|
Thieves Holm
Thieves Holm is a small island in Orkney, Scotland. Geography and geology Thieves Holm is due north of Mainland, Orkney at the mouth of Kirkwall Bay, between the Mainland and the isle of Shapinsay. It is at the west end of the strait between Mainland and Shapinsay, known as the String. It is south west of the tidal island of Helliar Holm.Haswell-Smith, Hamish. (2004) ''The Scottish Islands''. Edinburgh. Canongate. The name is said to derive from the practice of banishing thieves and witches there. The island is uninhabited and home to a variety of wildlife including cormorants, kittiwake The kittiwakes (genus ''Rissa'') are two closely related seabird species in the gull family Laridae, the black-legged kittiwake (''Rissa tridactyla'') and the red-legged kittiwake (''Rissa brevirostris''). The epithets "black-legged" and "red-l ...s and seals. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mainland Orkney
The Mainland, also known as Hrossey and Pomona, is the main island of Orkney, Scotland. Both of Orkney's burghs, Kirkwall and Stromness, lie on the island, which is also the heart of Orkney's ferry and air connections. Seventy-five per cent of Orkney's population live on the island, which is more densely populated than the other islands of the archipelago. The lengthy history of the island's occupation has provided numerous important archaeological sites and the sandstone bedrock provides a platform for fertile farmland. There is an abundance of wildlife, especially seabirds. Etymology The name Mainland is a corruption of the Old Norse . Formerly the island was also known as meaning 'horse island'. The island is sometimes referred to as ''Pomona (mythology), Pomona'' (or ''Pomonia''), a name that stems from a 16th-century mis-translation by George Buchanan.Buchanan, George (1582''Rerum Scoticarum Historia: The First Book''The University of California, Irvine. Revised 8 March 200 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orkney
Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north of the coast of Caithness and has about 70 islands, of which 20 are inhabited. The largest island, the Mainland, Orkney, Mainland, has an area of , making it the List of islands of Scotland, sixth-largest Scottish island and the List of islands of the British Isles, tenth-largest island in the British Isles. Orkney’s largest settlement, and also its administrative centre, is Kirkwall. Orkney is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland, council areas of Scotland, as well as a Orkney (Scottish Parliament constituency), constituency of the Scottish Parliament, a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area, and an counties of Scotland, historic county. The local council is Orkney Islands Council, one of only three councils in Scotland with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mainland, Orkney
The Mainland, also known as Hrossey and Pomona, is the main island of Orkney, Scotland. Both of Orkney's burghs, Kirkwall and Stromness, lie on the island, which is also the heart of Orkney's ferry and air connections. Seventy-five per cent of Orkney's population live on the island, which is more densely populated than the other islands of the archipelago. The lengthy history of the island's occupation has provided numerous important archaeological sites and the sandstone bedrock provides a platform for fertile farmland. There is an abundance of wildlife, especially seabirds. Etymology The name Mainland is a corruption of the Old Norse . Formerly the island was also known as meaning 'horse island'. The island is sometimes referred to as '' Pomona'' (or ''Pomonia''), a name that stems from a 16th-century mis-translation by George Buchanan.Buchanan, George (1582''Rerum Scoticarum Historia: The First Book''The University of California, Irvine. Revised 8 March 2003. Retrieved 4 Oc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kirkwall
Kirkwall ( sco, Kirkwaa, gd, Bàgh na h-Eaglaise, nrn, Kirkavå) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. The name Kirkwall comes from the Norse name (''Church Bay''), which later changed to ''Kirkvoe'', ''Kirkwaa'' and ''Kirkwall''. Kirkwall was formerly the site of an ancient Norse town founded approximately 1000 years ago. Today, it is a transport hub with ferries to many locations. History The town was first mentioned in in the year 1046, when it was recorded as the residence of , the Earl of Orkney, who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn the Mighty. In 1486, King James III of Scotland elevated Kirkwall to the status of a royal burgh. On the western edge of the town, surrounded by Hatston Industrial Estate, there is a prehistoric monument, known as the "Grain Earth House" (see Historic Scotland). It is a short, low, stone-walled passage, deep underground, leading to a small pillared chamber. This kind of earth house (or "souterrai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shapinsay
