One of the greatest travellers in Scotland, Martin Martin was also a native Gaelic speaker. This text offers his narrative of his journey around the Western Isles, and a mine of information on custom, tradition and life. Martin Martin's wrote before the Jacobite rebellions changed the way of life of the Highlander irrevocably. The volume includes the earliest account of St Kilda, first published in 1697 and Sir Donald Monro, High Dean of the Isles, account written in 1549 which presents a record of a pastoral visit to islands still coping with the aftermath of the fall of the Lords of the Isles.

A guidebook to 80 walking routes on Scotland's Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland. Routes are described on the islands of Orkney (Orkney Mainland, Hoy, South Ronaldsay, Burray, Rousay, Eday, Westray, Papa Westray, North Ronaldsay) and the islands of Shetland (Shetland Mainland, West Burra, East Burra, Foula, Fair Isle, Isle of Noss, Bressay, Whalsay, Papa Stour, Muckle Roe, Out Skerries, Esha Ness, Yell, Fetlar and Unst). Routes vary in length from 1 mile to 16 miles, with something to suit all abilities. Offering a variety of landscapes together with a wealth of remarkable archaeological sites such as Skara Brae and Jarlshof, Orkney and Shetland are a walker's dream. Step-by-step route descriptions are accompanied by clear OS mapping and a time estimate for completing each route. The book includes plenty of information on the region's wildlife, archaeology and history, as well as practical tips such as when to go, what to take and getting to and around Orkney and Shetland. Quiet, remote and abounding in rare plants and wildlife, together with some of the world's most fascinating archaeological sites, Orkney and Shetland offer a treasure trove of natural and historic wonders, and makes an ideal walking holiday destination.

The Orkney Islands are a place of mystery and magic, where the past and the present meet, ancient standing stones walk and burial mounds are the home of the trows. Orkney Folk Tales walks the reader across invisible islands that are home to fin folk and mermaids, and seals that are often far more than they appear to be. Here Orkney witches raise storms and predict the outcome of battles, ghosts seek revenge and the Devil sits in the rafters of St Magnus Cathedral, taking notes! Using ancient tales told by the firesides of the Picts and Vikings, storyteller Tom Muir takes the reader on a magical journey where he reveals how the islands were created from the teeth of a monster, how a giant built lochs and hills in his greed for fertile land, and how the waves are controlled by the hand of a goddess.

The two island groups of Orkney and Shetland have much in common. In each the grey stone houses and treeless landscapes are scoured in winter by stinging gales, and in summer lie under the endless days of the 'simmer din'. Originally Norwegian, they have been part of Scotland for five hundred years, but their many and varied legends, folk tales and customs are still saturated with Norse influences. While this book tells tales and discusses beliefs that are known throughout the northern isles, it also outlines those elements which are unique to each island group. The Folklore of Orkney and Shetland is the standard account of what to this day is one of the richest repositories of lore and custom in Britain. Ernest Marwick not only recounts countless tales which have been transmitted aurally and by writing, but also places these tales within geographical and historical contexts, thus enabling a deeper appreciation of this wonderful material. A bibliography is also included, together with an index of tale types and motifs.