 Map of Orkney with the Mainland highlighted | |
| Location | |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | HY350158 |
| Physical geography | |
| Island group | Orkney |
| Area | 52,325 hectares (202 sq mi)[1] |
| Area rank | 6 [2] |
| Highest elevation | Mid Hill 271 metres (889 ft) |
| Administration | |
| Council area | Orkney Islands Council |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 17,779[3] |
| Population rank | 3 [2] |
| Population density | 33.98 people/km2[1][3] |
| Largest settlement | Kirkwall |
 | |
| References | [4][5] |
TheMainland, also known asPomona, is the main island ofOrkney,Scotland. Both of Orkney'sburghs,Kirkwall andStromness, lie on the island, which is also the heart of Orkney's ferry and air connections.
Seventy-five per cent of Orkney's population live on the island, which is more densely populated than the other islands of the archipelago. The lengthy history of the island's occupation has provided numerous important archaeological sites and the sandstone bedrock provides a platform for fertile farmland. There is an abundance of wildlife, especially seabirds.
The name Mainland is acorruption of theOld NorseMeginland. Formerly the island was also known asHrossey meaning 'horse island'. The island is sometimes referred to asPomona (orPomonia), a name that stems from a 16th-century mis-translation byGeorge Buchanan.[6] The term eventually fell out of widespread use by the early 1800s, yet has aided in differentiating the "Isle of Pomona" from "Mainland Scotland" by emigrants to Canada,[7] England,[8][9] and other regions, so clings on tenaciously and can still be rarely found locally,[6][10] retained in the name of the Pomona Inn atFinstown in the parish of Firth, as well as a local café in the capital of Kirkwall also known as the Pomona.[11]
The island is relatively densely populated and has much fertilefarmland. The bulk of the Mainland is west of Kirkwall and is low-lying, with coastalcliffs to the north and west and two sizeable bodies of freshwater, thelochs ofStenness andHarray.
The eastern part of the Mainland is shaped like the letter "W", the easternmostpeninsula being known asDeerness. To the south,causeways calledChurchill Barriers connect the island toBurray andSouth Ronaldsay viaLamb Holm andGlimps Holm.
Mainland effectively provides the core of the Orkney Islands, linking the northern members of the archipelago with the southern ones. At the east, and west ends, islands proceed to the north and south, somewhat in the shape of an "X". The western part of the island is part of theHoy and West Mainland National Scenic Area, one of 40 in Scotland.[12]
The population in 2011 was recorded as 17,162,[13] an increase of just over 12% on the 2001 population of 15,315.[14] By 2022 the population had grown to 17,779.[3]
There are 13parishes on the island.[15]Sandwick,Birsay andStromness lie on the west coast,Rendall andEvie to the north west.Holm,Deerness andSt Andrews are located to the east of centralSt Ola, which contains Kirkwall city.Firth,Orphir,Stenness andHarray lie west of Kirkwall and east of the westernmost parishes. Harray has the unique distinction of being the only landlocked parish in Orkney, although it too has a significant coast along the Loch of Harray, albeit a freshwater one.
The economic sectors include agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture, as well as oil and gas. A 2020 report states that "over the last 20 years there has been a growth in ... manufacturing, tourism, food and drink processing and, more recently, renewable energy". Tourism is certainly significant with over 190,000 visits to the islands, many on cruise ships, in 2019.[16]
Tourism was negatively affected by theCOVID-19 pandemic during 2020 and into 2021. A September 2020 report stated that "The Highlands and Islands region has been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to date, when compared to Scotland and the UK as a whole". The industry required short-term support for "business survival and recovery" and that was expected to continue as the sector was "severely impacted for as long as physical distancing and travel restrictions".[17] A scheme called A Support for businesses - Island Equivalent was introduced by the Scottish government in early 2021 to financially assist hospitality and retail businesses "affected by Level 3 coronavirus restrictions". Previous schemes in 2020 included the Strategic Framework Business Fund and the Coronavirus Business Support Fund.[18]
The three main settlements on Mainland, in order of magnitude areKirkwall andStromness, both of which are burghs, andFinstown.
