Burwick () is a small harbour on the island of
South Ronaldsay
South Ronaldsay (, also , sco, Sooth Ronalshee) is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of Scotland. It is linked to the Orkney Mainland by the Churchill Barriers, running via Burray, Glimps Holm and Lamb Holm.
Name
Along with North R ...
in the
Orkney Islands
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 ...
, Scotland. It is the closest Orkney harbour to the Scottish mainland and is the terminus of a passenger ferry which operates in the summer to
John o' Groats in
Caithness
Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland.
Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded by ...
.
The name was first recorded in about 1225 as "Bardvik", derived from the
Old Norse
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
''bar vík'', meaning "bay of the extremity", for its position near the southernmost point of the island.
The remains of the Castle of Burwick, a defended
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
fort and probable secondary monastic settlement, occupy the promontory west of the harbour.
References
External links
Ports and Harbours of the UK - Burwick, South RonaldsayCanmore - ''Three Friends'': Burwick
19th century shipwreck.
Canmore - Burwick Lifeboat Station
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Villages in Orkney