwegian king Harald Fairhair claimed the Northern Isles in 875, as described in the Orkneyinga Saga. Rognvald Eysteinsson received Orkney and Shetland as an earldom and passed it to his brother, Sigurd the Mighty. Sigurd later conquered parts of mainland Britain, including Caithness and Sutherland.

After Sigurd’s death, his line nearly ended, but his son by a slave, Torf-Einarr, started a dynasty that ruled for centuries. He was followed by his son Thorfinn Skull-splitter, during whose time the deposed Norwegian king Eric Bloodaxe used Orkney as a base for attacks. Thorfinn’s death and burial at the Broch of Hoxa led to long family conflicts.

The islands were originally pagan, but details about the shift to Christianity during the Norse era are unclear. The Orkneyinga Saga says Olaf Tryggvasson converted the islands to Christianity in 995. He ordered the jarl Sigurd the Stout to be baptized or face punishment. Sigurd agreed, and the islands became Christian, with their own bishop by the early 11th century.

Thorfinn the Mighty, a descendant of Scottish king Malcolm II, ruled Orkney in the 11th century and controlled a small empire from Dublin to Shetland. He died around 1065, and his sons Paul and Erlend later fought in the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066. A later conflict between Paul’s son Magnus Erlendsson and his cousin Haakon Paulsson led to Magnus’s death in 1116 and the building of St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall.

The Scottish crown claimed control over Caithness and Sutherland from Norway in 1098. The jarls owed loyalty to the Scottish crown for their mainland lands but remained under Norwegian rule for Orkney and Shetland. In 1195, Shetland became a separate lordship.

In 1231, the Norse earldom ended with the murder of Jon Haraldsson in Thurso. The Earldom of Caithness was given to Magnus, son of the Earl of Angus, who was confirmed as Earl of Orkney by Haakon IV of Norway in 1236. Around the same time, the earldom lost part of its mainland territory, which became the separate earldom of Sutherland.

In 1290, the death of Margaret, Maid of Norway, while traveling to Scotland, caused a succession crisis that led to the Wars of Scottish Independence. By the 14th century, the earls of Orkney lost control of Caithness, leaving the earldom to cover only the islands. In 1379, the earldom passed to the Sinclair family, who were also barons near Edinburgh.

Signs of Viking life in Orkney include the settlement at Brough of Birsay, many place names, and runic carvings at Maeshowe.

In 1468, Orkney and Shetland were pledged by Christian I, as King of Norway, as a guarantee for a debt.

Current demographics

In 2022, the census recorded a total population of 21,958. This was an increase of 2.85% compared to 2011. Of these people, 17,805 (81%) lived on the mainland.

The largest groups of non-British residents were from Ireland (125 people) and Poland (98 people). There were 352 people from non-white ethnic groups. More than half of these people were of Asian origin.

36% of the population said they were Christian. Of these, 27% belonged to the Church of Scotland, and 2.7% were Roman Catholic. Just under 2% said they followed another religion. The largest group among these was 197 people who identified as pagan. 62% of people said they had no religion or did not answer the question.

For most people over the age of 3, the main language spoken was either English or Scots. Only 238 people spoke a different language.

Geography

Orkney is separated from the mainland of Scotland by the Pentland Firth, a ten-kilometre-wide (6 mi) stretch of water between Brough Ness on the island of South Ronaldsay and Duncansby Head in Caithness. Orkney lies between 58°41′ and 59°24′ north, and 2°22′ and 3°26′ west. It measures 80 kilometres (50 mi) from northeast to southwest and 47 kilometres (29 mi) from east to west, covering 975 square kilometres (376 sq mi).

Orkney is separated from the Shetland Islands, a group further out, by a stretch of water called the Fair Isle Channel.

The islands are mostly flat, except for some steep sandstone hills on Mainland, Rousay, and Hoy (where the tallest point in Orkney, Ward Hill, is located) and rugged cliffs on some western coasts. Nearly all of the islands have lakes, but the waterways are only small streams that drain the high land. The coastlines have many inlets, and the islands are divided from each other by narrow bodies of water called "sounds" or "firths."

