Kirkwall Explained

Country:Scotland
Official Name:Kirkwall
Scots Name:Kirkwa[1] / Kirkwaa / Kirkwal[2]
Static Image Name:Kirkwall_Harbour.jpg
Static Image Caption:Kirkwall Harbour in August 2014
Population:10,020
Population Ref:[3]
Population Demonym:Kirkwallian
Area Total Km2:4.00
Os Grid Reference:HY449109
Coordinates:58.981°N -2.96°W
Edinburgh Distance Mi:210
London Distance Mi:528
Unitary Scotland:Orkney
Lieutenancy Scotland:Orkney
Constituency Westminster:Orkney and Shetland
Constituency Scottish Parliament:Orkney
Post Town:KIRKWALL
Postcode District:KW15
Postcode Area:KW
Dial Code:01856

Kirkwall (Scots: Kirkwa, Scots: Kirkwaa, or Scots: Kirkwal; Kirkavå) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. First mentioned in the Orkneyinga saga, it is today the location of the headquarters of the Orkney Islands Council and a transport hub with ferries to many locations.[4] It is the centre of the St Magnus International Festival and is also a popular stopping off point for cruise ships. St Magnus Cathedral stands at the heart of the town.

Etymology

The name Kirkwall comes from the Norse name Norse, Old: Kirkjuvágr meaning "church bay",[5] the settlement having been established by the Norse in the 11th century. As late as 1525 the name is recorded as Kirkevaag. This became in time "Kirkwaa" and then eventually Kirkwall - but how the second syllable came to be spelled "wall" is not certain. MacBain quotes F. W. L. Thomas: "How, I ask, could vágr come to be represented by wall? Whence came the ll? Was it that Scottish immigrants finding the sound of represented it in writing by 'wall,' the ll at first being silent?"

History

The town was first mentioned in the Orkneyinga saga in the year 1046, when it was recorded as the residence of Norse, Old: [[Rögnvald Brusason]]|italic=no, the Earl of Orkney, who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn the Mighty. In 1486, King James III of Scotland elevated Kirkwall to the status of a royal burgh.On the western edge of the town, surrounded by Hatston Industrial Estate, there is a prehistoric monument, known as the "Grain Earth House" (see Historic Scotland). It is a short, low, stone-walled passage, deep underground, leading to a small pillared chamber. This kind of earth house (or "souterrain") is characteristic of the Northern Isles (although the Grain Earth House is unusually deep below ground). It was originally connected to a surface dwelling, which has since disappeared. The purpose of these Iron Age structures remains unknown. Further west, towards Grimbister, there is a similar structure, known as Rennibister Earth House.

Governance

Kirkwall is the administrative centre of Orkney, and the site of the headquarters of both Orkney Islands Council and NHS Orkney.[6]

From 1708 to 1918, Kirkwall was a parliamentary burgh, and was combined with Dingwall, Dornoch, Tain and Wick to form the Northern Burghs constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain (1708–1801) and then of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (1801–1918). (Cromarty was added to this constituency in 1832.) The constituency was a district of burghs known as the Tain Burghs until 1832, and then as the Wick Burghs. It was represented by one Member of Parliament (MP) until 1918, when the constituency was abolished and Kirkwall was merged politically into the county constituency of Orkney and Shetland. Although sometimes referred to as "The City and Royal Burgh of Kirkwall"[7] Kirkwall is not technically a city.

In the 1784–85 term, the well-known outspoken Liberal Charles James Fox represented Tain in the British Parliament. His political opponents fiercely objected to his having been elected from his usual constituency, Westminster; the unlikely resolution of this dispute was that Fox was made a burgess of Kirkwall.[8]

Geography

Kirkwall is 130sigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 north of Aberdeen and 528sigfig=3NaNsigfig=3 north of London. It is situated on the northern coast of Mainland, Orkney, with its harbours in the bay of Kirkwall to the north, and with Scapa Flow 1.4miles to the south. Its parish, St Ola, forms the isthmus between Firth and Holm.It is the most populous island settlement in Scotland.[9]

