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Foula

Coordinates:60°08′N02°04′W/ 60.133°N 2.067°W/60.133; -2.067
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Foula
Location
Foula is located in Shetland
Foula
Foula
Foula shown within Shetland
OS grid referenceHT960392
Coordinates60°07′59″N2°04′01″W/ 60.133°N 2.067°W/60.133; -2.067
Physical geography
Island groupShetland
Area1,265 hectares (4.88 sq mi)
Area rank43 [1]
Highest elevationThe Sneug 418 m (1,371 ft)
Administration
Council areaShetland Islands
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Demographics
Population30
Population rank56 [1]
Population density3 people/km2[2][3]
Largest settlementHam
Lymphad
References[3][4]
Foula LighthouseEdit this at Wikidata
Constructed1986Edit this on Wikidata
Constructionconcrete (foundation), metal (tower)Edit this on Wikidata
Height8 m (26 ft)Edit this on Wikidata
Shapecylindrical tower with balcony and lantern[5][6]
MarkingswhiteEdit this on Wikidata
Power sourcesolar powerEdit this on Wikidata
OperatorNorthern Lighthouse BoardEdit this on Wikidata
Focal height36 m (118 ft)Edit this on Wikidata
Lensfourth order Fresnel lensEdit this on Wikidata
Light source35 watt metal halide lamps
Range18 nmi (33 km; 21 mi)Edit this on Wikidata
CharacteristicFl(3) W 15sEdit this on Wikidata

Foula(/ˈfuːlə/),[7]located in theShetlandarchipelago ofScotland,is one of theUnited Kingdom's most remote permanently inhabitedislands.[8]The linerRMSOceanicwas wrecked on the Shaalds of Foula in 1914. Foula was the location for the filmThe Edge of the World(1937).

Toponym

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The name "Foula" derives from theOld NorseFugley,meaning "bird island";[9]compareFugloy,an island in theFaroes.

Geography

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Foula lies in theAtlantic Ocean,15 nautical miles (28 kilometres) west ofWallsonMainland, Shetland.It was part of Walls civil parish and now is in the parish of Walls and Sandness. The island is about2+1⁄2by3+1⁄2miles (4 by 6 kilometres), with a low-lying coastal strip along the east side. With an area of12.7 km2(4+7⁄8sq mi), it is the eighth largest and most westerly of the Shetland Islands. It rises from low broken cliffs in the east to precipitous 150–365 m (490–1,200 ft) cliffs in the west.[3]The island has five peaks, rising to 418 m (1,371 ft) at the Sneug and 376 m (1,234 ft) at the Kame.[10]At the north end is Gaada Stack, anatural archand towards the south-west is Da Sneck Ida Smaalie, a spectacular 30 m deep and 2 m wide crack in the cliffs.[11]Foula lies on the same latitude asSaint Petersburg.

Foula has a population of 38 people, living in Hametun and Ham.[2]Islanders previously made a living from fishing – first forwhitefish,thenlobster.[12]Today, most islanders arecrofters[13]with income fromsheep farmingandbirdwatchingtourism.[8]The island retains a post office in Ham.[14]

A hidden reef, the "Hoevdi Grund" or the "Shaalds o' Foula", lies just over3 km (1+1⁄2nmi) east of Foula between the island and theShetland Mainland.Tides here can reach 12 knots (22 km/h; 6 m/s), and as the reef comes to within less than a metre of the surface, it poses a significant threat to shipping.[15]

Transport

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Da Noup, Foula
Harbour at Ham with the crane for lifting boats out of the water carrying the ferryNew Advance

BK Marine Limitedoperates the ferry service from Ham toWallson Mainland, Shetland.[16]New Advancecarries up to 12 passengers and completes the voyage in about two hours. Flights take off fromFoula AirfieldtoTingwall Airport.A ferry service ran from Foula toScallowayuntil 2010.

There is little shelter for boats in the island. The only beach is at the head of Ham Voe on the east coast. Local boats, including themail boat,are hauled out of the water.[3]

Wildlife

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Cliffs in Foula

The island's 370-metre (1,210 ft) cliffs are home to numerous birds, includingArctic terns,red-throated diversandgreat skuas,and birders make up the bulk of visitors to the island.[8]The island has been designated anImportant Bird Area(IBA) byBirdLife Internationalbecause it supports large colonies of cliff- andmoorland-nestingseabirds.[17]