The tidal currents, or "roosts" as some call them locally, off many of the islands are fast, with whirlpools often forming. The islands are known for having no trees, which is partly because of the strong winds.

Only three settlements have populations of more than 500: the towns of Kirkwall and Stromness and the village of Finstown. Other villages include Balfour, Dounby, Houton, Longhope, Lyness, Pierowall, St Margaret's Hope, and Whitehall.

The surface rock of Orkney is mostly Old Red Sandstone, mostly from the Middle Devonian period. Like the nearby mainland county of Caithness, this sandstone lies on top of metamorphic and igneous rocks from the Moine series, as seen on Mainland, where a narrow strip is exposed between Stromness and Inganess, and again on the small island of Graemsay. These rocks are made of grey gneiss and granite.

The Middle Devonian is divided into three main groups. The lower part, mostly from the Eifelian period, consists of lakebeds called the lower and upper Stromness Flagstones, which were deposited in Lake Orcadie. The later Rousay flagstone formation is found throughout much of the North and South Isles and East Mainland.

The Old Man of Hoy is made of sandstone from the uppermost Eday Group, which can be up to 800 metres (2,600 ft) thick in some places. This sandstone sits on top of steeply tilted flagstones, and scientists are still debating how to interpret these layers.

The Devonian and older rocks of Orkney are cut by a series of faults that run from west-southwest to east-northeast to north-south. Many of these faults were active during the deposition of the Devonian layers.

Middle Devonian basaltic volcanic rocks are found on western Hoy, on Deerness in eastern Mainland, and on Shapinsay. Scientists have proposed that the volcanic rocks on Hoy are similar to those on the other two locations, but differences in their chemical makeup make this uncertain. Lamprophyre dykes from the Late Permian period are found throughout Orkney.

Glacial striation and the presence of chalk and flint rocks that came from the North Sea bed show the effect of ice on the islands' landscapes. Boulder clay is also common, and moraines cover large areas.

Orkney has a cool temperate climate that is unusually mild and steady for its northerly location, due to the warm waters of the Norwegian Current, a north-easterly extension of the North Atlantic Drift, which itself is part of the Gulf Stream. The average yearly temperature is 8 °C (46 °F), with winter averages at 4 °C (39 °F) and summer averages at 12 °C (54 °F).

The average yearly rainfall ranges from 850 millimetres (33 in) to 1,060 millimetres (42 in). Winds are a major part of the climate, with breezes present even in summer. In winter, strong winds are common, with an average of 52 hours of gales recorded each year.

Tourists are often fascinated by the islands' "nightless" summers. On the longest day, the sun rises at 04:00 and sets at 22:29 BST, and there is no complete darkness. This long twilight is called the "simmer dim" in the Northern Isles. Winter nights are long, with the sun rising at 09:05 and setting at 15:16 on the shortest day. During this time, the aurora borealis can sometimes be seen on the northern horizon.

The first average weather table below is for Kirkwall's weather station, the largest settlement. The second is for the Loch of Hundland, a rural location to the northwest of Mainland.

Governance

The local government for the Orkney Islands is the Orkney Islands Council. It is located at the Council Offices on School Place in Kirkwall.

In 1472, the land and legal authority of the old earldom of Orkney were taken over by the Scottish crown. At the same time, the separate lordship of Shetland was also taken over by Scotland. Over time, Scotland’s usual system of government was introduced to the Northern Isles. The position of Sheriff of Orkney and Shetland was created in 1541. Orkney and Shetland kept their own legal systems until 1612, when the laws of Scotland were used instead.

In 1667, groups called Commissioners of Supply were created for each shire in Scotland. Orkney and Shetland, even though they were one shire, had separate groups of commissioners. Over time, more local government duties were given to these commissioners. In 1829, a court called the Court of Session said it would not decide if Orkney and Shetland were one county or two. For some purposes, like justice and elections, they were treated as one county. For local government tasks, they were treated as two counties. In 1890, elected county councils were created in Scotland by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889. These councils took over most duties from the commissioners, who were later abolished in 1930. The 1889 Act also stated that Orkney and Shetland should be separate counties.