Shapinsay (, sco, Shapinsee) is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. There is one village on the island, Balfour, from which roll-on/roll-off car ferries sail to Kirkwall on the Orkney Mainland. Balfour Castle, built in the Scottish Baronial style, is one of the island's most prominent features, a reminder of the Balfour family's domination of Shapinsay during the 18th and 19th centuries; the Balfours transformed life on the island by introducing new agricultural techniques. Other landmarks include a standing stone, an Iron Age broch, a souterrain and a salt-water shower. With an area of , Shapinsay is the eighth largest island in the Orkney archipelago. It is low-lying and fertile, consequently most of the area is given over to farming. Shapinsay has two nature reserves and is notable for its bird life. At the 2011 census, Shapinsay had a population of 307. The economy of the island is primarily based on agriculture with the exception of a fe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tidal Island
A tidal island is a piece of land that is connected to the mainland by a natural or man-made causeway that is exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide. Because of the mystique surrounding tidal islands, many of them have been sites of religious worship, such as Mont-Saint-Michel with its Benedictine Abbey. Tidal islands are also commonly the sites of fortresses because of their natural fortifications. List of tidal islands Asia Hong Kong * Ma Shi Chau in Tai Po District, northeastern New Territories, within the Tolo Harbour *Kiu Tau Island in Sai Kung Iran * Naaz islands in Persian gulf, southern seashore of Qeshm island Japan * Enoshima, in Sagami Bay, Kanagawa Prefecture Taiwan * Kueibishan in Penghu * Jiangong Islet in Kinmen South Korea *Jindo Island and Modo Island in southwest South Korea *Jebudo in the west Europe Denmark * Mandø Island – on Denmark's western coast * Knudshoved Island – north of Vordingborg on southern Zealand, Denmark Denmar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Helliar Holm
Helliar Holm is an uninhabited island off the coast of Shapinsay in the Orkney Islands, Scotland. It is home to a lighthouse, which was built in 1893 and automated in 1967. It is a tidal island that used to be connected to Shapinsay. It is still possible to walk across from the mainland during very low tides. The island also has the ruins of a broch, cairn and chapel.Haswell-Smith, Hamish. (2004) ''The Scottish Islands''. Edinburgh. Canongate. In the '' Orkneyinga Saga'' it is referred to as both "Hellisey" and "Eller Holm" Anderson, Joseph (Ed.) (1893) ''Orkneyinga Saga''. Translated by Jón A. Hjaltalin & Gilbert Goudie. Edinburgh. James Thin and Mercat Press (1990 reprint). and John of Fordun refers to it as "Helene-holm" Gallery File:Saeva Ness Lighthouse.jpg, Saeva Ness lighthouse on the tip of Helliar Holm File:Helliarholm.jpg, Cliffs and chambered cairn on Helliar Holm. See also * List of lighthouses in Scotland * List of Northern Lighthouse Board lighthouses Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Cormorant
The great cormorant (''Phalacrocorax carbo''), known as the black shag in New Zealand and formerly also known as the great black cormorant across the Northern Hemisphere, the black cormorant in Australia, and the large cormorant in India, is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds. The genus name is Latinised Ancient Greek, from φαλακρός (''phalakros'', "bald") and κόραξ (''korax'', "raven"), and ''carbo'' is Latin for "charcoal". It breeds in much of the Old World, Australia, and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of North America. Taxonomy and etymology The long white-breasted cormorant ''P. c. lucidus'' found in sub-Saharan Africa, has a white neck and breast. It is often treated as a full species, ''Phalacrocorax lucidus'' (e.g. , ). In addition to the Australasian and African forms, ''Phalacrocorax carbo novaehollandiae'' and ''P. c. lucidus'' mentioned above, other geographically distinct subspecies are recognised, including ''P. c. sinensis' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black-legged Kittiwake
The black-legged kittiwake (''Rissa tridactyla'') is a seabird species in the gull family Laridae. This species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'' as ''Larus tridactylus''. The English name is derived from its call, a shrill 'kittee-wa-aaake, kitte-wa-aaake'. The genus name ''Rissa'' is from the Icelandic name ''rita'' for this bird, and the specific ''tridactyla'' is from Ancient Greek ''tridaktulos'', "three-toed", from ''tri-'', "three-" and ''daktulos'', "toe". In North America, this species is known as the black-legged kittiwake to differentiate it from the red-legged kittiwake, but in Europe, where it is the only member of the genus, it is often known just as kittiwake. Range and distribution The black-legged kittiwake is a coastal bird of the arctic to subarctic regions of the world.del Hoyo, J; Elliott, A; Sargatal, J (1996). ''Handbook of the Birds of the World Vol. 3''. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. pp. 622–62 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