History

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Prehistory

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Foula was first inhabited as far back as 5,000 years ago.[18]Between 2006 and 2008, the Bath & Camerton Archeological Society took several trips to Foula to study prehistoricstanding stones.A particular sub-circular stone circle of interest was discovered in 2006 at Da Heights in the north of Foula. A further investigation launched in 2007 revealed that the sub-circular stone construction was man-made, elliptical in shape with the axis pointing towards the mid-wintersolstice,built before 1000 BC.[19]

15th to 19th centuries

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In 1490, the Ciske family's estates were divided andVailaand Foula became the property of Alv Knutsson. However, the Ciskes were Norwegian, and as Scotland had annexed Shetland a few decades before, there were confusing and conflicting claims of ownership.[3]

In 1720, asmallpoxepidemic struck the two hundred people living on Foula. Because the islanders were so isolated from the rest of the world, they had noimmunityto smallpox, unlike mostNorth Europeanpeoples at that time, and nine out of ten of the island's population died in the epidemic.[20]

Foula remained on theJulian calendarwhen the rest of theKingdom of Great Britainadopted theGregorian calendarin 1752.[8]Foula adhered to the Julian calendar by keeping 1800 as a leap year, but it did not observe a leap year in 1900. As a result, Foula is now one day ahead of the Julian calendar and 12 days behind the Gregorian, observingChristmas Dayon 6 January Gregorian andNew Yearon 13 January Gregorian.[21][3][22]

The writer and journalistJohn Sandslived on Foula andPapa Stourfor a while during the late 19th century. He opposed the prevailingtruck systemand drew political cartoons lampooning its deficiencies. In one, he drew Foula as a beautiful young woman being strangled by a boa-constrictor labelled 'landlordism' watched by other reptiles called 'missionary', 'laird' and 'truck'.[23]

The island was one of the last places where theNorn languagewas spoken (although it is claimed thatWalter SutherlandofSkawinUnstwas the last speaker), and the local dialect is strongly influenced byOld Norse.[8]In 1774 George Low, a young Scottish clergyman, visited Foula hoping to find remnants of oral literature in Norn, then nearing extinction.[24]He found fragments of songs, ballads and romances, and from his best source, an old farmer called William Henry, the ballad now known as "Hildina".Henry was quite poorly acquainted with the language, so that, although he had as a child memorised all 35 stanzas of the ballad in the original Norn, he could give Low only a summary of its content rather than a translation.[25][26][27]"Hildina" is the only extant poem in Norn.[28]

20th century

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Ham in Foula

ProfessorIan Holbournpurchased Foula around 1900, becoming its lastlaird.[29][30]He described the disaster of 8 September 1914, when theWhite Starliner, now thearmed merchant cruiserHMSOceanichit the Shaalds o' Foula, becoming a wreck within two weeks. Holbourn embarked upon theRMSLusitaniain May 1915 and survivedits sinking.

The professor's grandson, Robert Holbourn, anaval architect,acted as the island's "Peat Marshal" for many years.Peatis a valuable and scarce resource for heat and fuel in Shetland. Its cutting requires skill, taking several years to master. The most able islanders become known as the 'cutters' and, in the spirit of a long-standing Foula tradition, all able-bodied men are now and then "bid to the banks" of women who "didn't have a cutter in the house".[31]

Simon Martin, who stayed in Foula for five years in the 1970s while salvaging metal fromOceanic,describes the island as follows:[32]

Foula's Post Office in 1964
The old Post Office in 2016

Foula, orUltima Thule,as it was known as far back as theRomantimes, rises impurely out of the water, and from the Shetland Isles mainland its five peaks, the Noup, Hamnafield, the Sneug, Kame and Soberlie stand out starkly and characteristically. The cliffs on the west side vie with those ofSt Kildaas the highest sheer cliffs in Britain, 1,200 feet (370 metres) of solid rock towering from the sea. Foula, or Fughley as it was once also known, means literally 'Bird Island', with an estimated half million birds of various breeds sharing the rock with the inhabitants. The island’s surface largely consisting of a peat bog on rock.

Alighthouseat the southern tip of the island was built in 1986. Originally powered byacetylenegas, it has been converted tosolarand wind power.[33]

Culture and the arts

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Gaada Stack, Foula

Religion

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Many inhabitants of Foula attend thePresbyterianKirk, also known as Baxter Chapel, that is part of theChurch of Scotland.[34]It is made of grey-coloured stone and is situated "on the tail of 7 Hamnafield".[34]

