The Orkney Antiquarian Society was founded in 1922 by Dr. Hugh Marwick, Archdeacon

James Brown Craven Archdeacon James Brown Craven (1850 – 17 April 1924) was author of the ''History of the Church in Orkney'' and several other works on ecclesiastical history. He was a founder and the first president of the Orkney Antiquarian Society. The son of ...

, Joseph Storer Clouston and John Mooney, and continued in existence for 17 years. Its focus of interest was the

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

and

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

of Orkney, in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. During its lifetime, the Society published 15 volumes of ''Proceedings'', the last being in 1939. An ''Orkney Research Agenda'' commissioned by

Historic Scotland Historic Scotland ( gd, Alba Aosmhor) was an executive agency of the Scottish Office and later the Scottish Government from 1991 to 2015, responsible for safeguarding Scotland's built heritage, and promoting its understanding and enjoyment ...

describes the society's founding in 1922 as a "major advance" in Orkney archaeology which provided a "vital outlet for discoveries and research in Orkney". Early 20th century writing on the islands often emphasised their distinct character and Nordic elements in their history, and this influenced subsequent scholarly thought. However, work exploring "Orkneyness" or "Norseness" varied from "excellent" to "suspect" and must be "used critically". Articles from the society's ''Proceedings'' are regularly cited by modern writers on archaeology and

historical linguistics Historical linguistics, also termed diachronic linguistics, is the scientific study of language change over time. Principal concerns of historical linguistics include: # to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages # ...

.For example, in this introduction to th
''Papar Project''
/ref> Members of the society could be on site shortly after an accidental discovery, observing, advising and recording, and finds were sometimes given to the society for their own museum in

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 ''Kirkv ...

. The society had links with other learned societies in Scotland and

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

. It came to an end with the beginning of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, although its name is on some of Marwick's post-war notes about finds made after 1939. ''Orkney Miscellany'', started in 1953, was the successor to the ''Proceedings'' of the Antiquarian Society.

Society officers

:''Presidents'': ::1922 – 1924

::1924 – 1941 Joseph Storer Clouston :''Secretary'': ::1922 – 1941 Hugh Marwick

References

''The Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site: Research Agenda''
ed. Jane Downes, Sally M Foster and C R Wickham-Jones (Historic Scotland 2005)
Archaeology Data Service
1941 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Learned societies of Scotland History of Orkney Archaeology of Scotland Organizations established in 1922 1922 establishments in Scotland History organisations based in Scotland Organisations based in Orkney {{Orkney-stub

Society officers

See also

References