Kirkwall, the capital of the islands, is on the isthmus between west Mainland and east Mainland, which historically enabled it to have highly active harbours facing in two directions for the southern and northern Orkney Islands; the southern one,Scapa Flow, is a large, calm and immediately ocean-accessible natural harbour. Kirkwall has the seat of theBishop of Orkney, andSt. Magnus Cathedral is to be found there. It is also one of the island's ferry ports.
A long-established seaport that grew with the expansion ofwhaling, Stromness has a population of approximately 2,200 residents. The old town is clustered along the main street, flanked with houses and shops built from local stone, with narrow lanes and alleys branching off it. There is a ferry link toScrabster inCaithness on the Scottish mainland as well as the Isle ofHoy.
Finstown is the third largest settlement, and used to be known as the "Toon o' Firth". The origin of its name is thought to be from an Irishman named David Phin who came to the area in 1811. It is on the direct Stromness to Kirkwall road.[11]
In common with most of the Orkney isles, Mainland rests almost entirely on a bedrock ofOld Red Sandstone, which is about 400 million years old and was laid down in theDevonian period. These thick deposits accumulated as earlierSilurian rocks, uplifted by the formation ofPangaea, eroded and then deposited into river deltas. The freshwaterLake Orcadie existed on the edges of theseeroding mountains, stretching fromShetland to the southernMoray Firth.[19] As in nearby Caithness, these rocks rest upon themetamorphic rocks of the easternschists, and in Mainland where a narrow strip is exposed between Stromness andInganess, they are represented by greygneiss andgranite.[20]
The Lower Old Red Sandstone is represented by well-bedded flagstones over most of the islands; in the south of Mainland these are faulted against an overlying series of massive red sandstones.[20]
Many indications of glacial action exist in the form of striated surfaces in Kirkwall Bay, with boulder clay with marine shells, and many boulders of rocks foreign to the islands made ofchalk,oolitic limestone,flint, &c. Localmoraines are found in some of the valleys.[20]
The soil generally is a sandyloam or a strong but friable clay, and very fertile. Large quantities ofseaweed as well aslime andmarl are available for manure.[20]
There are numerous smaller Orkney islands surrounding the mainland, some which are islets only separated at higher stages of the tide, or skerries which are only exposed at lower stages of the tide. These includeBarrel of Butter, Bo Skerry, Bow Skerries, Braga, Brough of Bigging,Brough of Birsay,Damsay,Holm of Houton,Holm of Grimbister, Holm of Rendall, Iceland Skerry, Inner Holm, Kirk Rocks, Little Skerry, Mirkady Point, Nevi Skerry, Outer Holm, Oyster Skerries, Puldrite Skerry, Quanterness Skerry, Scare Gun, Seal Skerry, Skaill Skerries, Skerries of Clestrain, Skerries of Coubister, Skerries of Lakequoy, Skerry of Work, Skerry of Yinstay, Smoogro Skerry,Thieves Holm, Whyabatten, and Yesnaby Castle.[5]
The other islands in the Orkney Islands are generally classified as north or south of the Mainland. The exceptions are the remote islets ofSule Skerry andSule Stack, which lie 37 miles (60 km) west of the archipelago, but form part of Orkney for local government purposes.
The western section of the island contains numerousNeolithic andPictish constructions.
Most of the best known Neoloithic ancient monuments are located in west Mainland, which includes the "Heart of Neolithic Orkney", aUNESCOWorld Heritage Site. This comprises the large chambered tomb ofMaes Howe, the ceremonial stone circles theStanding Stones of Stenness and theRing of Brodgar and the Neolithic village ofSkara Brae, together with a number of unexcavated burial, ceremonial and settlement sites. The group constitutes a major prehistoric cultural landscape which gives a graphic depiction of life in the north of Scotland some 5,000 years ago. Nearby is theBarnhouse Settlement, a smaller cluster of prehistoric buildings.
Other sites of interest includeSt. Magnus Cathedral and the ruin of theBishop's Palace in Kirkwall, theEarl's Palace, a ruined 16th-century castle in Birsay parish, andSkaill House, a manor house and museum near Skara Brae.
Viking settlers comprehensively occupied Orkney, and Mainland became a possession of Norway until being given to Scotland during the 15th century as part of a dowry settlement. Evidence of the Viking presence is widespread, and includes the site of a settlement at theBrough of Birsay, the vast majority ofplace names, andrunic inscriptions at Maeshowe and other ancient sites.