Film

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  • Michael Powell's filmThe Edge of the World(1937) is a dramatisation based on the true story of the evacuation of the last 36 inhabitants of the remote island ofSt Kilda,on 29 August 1930. St Kilda lies in theAtlantic Ocean,64 kilometres (40 miles) west-northwest ofNorth Uistin theOuter Hebrides;the inhabitants spokeGaelic.Powell was unable to get permission to film in St Kilda. Undaunted, he made the film over four months during the summer of 1936 on Foula, where the islanders speakShetland dialect.
  • Return To The Edge Of The World(1978) is a documentary capturing a reunion of the 1937 film's cast and crew, 40 years later, as they revisit the island.
  • In 2023 Polish writer and director Klaudiusz Chrostowski made a low-budget filmUltima Thule,starringJakub Gierszałas a 30-year-old man arriving on the island to get over the death of his father. The film was almost entirely shot on Foula and features Arthur Henri, a local inhabitant, in the main supporting role. The film won the Best Micro Budget Film Award atGdynia Film Festivalin 2023.[35][36]

Folklore, festivities and traditions

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Foula's inhabitants preserve many Norse traditions of folklore and festivities. They still follow theJulian calendarfor Christmas celebrations, with all the islanders gathering in one house on 6 January though a day out.[37]New Year's Day falls on 13 January.[38]

Poetry

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Vagaland's poem "Da Sang o da Papa men"[39]about the fishermen ofPapa Stourincludes an insistent chorus chant, "Rowin Foula Doon".[40]This refers to the fishermen's practice of rowing their open fishing boat out to sea until the high cliffs of Foula were no longer visible. This entailed the boat's being some 96 kilometres (60 mi) west of Papa Stour.[41][42]

Geodesy

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The Sneug in Foula was the origin (meridian) of the 6 inch and 1:2500Ordnance Surveymaps of Orkney and Shetland.[43]

Notable residents

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  • Martin Ferguson Smith(b. 1940), scholar and writer.[44]Since retiring in 1995 he has lived in voluntary self-isolation on Foula.
  • Ian Holbourn,(1872 – 1935), was Laird of Foula, a professor and lecturer at the University of Oxford, and a writer.
  • Sheila Gear, author ofFoula, Island West of the Sun(published 1983 byRobert Hale Limited). She was born in Oxford and studied zoology at Aberdeen University. She married Jim Gear, a crofter, and wrote a book about crofter life in Shetland.[45][46]
  • John Sands(1826–1900) ofOrmiston,was a Scottish freelancejournalistand artist with an interest inarchaeologyand folk customs. He spent almost a year on St Kilda and lived on several other remote islands including Foula.