Climate

Kirkwall has an oceanic climate (Cfb), with a strong maritime influence on its temperature. As a result, it is generally cooler than the rest of the UK in the summer. The exception is that Kirkwall tends to be warmer than Shetland, being closer to mainland Scotland.[10]

Demography

The population of Kirkwall is continuously on the rise. The population rose from 6,205 in 2001 to 9,293 in 2011 to reach an estimated 10,020 in 2020.[11]

Economy

Kirkwall harbour with nearly 1km (01miles) of quay edge is the second commercial hub for Orkney after Hatston. There is a Marina, and support for fishing and dive vessels.[12] After extensive work on harbour facilities, the town has become a popular cruise ship stop, with several ships arriving each week in the season. This has added to the prosperity of the town and allowed a thriving sector of independently owned shops. Each year now, 140 cruise ships visit Kirkwall and Stromness.[13]

Weaving in Orkney took place from Viking times, with John Sclater & Co involved in Tweed production in Kirkwall in the 1970s. They used the brand names Norsaga and Jarltex.[14] [15]

Culture and community

The Orkney Library and Archive is in Kirkwall. Kirkwall also has the most northerly of the world's Carnegie libraries, which was opened by Andrew Carnegie and his wife in 1909. The building survives, although the library has since moved to a larger building on Junction Road which opened in August 2003.[16]

The town has two museums, the larger being The Orkney Museum in Tankerness House, which contains items of local historical interest within one of Scotland's best-preserved 16th-century town-houses.[17] It is a Category A listed building Scotland. The prehistoric, Pictish and Viking collections are of international importance. The other museum is the Orkney Wireless Museum, dealing with the history of radio and recorded sound.[18] It is located in a Category C listed building, possibly the former harbour master's office, on Junction Road.[19] Orkney Tourist Board is located in an 18th-century Category B listed building on Broad Street.[20]

There is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboat station.[21]

One of the major annual events in the town is the Ba Game, held each Christmas Day and New Year's Day between the Uppies and the Doonies, each team representing one half of the town.[22]

Media and the arts

The composer Peter Maxwell Davies was among a group which founded the annual St Magnus International Festival which is centred on Kirkwall each midsummer.[23] Notable music acts such as the Wrigley Sisters and Bryttania formed in Kirkwall.

Orkney Theatre, a 384-seat venue, was opened in 2014 next to Kirkwall Grammar School in The Meadows. It has an orchestra pit which can be made available for use by removing two rows of seats.[24]

Kirkwall Harbour can be seen in The Highlands and Islands – A Royal Tour, a 1973 documentary about Prince Charles' visit to the Highlands and Islands, directed by Oscar Marzaroli.[25] Scottish film-maker Margaret Tait was born in Kirkwall, and many of her films (in particular the Aspects of Kirkwall series) are set there.[26]

Long-running The Simpsons character Groundskeeper Willie was born in Kirkwall.[27]

Landmarks

Kirkwall has many 17th–18th-century houses and other structures in the local vernacular style. Kirkwall Town Hall was completed in 1884.

Transport

Kirkwall is a port with ferry services to Aberdeen and Lerwick, as well as the principal north islands in the group. Hatson pier, the main ferry terminal, is some 20NaN0 outside the town centre.[28]

The Aberdeen, Leith, Clyde & Tay Shipping Company operated steamer services to Kirkwall from 1836, with successor companies operating until 2002.[29]

Kirkwall Airport, the main airport for Orkney, is NaN0NaN0 southeast of the town. There are no passenger rail services in Kirkwall, the nearby railways having been industrial or military.[30] [31]

Education

Nursery schools

Primary schools

Secondary schools

Colleges and universities

The oldest school in Kirkwall, Kirkwall Grammar School, has been established since circa 1200.[32] The current school building was opened in 2014.[33]

The Orkney College main campus is situated in Kirkwall, in a purpose-built building that opened in 2000.[34]

Religious sites

The 'Kirk' of Kirkwall was not the cathedral (which was originally at Birsay), but the 11th-century church of Saint Olaf of Norway. One late medieval doorway survives from this church, and an aumbry from the original church survives within the late 19th-century structure of the present-day Saint Olaf's Church (Episcopal) in the town's Dundas Crescent. At the heart of the town stands St Magnus Cathedral, which was founded in memory of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney 1108–1117 by Earl (later Saint) Rögnvald Kali. Next to the cathedral are the ruins of the former Bishop's Palace and Earl's Palace.

