While it is primarily a dialect of Scots, it retains a number of Old Norse words and phrases, a legacy of the Viking Age when Norsemen settled the islands. It is a lively event that sees performances in venues ranging from the grand to the intimate, including pubs and community halls across the islands. Our content marketing team has developed a series of artist profiles featuring Orcadian creators, helping to bring their work to a wider audience while encouraging cultural tourism that directly supports the local economy.

Do I need a car to explore Orkney?

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Delve into the history of Vikings and Norse culture in Orkney and Shetland and find ways to get involved in places that exist today. Situated in Lamb Holm in Orkney, visit one of the island’s most beloved attractions, The Italian Chapel. Experience the magic of the ‘merry dancers’ with Orkney’s dark skies and clear nights.

Win a luxury Orkney Food & Drink hamper

A Viking Legacy – Many place names in Orkney have Norse origins, and the local dialect still carries traces of Old Norse influences. We share history, legends and tales to entice people to visit this incredible country! Orkney, also referred to as the Orkney Islands or The Orkneys, is an archipelago located in the Northern Isles of Scotland, just off the northern coast of Great Britain.

Orcadians

Once on the islands, renting a car or using local buses and taxis are convenient ways to explore the main attractions. The islands are peaceful and provide a tranquil setting for visitors, making them an ideal location for those seeking a quiet getaway. To the north of Mainland, across the Wide Firth and Shapinsay Sound, lie Shapinsay, Rousay, Egilsay, Stronsay, Eday, Westray, Papa Westray, Sanday, North Ronaldsay, and several smaller islands. The outer islands often have local bus services too. You can take public transport up north to the Orkney islands – you can travel to Aberdeen and Thurso by Scotrail train.

Explore your Orkney

Ferries run from mainland Scotland, with services from Aberdeen, Scrabster, and Gills Bay to Orkney’s main town of Kirkwall or Stromness. Family-friendly accommodations and local museums also make Orkney a comfortable and educational destination for children and parents alike. Yes, the Orkney Islands are a great destination for families, especially those interested in history and nature. Orkney’s blend of history, culture, and natural beauty makes it a unique destination for travelers. During this time, temperatures range from 10°C to 15°C, and the famous “Simmer Dim,” or long summer twilight, allows for extended daylight hours.

Don’t miss the inside track from our Scotland experts on exciting trip ideas, unique attractions and hidden gems loved by locals. Why not sample a tipple or brew or take a look at our list of island restaurants to try? For an exciting sightseeing adventure, you could even hop onboard an inter-island flight with Loganair. Check out services from Orkney Ferries which are accessible from four ports on the Orkney mainland.

To visit the smaller islands, you can use the inter-island ferry service operated by Orkney Ferries. That said, the islands have relatively flat terrain and low traffic, which makes cycling a pleasant option for seeing the islands. Through our work creating travel content, we’ve found that many Irish and UK travellers underestimate the time needed to reach Orkney. The right timing, transport options, and local knowledge can transform your visit from a standard holiday into an unforgettable adventure through time.

Neolithic Orkney: A Window to the Past

Orkney’s cultural life is a rich tapestry woven from the threads of its Scottish and Norse heritage, creating a distinct identity that permeates the music, arts, and everyday life of the islands. The clear waters around the islands are also one of the few places in the UK where one might spot orcas, with several pods visiting regularly, usually between May and September. The islands are a birdwatcher’s paradise, with cliffs and sea stacks providing perfect nesting grounds for a variety of seabirds, including guillemots, kittiwakes, and the charismatic puffins with their colourful beaks https://chickenroadapp.in/ and clownish gait. The islands are a haven for seabirds, making them a prime spot for birdwatching, and the surrounding seas are home to seals, whales, and dolphins. Our cultural content often explores these historical connections, helping Irish visitors understand the shared heritage that links their homeland with Orkney.

That said, the town has relatively flat terrain and low traffic, which makes cycling a pleasant option for seeing the islands. This is when the islands experience the mildest weather and the longest days, as a full range of tourist services are available. These mystical islands require some planning, but the rewards—standing amongst 5,000-year-old stone circles, watching puffins dive from dramatic cliffs, or experiencing the midnight glow of the summer solstice—far outweigh the effort. Our AI-powered content analysis has helped us identify specific Orcadian terms and expressions that resonate with our audience, allowing us to create more authentic travel content that truly reflects the local culture and language.