See also

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References

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  1. ^abArea and population ranks: there arec. 300islands over 20 ha in extent and93 permanently inhabited islandswere listed in the2011 census.
  2. ^abNational Records of Scotland(15 August 2013)."Appendix 2: Population and households on Scotland's Inhabited Islands"(PDF).Statistical Bulletin: 2011 Census: First Results on Population and Household Estimates for Scotland Release 1C (Part Two)(PDF)(Report). SG/2013/126.Retrieved14 August2020.
  3. ^abcdefHaswell-Smith, Hamish (2004).The Scottish Islands.Edinburgh: Canongate.ISBN978-1-84195-454-7.
  4. ^Ordnance Survey.OS Maps Online(Map). 1:25,000. Leisure.
  5. ^Rowlett, Russ."Lighthouses of Scotland: Shetland".The Lighthouse Directory.University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.Retrieved29 May2016.
  6. ^FoulaArchived2014-07-27 at theWayback MachineNorthern Lighthouse Board. Retrieved 29 May 2016
  7. ^Pointon, Graham, ed. (1990).BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names(2nd ed.). Oxford: The University Press.ISBN0-19-282745-6.
  8. ^abcdeLafferty, Jamie (9 December 2021)."Foula: Britain's most remote inhabited island".BBC Travel.Retrieved17 December2021.
  9. ^Mills, David (2011).A Dictionary of British Place Names.Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-960908-6.
  10. ^"Overview of Foula".Gazetteer for Scotland.Archivedfrom the original on 22 July 2011.Retrieved13 December2008.
  11. ^"Walks on Foula | Scotland Activities".Lonely Planet.Archivedfrom the original on 27 October 2021.Retrieved27 October2021.
  12. ^Henley, Jon (21 February 2008)."Living at the edge of the world".The Guardian.London. p. 5.Archivedfrom the original on 19 February 2014.Retrieved13 December2008.
  13. ^"Foula – The Edge of the World".Foula Heritage. Archived fromthe originalon 1 February 2009.Retrieved13 December2008.
  14. ^"Foula Delivery Office".Royal Mail.Retrieved2 September2024.
  15. ^"Hoevdi Grund"Shetlopedia. Retrieved 19 April 2012.ArchivedJune 10, 2015, at theWayback Machine
  16. ^"Foula Ferry Booking Information".BK Marine Ltd. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
  17. ^"Foula".BirdLife Data Zone.BirdLife International. 2024.Retrieved1 September2024.
  18. ^Bradley, Helen (2004)."Foula Archaeology".Foula Heritage. Archived fromthe originalon 1 September 2010.
  19. ^"The Foula Landscape Project: Da Heights Stones Survey and Investigation"ArchivedSeptember 4, 2011, at theWayback Machine(pdf) (June 2007) Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
  20. ^Watts, Sheldon (1997).Epidemics and History: Disease, Power and Imperialism.New Haven and London: Yale University Press. pp.85–86.ISBN0-300-08087-5.
  21. ^Jon Henley (21 February 2008)."Living at the edge of the world".Guardian.Archivedfrom the original on 15 January 2018.Retrieved15 January2018.
  22. ^Keay, J. & Keay, J. (1994)Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland.London. HarperCollins.
  23. ^Fleming, Andrew (2005).St Kilda and the Wider World: Tales of an iconic island.Macclesfield: Windgather Press. p. 159.ISBN1-905119-00-3.Fleming credits the source of this information asNicolson, J (3 July 1937). "John Sands".The Shetland Times.
  24. ^The Language of The Ballad of Hildina(2006–2014)
  25. ^Kershaw, N.(1921).Stories and Ballads of the Far Past.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 164–165.Retrieved6 June2015.
  26. ^Millar, Robert McColl (2014)."Social History and the Sociology of Language".In Hernández-Campoy, Juan M.; Conde-Silvestre, J. Camilo (eds.).The Handbook of Historical Sociolinguistics.Chichester: Wiley Blackwell. p. 57.ISBN978-1118798027.Retrieved6 June2014.
  27. ^Millar, Robert McColl (2007).Northern and Insular Scots.Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 128–129.ISBN9780748623174.Retrieved6 June2015.
  28. ^"The Language of The Ballad of Hildina".Norn.Hnolt. 2006–2014.Archivedfrom the original on 9 June 2015.Retrieved7 June2015.
  29. ^The Isle of Foula.ASIN1841581615.
  30. ^"Must Foula Become Deserted?".The Times.No. 56109. 5 September 1964.Archivedfrom the original on 27 October 2021.Retrieved7 May2015.
  31. ^Martin, Simon (2004).The Other Titanic.pp. 88–89.ISBN978-1-904746-03-4.
  32. ^Martin, Simon (2004).The Other Titanic.p. 78.ISBN978-1-904746-03-4.
  33. ^"Foula Lighthouse".Northern Lighthouse Board.Archived fromthe originalon 28 September 2007.Retrieved1 February2008.
  34. ^abGear, Sheila (1983).Foula: Island West of the Sun.Hale. p. 55.ISBN9780709196730.
  35. ^"Ultima Thule + Director Q&A".Kinoteka. 2023.Retrieved29 June2024.}
  36. ^"Polish Buzz Titles at Berlin Film Festival".Variety.Retrieved29 June2024.}
  37. ^Merritt, Mike."Remote Foula islanders finally get to celebrate Christmas".Archivedfrom the original on 28 October 2019.Retrieved21 November2019.
  38. ^"Islanders not scared of luck".The Herald.Glasgow. 5 January 2015. p. Front page.
  39. ^Fleming, Richard."Da Song o' da Papa Men including a translation"(PDF).Papa Stour magazine.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 4 December 2009.Retrieved13 September2007.
  40. ^"Rowin Foula doon"(PDF).Papa Stour magazine.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 4 December 2009.Retrieved13 September2007.
  41. ^Vagaland (edited by M. Robertson) (1975)The Collected Poems of Vagaland.Lerwick.The Shetland Times.
  42. ^"Papa Stour".Shetlopedia.Archivedfrom the original on 26 June 2008.Retrieved13 September2007.
  43. ^"198 years and 153 meridians, 152 defunct"(PDF).www.charlesclosesociety.org.Archived(PDF)from the original on 26 October 2016.Retrieved27 February2016.
  44. ^SemiColonWeb."Martin Ferguson Smith".www.martinfergusonsmith.com.Archivedfrom the original on 7 September 2019.Retrieved23 November2019.
  45. ^"Sheila Gear".Michael Walmer.Retrieved12 March2024.
  46. ^"Living at the edge of the world | Scotland holidays | The Guardian".amp.theguardian.com.Retrieved12 March2024.

Further reading

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[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related toFoula.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide forFoula.

60°08′N02°04′W/ 60.133°N 2.067°W/60.133; -2.067

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