The Orkney County Council held its first meeting on May 22, 1890, at Kirkwall Sheriff Court, also called County Buildings, on Watergate in Kirkwall. This building had been completed in 1877 and was also used by the commissioners of supply.

In 1975, local government in Scotland was reorganized under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973. This law replaced counties, burghs, and landward districts. Most of Scotland used a two-tier system with upper and lower levels of government, but Orkney, Shetland, and the Western Isles used a single-tier system with island areas. In 1996, another reform created single-tier council areas across all of Scotland. The councils formed in 1975 continued to provide the same services after 1996, but their areas were renamed as council areas.

Parishes and communities

Parishes have existed since medieval times. From 1845 to 1894, they had parish boards, and from 1894 to 1930, they had parish councils. Since 1930, parishes have not had any official roles, but they are still used to show statistics.

Orkney’s civil parishes include:

Evie and Rendall were once separate parishes, but they were joined together in the 16th century.

Community councils were created in 1975 as part of larger changes that year. They do not have legal powers, but they act as a group that represents their communities. Orkney Islands Council decides the areas for community councils, but a council is only formed if enough people in the area want it. After a review in 2022, Orkney includes the following communities, all of which have community councils that are operating as of 2024:

Islands

The Mainland is the largest island in Orkney. Both of Orkney’s burghs, Kirkwall and Stromness, are located on this island. It is the center of Orkney’s transportation system, with ferry and air links to other islands and the outside world. The Mainland has more people (75% of Orkney’s population) than other islands and has fertile farmland. The island is divided into two areas: East Mainland and West Mainland. These areas are named based on their position relative to Kirkwall. Most of the Mainland lies west of Kirkwall, with less land to the east. West Mainland parishes include Stromness, Sandwick, Birsay, Harray, Stenness, Orphir, Evie, Rendall, and Firth. East Mainland parishes include St Ola, Tankerness, St Andrews, Holm, and Deerness.

The Mainland is mostly flat, especially in the East Mainland, but has coastal cliffs in the north and west. It has two large lochs: the Loch of Harray and the Loch of Stenness. The island has remains of many ancient structures from the Neolithic, Pictish, and Viking periods. Four Neolithic sites are part of the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site, added in 1999.

Other islands are grouped as north or south of the Mainland. Exceptions are Sule Skerry and Sule Stack, which are 60 kilometers (37 miles) west of the archipelago but are part of Orkney for government purposes. The suffix “a” or “ay” in island names comes from the Norse word “ey,” meaning “island.” Islands called “holms” are very small.

The northern group of islands is the largest and includes many moderately sized islands connected to the Mainland by ferry and air. Farming, fishing, and tourism are the main sources of income for most islands.

The northernmost island is North Ronaldsay, located 4 kilometers (2 miles) from its nearest neighbor, Sanday. Westray, with a population of 550, is connected by ferry and air to Papa Westray. Eday is in the center of the North Isles, with moorland in its center. Its main industries were peat extraction and limestone quarrying.

Rousay, Egilsay, and Gairsay are north of the West Mainland across the Eynhallow Sound. Rousay has ancient monuments, including the Quoyness chambered cairn. Egilsay has the ruins of the only round-towered church in Orkney. Wyre, to the southeast, has Cubbie Roo’s Castle. Stronsay and Papa Stronsay are further east across the Stronsay Firth. Auskerry, south of Stronsay, has a population of five. Shapinsay and its Balfour Castle are near Kirkwall.

Other small, uninhabited islands in the North Isles include Calf of Eday, Damsay, Eynhallow, Faray, Helliar Holm, Holm of Faray, Holm of Huip, Holm of Papa, Holm of Scockness, Kili Holm, Linga Holm, Muckle Green Holm, Rusk Holm, and Sweyn Holm.

The southern group of islands surrounds Scapa Flow. Hoy, to the west, is the second-largest island in Orkney. Ward Hill on Hoy is the highest point in the archipelago. The Old Man of Hoy is a famous sea stack. Graemsay and Flotta are connected by ferry to the Mainland and Hoy. Flotta has a large oil terminal. South Walls has a 19th-century Martello tower and is connected to Hoy by the Ayre. Burray is east of Scapa Flow and linked by causeway to South Ronaldsay, which hosts events like the Festival of the Horse and the Boys’ Ploughing Match. South Ronaldsay also has the Neolithic Tomb of the Eagles. South Ronaldsay, Burray, Glimps Holm, and Lamb Holm are connected to the Mainland by the Churchill Barriers.