Sport

The Pickaquoy Centre, Orkney's largest leisure centre, is located in Kirkwall, which opened in 1999.[35]

Kirkwall Grammar School Sports Centre has indoor sports facilities, and grass and synthetic pitches, available to the public.[36]

Twin town – sister city

Kirkwall is twinned with:

Notable people

References

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Grant. William. Scottish National Dictionary Association. Kirkwa. Scottish National Dictionary. 1976. X. Edinburgh. The Scottish National Dictionary Association. https://dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/snd00089587. 24 May 2024.
  2. Web site: Scotslanguage.com – Names in Scots – Places in Scotland. 19 August 2018. 8 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170808234650/http://www.scotslanguage.com/books/view/1/823/Names+in+Scots+-+Places+in+Scotland. live.
  3. Web site: Home .
  4. Web site: A Guide to Scotland's Main Islands 22 July 2020 . 28 February 2021 . 4 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210404173323/https://www.best-of-scotland.co.uk/blog/a-guide-to-scotlands-main-islands/ . live .
  5. https://www.northlinkferries.co.uk/orkney-blog/orkney-place-names/ "The Place Names of Orkney"
  6. Web site: About us. NHS Orkney. 28 September 2022.
  7. Book: Mackintosh, William R.. Glimpses of Kirkwall and its people in the olden time. 2. 1887. J. Anderson.
  8. Book: Mackintosh 1887, p. 318. MacKintosh. William R.. 1887.
  9. Web site: Kirkwall: the bustling capital of the Orkneys. 19 August 2022. British Heritage Travel. 28 September 2022.
  10. Web site: Updated world map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification . M. C. Peel, B. L. Finlayson, T. A. Mcmahon . Hydrology and Earth System Sciences Discussions, European Geosciences Union 4 (2) . 439–473. 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190710131727/https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00298818/document . 10 July 2019.
  11. Web site: Scotland's Census - Area Overview . 5 August 2023.
  12. Web site: Kirkwall Port . Orkney Islands Council Harbour Authority . 9 August 2018 . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180810011342/https://www.orkneyharbours.com/port-authority/ports/kirkwall . live .
  13. Web site: Cruise Ships . Orkney Islands Council Harbour Authority . 2017-09-12 . 12 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170912192731/https://www.orkneyharbours.com/sectors/cruise-ships . live .
  14. Scottish Industrial History . 1981 . 4 . Archived copy . 10 August 2018 . 11 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180811033147/https://www.gla.ac.uk/media/media_499984_en.pdf . live .
  15. News: Henderson . Michelle . Orkney tweed? Harris had no production monopoly in the islands as academics find history of weaving the distinctive cloth in Orkney . Press and Journal . February 6, 2018 . 2 February 2020 . 2 February 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200202132425/https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/1406516/orkney-tweed/ . live .
  16. Web site: Orkney Library and Archive . Orkney Islands Council . 9 April 2022.
  17. Web site: The Orkney Museum. live. 2021-08-06. Orkney Islands Council. 7 August 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210807005717/https://www.orkney.gov.uk/Service-Directory/S/orkney-museum.htm.
  18. Web site: Orkney Wireless Museum. Orkney Wireless Museum. 22 August 2009.
  19. Web site: Orkney Wireless Museum, 1 Junction Road, Kirkwall . British Listed Buildings . 22 April 2023.
  20. Web site: Orkney Tourist Board, 6 Broad Street, Kirkwall . British Listed Buildings . 22 April 2023.
  21. Web site: Kirkwall Lifeboat called out to fishing vessel – The Orcadian Online. 2 March 2017. 4 August 2018. 4 August 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180804141054/https://www.orcadian.co.uk/kirkwall-lifeboat-called-fishing-vessel-2/. live.