Stromness is of relatively recent origin, being first recorded as the site of an inn in the 16th century, although the name is of Norse origin. Stromness became important during the late 17th century, when England was at war with France and shipping was forced to avoid theEnglish Channel. Ships of theHudson's Bay Company were regular visitors, as were whaling fleets.
The Churchill Barriers are a series of four causeways with a total length of 1.5 miles (2.4 km). They link the south of Mainland in the north to the island of South Ronaldsay via Burray and the two smaller islands of Lamb Holm and Glimps Holm. On 14 October 1939, the Royal Navy battleshipHMSRoyal Oak was sunk at her moorings within the natural harbour of Scapa Flow, by the German U-boatU-47 under the command ofGünther Prien.U-47 had entered Scapa Flow through Holm Sound, one of several eastern entrances to Scapa Flow. To prevent further attacks,Winston Churchill ordered the construction of permanent barriers. They now serve as road links, carrying the A961. Work began in May 1940 and the barriers were completed in September 1944, but were not officially opened until 12 May 1945, four days after the end of World War II in Europe.
The climate is remarkably temperate and steady for such a northerly latitude. The average temperature for the year is 8 °C (46 °F), for winter 4 °C (39 °F) and for summer 12 °C (54 °F).[20]
The average annual rainfall varies from 850 to 940 mm (33 to 37 in). Fogs occur during summer and early autumn, and furious gales may be expected four or five times in the year.[20]
To tourists, one of the fascinations of the islands is their nightless summers. On thelongest day, the sun rises at 03:00 and sets at 21:29 GMT anddarkness is unknown.[20] It is possible to read at midnight[20] and very few stars can be seen in the night sky. Winter, however, is long. On theshortest day the sun rises at 09:05 and sets at 15:16.[21]
Mainland contains the vast majority of the island's roads, and is also connected to those on the main south east islands, such as South Ronaldsay and Burray thanks to the Churchill Barriers.
There are ideas being discussed to build theOrkney Tunnel, an undersea tunnel between Orkney and the Scottish Mainland, at a length of about 9–10 miles (14–16 km) or (more likely) one connecting Orkney Mainland toShapinsay.[22][23] The Orkney-Caithness route would be connected to Mainland, via the Churchill Barriers, but would make landfall on South Ronaldsay, if constructed.
The main airport in Orkney isKirkwall Airport, operated byHighland and Islands Airports.Loganair provides services to the Scottish Mainland (Aberdeen,Edinburgh,Glasgow andInverness), as well as toSumburgh Airport in Shetland. Most of the scheduled flights within Orkney depart/arrive at Kirkwall from one of the other islands.
Ferries serve both to link Orkney to the rest of Scotland, and also to link together the various islands of the Orkney archipelago. Ferry services operate between Orkney and the Scottish Mainland and Shetland on the following routes:
Two services also connect Caithness, with South Ronaldsay, which is in turn connected to Mainland by road.
Inter-island ferry services connect all the inhabited islands to Orkney Mainland, and are operated byOrkney Ferries, a company owned byOrkney Islands Council.
Mainland has a great deal of marine life surrounding it, especially seabirds.Corncrakes can also be found in some parts.[4] TheLoch of Harray can host up to 10,000 wintering duck and is important forpochard.[4] Some 4,000 ha of Mainland’smoorland has been designated anImportant Bird Area (IBA) byBirdLife International because it supports populations ofred-throated loons,short-eared owls,hen harriers andmerlins.[24]
There are few wild land mammals although there is anendemic sub-species of thecommon vole, theOrkney vole or cuttick, (Microtus arvalis orcadensis) found only in the Orkney archipelago. It may have been introduced by early settlers about 4,000 years ago.[25] Brown hares and rabbits can be found and there are frogs, but no toads.[4]
There are six hundred recorded species of plant on the Orkney Mainland. Two rarities to be found here are the oyster plant (Mertensia maritima) and theScottish primrose (Primula scotica). The latter is endemic to the north coast of Scotland, including Orkney and nearby Caithness.[4] It is closely related to theArctic speciesPrimula stricta andPrimula scandinavica.[26][27]
from 28 December 2020 to 24 January 2021, businesses in Level 3 island areas, including Shetland, can now apply for a payment of £2,000 or £3,000
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58°59′N3°06′W / 58.983°N 3.100°W /58.983; -3.100
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