Uninhabited islands in the southern group include Calf of Flotta, Cava, Copinsay, Corn Holm, Fara, Glimps Holm, Hunda, Lamb Holm, Rysa Little, Switha, and Swona. The Pentland Skerries are further south, near the Scottish mainland.

Politics

Orkney is part of the Orkney and Shetland constituency in the House of Commons, which elects one Member of Parliament (MP). The current MP is Alistair Carmichael. This seat has been held by the Liberal Democrats or their previous group since 1950, longer than any other seat they represent in Great Britain.

In the Scottish Parliament, the Orkney Islands constituency elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) using the first past the post method. The current MSP is Liam McArthur of the Liberal Democrats. Before McArthur, the MSP was Jim Wallace, who previously served as Deputy First Minister. Orkney is part of the Highlands and Islands electoral region.

The Orkney Movement, a political group that supported giving Orkney more independence from the rest of Scotland, tried to win the 1987 general election as the Orkney and Shetland Movement (a group formed with a similar group from Shetland). The Scottish National Party chose not to run a candidate in the seat to let the movement compete without opposition. Their candidate, John Goodlad, received 3,095 votes, or 14.5% of the total, but the movement did not try this again.

In the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, 67.2% of voters in Orkney voted no to the question, "Should Scotland be an independent country?" This was the highest no vote percentage in any council area in Scotland. The referendum had an 83.7% turnout in Orkney, with 10,004 votes against independence and 4,883 votes for independence. In the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, 63.2% of voters in Orkney voted to remain in the EU.

In 2022, as part of the Levelling Up White Paper, an "Island Forum" was proposed. This would allow local leaders and residents in Orkney to work with people from Shetland, the Western Isles, Anglesey, and the Isle of Wight on shared issues, such as improving internet access, and to share challenges with the government. In July 2023, Orkney Council looked into changing its status, considering options like becoming a British Crown Dependency, a self-governing area within Norway, or staying in the United Kingdom.

Economy

The percentage of people in Orkney who are working is higher than the average in Scotland. In 2023, 89.8% of Orkney’s population was working, compared to 77.9% in Scotland. That year, the average unemployment rate in Orkney was 1.6%.

Orkney’s soil is generally very fertile, and most of the land is used for farming. Agriculture is the most important part of Orkney’s economy and provides jobs for about 25% of the workforce, according to a 2008 report. Over 90% of farmland is used for grazing sheep and cattle. About 4% of farmland is used for growing cereals (3,800 hectares or 9,400 acres), and 91 hectares (220 acres) are covered by woodland. Nearly 44% of Orkney’s businesses are in the agriculture, forestry, and fishing sector. About 90% of the islands’ milk is used to make Orkney Cheddar cheese.

Fishing is less important than it once was but still employs 238 people in 2023, or about 4% of the islands’ total workforce. Modern fishing focuses on herring, white fish, lobsters, crabs, shellfish, and salmon farming.

A 2009 report showed that traditional industries in Orkney export beef, cheese, whisky, beer, fish, and other seafood. In recent years, other industries have grown, including tourism, food and beverage manufacturing, jewelry, knitwear, crafts, construction, and oil transportation through the Flotta oil terminal.

There are three whisky distilleries in Orkney: Scapa, Highland Park, and the Deerness Distillery, which opened in 2023. Other important industries include manufacturing, construction, retail, hotels, restaurants, and public services like healthcare.

There are about 1,500 businesses on the island. Over 90% have fewer than 10 employees. Estimates suggest there are about 11,000 jobs, of which around 5,000 are part-time. Manufacturing is limited, mostly to food and drink processing like cheese and whisky. Except for the Flotta oil terminal, there are few large private employers. Fisheries are less important to employment in Orkney than in Shetland, and farming is about twice as important.