  22. News: Tradition: The Old Ba' Game . Eli . Saslow . The Washington Post . 2007-12-30 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110523093047/http://blog.washingtonpost.com/why-we-compete/2007/12/tradition.html . 2011-05-23 .
  23. Web site: About . St Magnus International Festival, Orkney, Scotland . 2 February 2020 . 2 February 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200202132433/https://www.stmagnusfestival.com/about . live .
  24. Web site: HOME. Orkney Theatre. 10 August 2018. 11 August 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180811033423/http://www.orkneytheatre.co.uk/. live.
  25. http://ssa.nls.uk/film.cfm?fid=2380 "Full record for 'Highlands and Islands – A Royal Tour'"
  26. Web site: Margaret Tait (1918 - 1999). Scottish Poetry Library. 25 August 2018.
  27. News: Groundskeeper Willie is from Orkney ... and he was 'torn apart' by Uppies and Doonies. February 3, 2012. August 19, 2020. 21 January 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210121191852/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/groundskeeper-willie-is-from-orkney-and-he-was-torn-apart-by-uppies-and-doonies-3h8khq7dfld. live.
  28. Web site: Kirkwall (Hatston) Ferry Terminal – NorthLink Ferries. www.northlinkferries.co.uk. 9 August 2018. 10 August 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180810011056/http://www.northlinkferries.co.uk/ports/kirkwall/. live.
  29. Web site: P&O Scottish Ferries . Ships of the North . 2009-08-08 . 21 April 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120421163529/http://www.shipsofthenorth.co.uk/op_past_po.asp . dead .
  30. Web site: Trains to & from Orkney and Shetland – ScotRail. www.scotrail.co.uk. 19 August 2018. 19 August 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180819114527/https://www.scotrail.co.uk/scotland-by-rail/destinations/orkney-shetland. live.
  31. Web site: ORCADIAN RAILWAYS. www.irsociety.co.uk. 19 August 2018. 7 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190507145130/http://www.irsociety.co.uk/Archives/10/orcadian_railways.htm. live.
  32. Web site: About KGS. Kirkwall Grammar School. 30 July 2018. 31 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180731031314/http://www.kgsorkney.com/about-kgs.html. live.
  33. Web site: Kirkwall Grammar School officially opened – The Orcadian Online. 17 June 2014. 25 July 2018. 26 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180726071833/https://www.orcadian.co.uk/kirkwall-grammar-school-officially-opened/. live.
  34. Web site: The History of Kirkwall Grammar School. https://web.archive.org/web/20211021120157/http://www.kgsorkney.com/uploads/1/4/9/3/14935550/kgshistory.pdf . 2021-10-21 . live . 12. 28 September 2022.
  35. Web site: Celebrating 20 years of the Pickaquoy Centre. 17 April 2019. The Orcadian. 28 September 2022.
  36. Web site: KGS Sports Centre. www.orkney.gov.uk. 25 July 2018. 26 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180726040845/http://www.orkney.gov.uk/Service-Directory/S/kgs-sports-centre.htm. live.
  37. http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/id/eprint/17519/1/dtraversfinalthesis.pdf 'The Churchillian Paradigmand the "Other British Isles": An Examination of Second World WarRemembrance in Man, Orkney, and Jersey'
  38. Web site: Biographical Index of Former Fellows of The Royal Society of Edinburgh, 1783–2002 . . July 2006 . 2018-08-19 . 24 January 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130124115814/http://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp1.pdf . live .
  39. News: Shopping directory: Jewellery: Scotland | Life and style . The Guardian . 8 December 2007. 2016-02-04.
  40. Web site: Professor Peter Marshall . Department of History . University of Warwick . 15 November 2018.
  41. Clara Anne Rendall birth details:https://www.bayanne.info/Shetland/getperson.php?personID=I390219&tree=ID1
  42. Medical News . The Indian Medical Gazette . December 1945 . 80 . 12 . 629–632 . 5218119 . 29015760 .
  43. News: March 10, 1943 . Obituary: Mrs. Ann Scott-Moncrieff . 6 . The Glasgow Herald . September 26, 2023.