Aith, (

Shetland dialect Shetland dialect (also variously known as Shetlandic; broad or auld Shetland or Shaetlan; and referred to as Modern Shetlandic Scots (MSS) by some linguists) is a dialect of Insular Scots spoken in Shetland, an archipelago to the north of main ...

: Eid,

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 ...

: ''Eið'', meaning Isthmus, cf Eday), is a village on the Northern coast of the West

Shetland Mainland The Mainland is the main island of Shetland, Scotland. The island contains Shetland's only burgh, Lerwick, and is the centre of Shetland's ferry and air connections. Geography It has an area of , making it the third-largest Scottish island and ...

, Scotland at the southern end of Aith Voe, some west of

Lerwick Lerwick (; non, Leirvik; nrn, Larvik) is the main town and port of the Shetland archipelago, Scotland. Shetland's only burgh, Lerwick had a population of about 7,000 residents in 2010. Centred off the north coast of the Scottish mainland a ...

. Aith lies on the B9071 that runs south to the junction with the A971 (which links Lerwick to the west of Shetland) at the village of Bixter and North East via East Burrafirth to the junction with the

A970 The A970 is a single-carriageway road that runs from south to north of Mainland Shetland, Scotland. The road also spurs to Scalloway and North Roe. The road crosses the end of a runway at Sumburgh Airport Sumburgh Airport is the main ai ...

(which links Lerwick to the North) at the village of Voe. A single track road leads north from Aith along the west shoreline of Aith Voe to

Vementry Vementry (Old Norse: "Vemunðarey") is an uninhabited Scottish island in Shetland on the north side of the West Mainland, lying south of Muckle Roe. Description and history The island is known for its well-preserved chambered cairn. The well ...

. Every year in early June the Aith Lifeboat Gala is held to raise money for the

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...

, featuring a jarl squad and displays by the Shetland Coastguard among other activities.

History

The modern settlement occupies an area originally named Aithsting during the period of

Norse Norse is a demonym for Norsemen, a medieval North Germanic ethnolinguistic group ancestral to modern Scandinavians, defined as speakers of Old Norse from about the 9th to the 13th centuries. Norse may also refer to: Culture and religion * Nor ...

occupation. The surrounding

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

is still known as Aithsting.

Buildings and structures

* Aith Lifeboat Station is the most northerly in Britain, established in 1933. * Aith Junior High School is situated in the centre of the village. The school has nursery,

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

, and

secondary Secondary may refer to: Science and nature * Secondary emission, of particles ** Secondary electrons, electrons generated as ionization products * The secondary winding, or the electrical or electronic circuit connected to the secondary winding i ...

departments with a combined roll of around 190–200. The secondary roll includes pupils from

Sandness Sandness (the "d" is not pronounced locally) is a headland and district in the west of Shetland Mainland, Scotland. Sandness was a civil parish, which also included the island of Papa Stour some 1600 metres northwest across ''Papa Sound''. ...

, Skeld, Happyhansel and Aith primary schools. The original school building, which opened in 1922 and became a Junior High in 1970, was located on the east of the main settlement, below the junction of the B9071 and Whitelaw Road. The school relocated to a new building in the more central location in 1982 * West Mainland Leisure Centre, opened on 7 September 2002 and is operated by

Shetland Recreational Trust Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

. Facilities include a main hall, squash court, swimming pool with paddling pool, fitness suite and health suite. *Aith Marina *Aith Community Hall, incorporating the Rankin Lounge.

Notable events

On 20 February 2008 several houses in Aith were evacuated due to a fire in the local garage prompting fears that

oxyacetylene Principle of burn cutting Oxy-fuel welding (commonly called oxyacetylene welding, oxy welding, or gas welding in the United States) and oxy-fuel cutting are processes that use fuel gases (or liquid fuels such as gasoline or petrol, diesel, ...

canisters stored there might explode. The garage was destroyed and the site later cleared.

References

External links

Undiscovered Scotland - Aith
{{Shetland Villages in Mainland, Shetland