A 2020 report said that spending by tourists increased from £49.5 million in 2017 to £67.1 million in 2019, showing tourism is a key part of the economy. Popular attractions include the "Heart of Neolithic Orkney," a group of 5,000-year-old sites like Skara Brae and the Ring of Brodgar stone circle. The Hoy area is also visited for its natural beauty, including cliffs and the Old Man, a famous sea stack. In 2017, 62% of tourists visited for heritage reasons. The UHI Archaeology Institute has led excavations at the Ness of Brodgar, helping to grow interest in archaeology.

Orkney hosts several international festivals each year, such as the Orkney International Science Festival in September, a folk festival in May, and the St Magnus International Arts Festival in June.

In 2020, the number of visitors arriving by ferry dropped by 71% due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Cruise ships also did not arrive, and there were no day trips or holiday lets by April 2020. Major events like the St Magnus Festival, Orkney Folk Festival, Stromness Shopping Week, and the Agricultural Shows were canceled.

Orkney has strong wind and marine energy resources. A 2015 report said the islands produce more than 100% of their net power from renewable sources. This comes mainly from wind turbines across Orkney.

The European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) is a research facility that tests wave energy at Billia Croo and tidal energy at the Fall of Warness. The Eday tidal project was called "the first of its kind in the world" for testing wave and tidal energy devices.

In 2007, Scottish and Southern Energy, with the University of Strathclyde, started a project to improve energy use in Orkney. This included using hydrogen for vehicles and heating, as well as batteries and electric vehicles.

As of 2019, more than 2% of vehicles in Orkney were electric, the highest rate in the UK.

A 2019 BBC report said Orkney produces more clean electricity than it needs. After exporting to the UK grid, the islands’ wind, waves, and tides generate about 130% of the electricity they use, all from clean sources. Two options were proposed: exporting energy to the mainland or converting excess renewable power into hydrogen for storage.

In 2020, CNN reported that Orkney plans to use hydrogen fuel cells to power a seagoing vessel. A hydrogen-powered ferry was also planned for testing, using a hydrogen/diesel system. If successful, hydrogen ferries could operate between Orkney’s islands within six months.

Kirkwall Airport plans to use green hydrogen to reduce emissions starting in 2021. This is part of Scotland’s goal to make the Highlands and Islands the world’s first net-zero aviation region by 2040.

Hydrogen manufacturing is also planned for Shetland and other parts of Scotland with access to clean electricity. The Scottish government invested £100 million in the hydrogen sector as part of the Emerging Energy Technologies Fund.

Highland and Islands Airports operates Kirkwall Airport, which Loganair serves with flights to the Scottish mainland and Shetland. The Orkney Islands Council also operates airports on larger islands like Stronsay, Eday, North Ronaldsay, Westray, Papa Westray, Sanday, and Flotta. The shortest scheduled air

Language, literature, and folklore

At the start of recorded history, the islands were home to the Picts, a people who spoke a language called Brythonic. An example of this is the Ogham script found on the Buckquoy spindle-whorl, which shows that Old Irish was spoken in Orkney before the Norse arrived.

After the Norse people took control of the islands, most place names in Orkney became similar to those used in West Norse. The Norse language gradually changed into a local language called Norn, which lasted until the late 1700s. When Norn disappeared, it was replaced by a dialect of Scots known as Orcadian Scots. This dialect is now used less often because of the influence of television, schools, and many people moving to the area. However, some writers and radio hosts are working to bring it back. Many words and the unique musical way of speaking from the Norse language are still used today. One common Orcadian word is "peedie," which means "small" and might come from the French word "petit."

Orkney has many stories and traditions. Some of these tales involve creatures called trows, which are like trolls and are connected to the islands’ Norse history. In the past, people held marriage ceremonies at the Odin Stone, which was part of the Stones of Stenness.

Some well-known writers from modern Orkney include the poet Edwin Muir, the poet and novelist George Mackay Brown, and the novelist Eric Linklater.

According to the 2022 Scottish Census, out of 21,400 people aged three and older in Orkney, 8,278 (38.7%) said they could speak or read the Scots language.

The same census found that out of 21,407 people aged three and older, 177 (0.8%) said they could speak or read Gaelic.