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Glacial striation and the presence of chalk and flint erratics that originated from the bed of the North Sea demonstrate the influence of ice action on the geomorphology of the islands. The coastlines are indented, and the islands themselves are divided from each other by straits generally called “sounds” or “firths”. Nearly all of the islands have lochs, but the watercourses are merely streams draining the high land.

  • The Orkney Islands played a significant role in more recent history, particularly during both World Wars.
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  • Bicycles can be hired in both Kirkwall and Stromness and outer islands such as North Ronaldsay and Stronsay.

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  • The small islands of Burray and South Ronaldsay, to the south of East Mainland, are now joined to it by causeways constructed during World War II to prevent enemy submarines from entering the naval base at Scapa Flow.
  • Today, Orkney’s history is still visible in its landscapes, from ancient stone circles to wartime relics, making it one of the most historically rich locations in Scotland alongside Kilmartin glen in Argyll.
  • To visit the smaller islands, you can use the inter-island ferry service operated by Orkney Ferries.

Orkney Library and Archive operates a Mobile Library Service that serves the rural parishes and islands of Orkney. Inter-island ferry services connect all the inhabited islands to Orkney Mainland and are operated by Orkney Ferries, a company owned by Orkney Islands Council. Ferries serve both to link Orkney to the rest of Scotland, and also to link together the various islands of the Orkney archipelago. The shortest scheduled air service in the world, between the islands of Westray and Papa Westray, is scheduled at two minutes’ duration. Within Orkney, the council operates airports on most of the larger islands including Stronsay, Eday, North Ronaldsay, Westray, Papa Westray, Sanday, and Flotta.

The islands are mainly low-lying except for some sharply rising sandstone hills on Mainland, Rousay and Hoy (where the tallest point in Orkney, Ward Hill, can be found) and rugged cliffs on some western coasts. Orkney is separated from the mainland of Scotland by the Pentland Firth, a ten-kilometre-wide (6 mi) seaway between Brough Ness on the island of South Ronaldsay and Duncansby Head in Caithness. Genetic studies have shown that 25% of the gene pool of Orkney derives from Norwegian ancestors who occupied the islands in the 9th century. Although Orkney is in many ways very distinct from the other islands and archipelagos of Scotland these trends are very similar to those experienced elsewhere. Declines were particularly significant in the outlying islands, some of which remain vulnerable to ongoing losses.

They operated as one county for the purposes of the administration of justice, lieutenancy, and parliamentary constituencies, but operated as two counties for local government functions. The separate lordship of Shetland was absorbed into Scotland at the same time. The local authority is the Orkney Islands Council, based at the Council Offices on School Place in Kirkwall. The first averages table below is for the largest settlement Kirkwall’s weather station, the second is for the Loch of Hundland, a rural location to the northwest of Mainland. Orkney lies between 58°41′ and 59°24′ north, and 2°22′ and 3°26′ west, measuring 80 kilometres (50 mi) from northeast to southwest and 47 kilometres (29 mi) from east to west, and covers 975 square kilometres (376 sq mi). 62% of the population stated they had no religion or did not provide an answer to this question.

The stark beauty of the islands serves as inspiration for a range of creative expressions, from painting and sculpture to pottery and jewellery making, often incorporating local materials such as Orkney sandstone and driftwood. This is characterised by a mix of fiddles, accordions, and traditional ballads that often tell tales of the sea, reflecting the islands’ strong maritime culture. The islands produce more energy from wind turbines than they need to use, making them a net exporter of electricity and a model for sustainable practices. In medieval times, Orkney became an ecclesiastical power centre, with the impressive St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall dating back to the 12th century, reflecting the islands’ status and wealth.

The earliest known permanent settlement is at Knap of Howar, a Neolithic farmstead on the island of Papa Westray, which dates from 3500 BC. From the mid-19th century onwards this plural form has fallen out of use in the local area although it is still often used, particularly by publications based outside Scotland.Notes 2 The local people are known as Orcadians; they speak a distinctive dialect of the Scots language and have a rich body of folklore. The local climate is relatively mild and the soils are extremely fertile; most of the land is farmed, and agriculture is the most important sector of the economy. The largest island, the Mainland, has an area of 523 square kilometres (202 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest Scottish island and the tenth-largest island in the British Isles.