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Out Skerries
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Out Skerries
The Out Skerries are an archipelago of islets, some inhabited, in Shetland, Scotland, and are the easternmost part of Shetland as well as Scotland. Locally, they are usually called Da Skerries or just Skerries.[citation needed]
The Out Skerries lie about 6 kilometres (4 mi) northeast of Whalsay; and Bound Skerry forms the easternmost part of Shetland, lying just 300 km (around 190 miles) west from Tjeldstø in Norway. The main islands are Housay, Bruray, and Grunay. The summit of Bruray, Bruray Ward, is the most easterly hill in Scotland.
A large number of skerries, islets and stacks surround the main group. These include the Hevda Skerries and Wether Holm to the north, the Holm to the south and Lamba Stack and Flat Lamba Stack to the east. Stoura Stack and the Hogg are to the south of Grunay. Bound Skerry, which has a lighthouse, is flanked by Little Bound Skerry and Horn Skerry.
Beyond Mio Ness at the southwest tip of Housay are North and South Benelip and the Easter Skerries, as well as Filla, Short and Long Guen (the Guens), Bilia Skerry, and Swaba Stack. In an isolated group between the main Out Skerries and the Mainland, are Little Skerry and the Vongs, and Muckle Skerry is another outlier lying further north.
Most of the Skerries placenames have a Norse origin. The "Out" name derives from one or both of two Old Norse words. Austr means "east" and may have been used to distinguish Out Skerries from Ve Skerries or "west skerries", and utsker means "outer". "Skerry" is from the Old Norse sker and refers to a small rocky island or a rocky reef.
Housay is from the Old Norse Húsey meaning "house island",[full citation needed] although this name is now little used by locals, who prefer "West Isle". Bruray may be from the Norse brú and mean "bridge island" due to its position between West Isle and Grunay, the latter meaning simply "green island". The derivation of Bound Skerry is more problematic, but may be from bønn, meaning "forerunner", a reference to this being the first land a ship encounters en route to Shetland from Bergen.
There is evidence of Neolithic inhabitation including two house sites at Queyness. The Battle Pund is a rectangle 13 metres (43 ft) across, marked out by boulders, dating from the Bronze Age. It is similar to a structure at Hjaltadans in Fetlar, but its purpose is unknown.
There is a massive ruined structure on the north shore of Grunay known locally as "the broch" although it is not known if it dates from the Iron Age, when such structures were built throughout the far north of Scotland. The name "Benelips" possibly originating from the Old Norse bon meaning "to pray" hints at the existence of an early Christian hermitage on these remote islets.
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Out Skerries
The Out Skerries are an archipelago of islets, some inhabited, in Shetland, Scotland, and are the easternmost part of Shetland as well as Scotland. Locally, they are usually called Da Skerries or just Skerries.[citation needed]
The Out Skerries lie about 6 kilometres (4 mi) northeast of Whalsay; and Bound Skerry forms the easternmost part of Shetland, lying just 300 km (around 190 miles) west from Tjeldstø in Norway. The main islands are Housay, Bruray, and Grunay. The summit of Bruray, Bruray Ward, is the most easterly hill in Scotland.
A large number of skerries, islets and stacks surround the main group. These include the Hevda Skerries and Wether Holm to the north, the Holm to the south and Lamba Stack and Flat Lamba Stack to the east. Stoura Stack and the Hogg are to the south of Grunay. Bound Skerry, which has a lighthouse, is flanked by Little Bound Skerry and Horn Skerry.
Beyond Mio Ness at the southwest tip of Housay are North and South Benelip and the Easter Skerries, as well as Filla, Short and Long Guen (the Guens), Bilia Skerry, and Swaba Stack. In an isolated group between the main Out Skerries and the Mainland, are Little Skerry and the Vongs, and Muckle Skerry is another outlier lying further north.
Most of the Skerries placenames have a Norse origin. The "Out" name derives from one or both of two Old Norse words. Austr means "east" and may have been used to distinguish Out Skerries from Ve Skerries or "west skerries", and utsker means "outer". "Skerry" is from the Old Norse sker and refers to a small rocky island or a rocky reef.
Housay is from the Old Norse Húsey meaning "house island",[full citation needed] although this name is now little used by locals, who prefer "West Isle". Bruray may be from the Norse brú and mean "bridge island" due to its position between West Isle and Grunay, the latter meaning simply "green island". The derivation of Bound Skerry is more problematic, but may be from bønn, meaning "forerunner", a reference to this being the first land a ship encounters en route to Shetland from Bergen.
There is evidence of Neolithic inhabitation including two house sites at Queyness. The Battle Pund is a rectangle 13 metres (43 ft) across, marked out by boulders, dating from the Bronze Age. It is similar to a structure at Hjaltadans in Fetlar, but its purpose is unknown.
There is a massive ruined structure on the north shore of Grunay known locally as "the broch" although it is not known if it dates from the Iron Age, when such structures were built throughout the far north of Scotland. The name "Benelips" possibly originating from the Old Norse bon meaning "to pray" hints at the existence of an early Christian hermitage on these remote islets.