Orcadians

An Orcadian is a person born in Orkney, a place where people strongly value their identity and often speak modestly about themselves. Although Orkney became part of Scotland in 1472, many Orcadians consider themselves Orcadians first and Scots second. However, in the 2011 Scotland Census, the number of Orcadians who identified as Scottish was similar to the average across all of Scotland.

In Orkney, the Scottish mainland is often called "Scotland," while "the mainland" refers to the largest island in Orkney, called Mainland. Orkney has its own unique culture, but traditions like tartans, clans, and bagpipes are not originally from the islands. However, two tartans linked to Orkney have been officially registered, and one tartan was created for the island of Sanday by a local resident. There are also pipe bands in Orkney.

People born in Orkney sometimes call non-native residents of the islands "ferry loupers." The word "loup" means "jump" in the Scots language, and this term has been used for almost 200 years.

Natural history

Orkney has many different kinds of wildlife, including grey and common seals and seabirds like puffins, kittiwakes, black guillemots (tysties), ravens, and great skuas (bonxies). Whales, dolphins, and otters are also seen near the coasts. Inland, the Orkney vole, a special type of common vole brought to the islands by Neolithic people, lives only in Orkney. There are five different types of this vole found on the islands of Sanday, Westray, Rousay, South Ronaldsay, and the Mainland. This is unusual because the species is not found on mainland Britain.

The coastline has colorful flowers such as sea aster, sea squill, sea thrift, common sea-lavender, bell heather, and common heather. The Scottish primrose grows only on the coasts of Orkney and nearby areas like Caithness and Sutherland. Trees are rare in Orkney, but a small forest called Happy Valley with 700 trees and gardens was created on a wet hillside near Stenness in the second half of the 20th century.

The North Ronaldsay sheep is a unique breed of domesticated animal that eats mostly seaweed. These sheep live near the shoreline most of the year to protect the limited grass inland. The island was once home to Atlantic walruses until the mid-1600s.

The Orkney char (Salvelinus inframundus) used to live in Heldale Water on Hoy but has not been seen since 1908. It is now considered extinct.

Stoats, which are not native to Orkney, were introduced in 2010. These animals hunt the common vole and other wildlife, including the Orkney vole, hen harrier, short-eared owl, and ground-nesting birds. NatureScot, Scotland’s nature agency, explained that introducing a ground predator like the stoat to islands without native ground predators is very harmful to Orkney’s wildlife.

In 2018, NatureScot proposed a stoat eradication project across Orkney Mainland, South Ronaldsay, Burray, Glimps Holm, Lamb Holm, Hunda, and other islands. The Orkney Native Wildlife Project planned to use humane traps called DOC150 and DOC200. Partners in the five-year project included RSPB Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage, and the Orkney Islands Council. A report from October 2020 said over 5,000 traps had been placed, with details about their locations.

However, problems arose by January 2021. The Times reported that the project faced sabotage, with traps being destroyed or stolen. Some traps also harmed household pets and other animals. Despite this, most islanders supported the £6 million program. Police Scotland investigated incidents involving damage to and theft of stoat traps.

By 2024, the Orkney Native Wildlife Project had spent £7.9 million trapping more than 6,300 stoats. Progress was slowed by restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic, which stopped trapping during the 2020 breeding season.

Orkney has 13 Special Protection Areas and 6 Special Areas of Conservation. One of Scotland’s 40 national scenic areas, the Hoy and West Mainland National Scenic Area, is also in Orkney. The seas to the northwest of Orkney are important for sand eels, which feed many fish, seabirds, seals, whales, and dolphins. These areas are now protected as a Nature Conservation Marine Protected Area (NCMPA) covering 4,365 km² (1,685 sq mi).

Flag

In 2007, a new flag for Orkney was chosen after a public competition. The flag has a Nordic cross made of blue and yellow colors on a red background. Before this, the traditional flag of St Magnus, which featured a red cross on a yellow background, was sometimes used. However, in 2001, it was determined that this flag was too similar to other flags and could not be officially registered as Orkney's flag.

Freedom of Orkney

The Freedom of Orkney is a ceremonial honor given out by the Orkney Islands Council. It can be given only twice during each Council's term, which usually lasts five years. This tradition began in the mid-15th century.