This page is about the physical island. For the knitting technique, see Fair Isle (technique). Fair Isle is a traditional Knitting technique used to create patterns with multiple colours

Fair Isle
Location
Fair Isle
Fair Isle shown within Scotland.
OS grid reference:	HZ209717
Names
Gaelic name:
Norse name:	Frjóey/Friðarey
Meaning of name:	"Sheep island", from Norse
Area and Summit
Area:	768 ha
Area rank (Scottish islands):	61
Highest elevation:	Ward Hill 217 m
Population
Population (2001):	69
Population rank (inhabited Scottish islands):	50 out of 97
Groupings
Island Group:	Shetland
Local Authority:
References:	[1][2][3][4][5]

West cliffs, looking southwest towards Malcolm's Head. The British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using Latitude and Longitude Scottish Gaelic ( Gàidhlig) is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. Old Norse is the North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age Scotland covers an area of 78782 km² or 30341 mi², giving it a Population density of. Shetland (formerly spelled Zetland, from etland; Old Norse non Hjaltland; Sealtainn is an Archipelago off the northeast coast of For local government purposes Scotland is divided into 32 areas designated as "council areas" which are all governed by unitary authorities designated as

Sunset over the South Lighthouse

Fair Isle (from Old Norse Frjóey) Scottish Gaelic Eileann nan Geansaidh is an island off Scotland, lying around halfway between Shetland and the Orkney Islands. Old Norse is the North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age Scottish Gaelic ( Gàidhlig) is a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Shetland (formerly spelled Zetland, from etland; Old Norse non Hjaltland; Sealtainn is an Archipelago off the northeast coast of Orkney (also known as the Orkney Islands or incorrectly the Orkneys) is an Archipelago in northern Scotland, situated 10 miles (16 km north 4. 8 kilometres (3 miles) in length and 2. 4 kilometres (1. 5 miles) wide, it has an area of 768 hectares (3 square miles), making it the tenth largest of the Shetland Islands. The island is situated around 40 kilometres (25 miles) south-west of Sumburgh Head on the Mainland of Shetland. Sumburgh Head is located at the southern tip of the Shetland Mainland in northern Scotland. Mainland is the main Island of Shetland, Scotland. The island contains Shetland's only Burgh, Lerwick, and is the centre of Shetland's Although it is marginally closer to North Ronaldsay Orkney, Fair Isle is administratively part of Shetland. North Ronaldsay is the northernmost of the Orkney Islands, Scotland and with an area of 2 It gives its name to one of the British Sea Areas. The Shipping Forecast is a four-times-daily BBC radio broadcast of Weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles. It is the most remote inhabited island in the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located ^[6][7]

The majority of the seventy islanders live in the crofts on the southern half of the island, with the northern half consisting of rocky moorland. A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land usually small and arable with a crofter's Dwelling thereon Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas characterised by low growing vegetation on Acidic soils The western coast consists of cliffs of up to 200 metres (660 feet) in height. The population has been decreasing steadily from around four hundred in around 1900. Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar There are no pubs or restaurants on the island, but there is a single primary school. After the age of eleven, children must attend a boarding school in Lerwick. For the aircraft see Saro Lerwick Lerwick is the only Burgh and main port of the Shetland Islands

History

Fair Isle has been occupied since the Bronze Age which is remarkable because of the lack of raw materials on the island, although it is surrounded by rich fishing waters. The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for

On August 20, 1588 the flagship of the Spanish Armada, El Gran Grifón, was shipwrecked in the cove of Stroms Heelor, forcing its 300 sailors to spend six weeks living with the islanders. Events 636 - Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control of Syria and Palestine The Spanish Armada ( Spanish: Grande y Felicísima Armada, "Great and Most Fortunate Navy" or Armada Invencible, "Invincible El Gran Grifón was the flagship of the Spanish Armada 's supply squadron of Baltic hulks (built in and chartered from the City of Rostock) The wreck was discovered in 1970. Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Bird observatory

Fair Isle has had a permanent bird observatory since 1948 because of its importance as a bird migration watchpoint and this provides most of the accommodation on the island. A bird observatory is a centre for the study of Bird migration and bird Populations They are usually focused on local Birds but may also include interest Bird migration refers to the regular seasonal journeys undertaken by many species of Birds Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability The first Director of the observatory was Kenneth Williamson. Kenneth Williamson (1914 – 14 June 1977) was a British ornithologist who had a strong association with Scotland and with Bird It is unusual amongst bird observatories in providing catered, rather than hostel-style, accommodation. Many rare species of bird have been found on the island, and it is probably the best place in western Europe to see skulking Siberian passerines like Pechora Pipit, Lanceolated Warbler and Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler. Birds ( class Aves) are bipedal endothermic ( Warm-blooded) Vertebrate animals that lay eggs. Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving The Pechora Pipit ( Anthus gustavi) is a small Passerine Bird which breeds in the tundra of the far north of Asia from Russia eastwards The Lanceolated Warbler ( Locustella lanceolata) is an Old World warbler in the Grass warbler genus Locustella. For the Phylloscopus warbler species see Pallas's Warbler The Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler, Locustella certhiola In 2008 a Caspian Plover was observed, only the fourth such record for the UK. The Caspian Plover ( Charadrius asiaticus) is a Wader in the Plover family of Birds It breeds on open grassland in central Asia ^[7]

The island was bought by the National Trust for Scotland in 1954 from George Waterson, the founder of the bird observatory. The National Trust for Scotland (NTS ( Scottish Gaelic: Urras Nàiseanta na h-Alba) describes itself as the conservation charity that protects and promotes Year 1954 ( MCMLIV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1954 Gregorian calendar) ^[8][9]

Economy

Croft houses

Fair Isle is famous for its knitted jumpers, with knitting forming an important source of income for the women of the islands. A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land usually small and arable with a crofter's Dwelling thereon "Knit" redirects here See also KNIT and Knitted fabric. The principal activity for the male islanders is crofting. A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land usually small and arable with a crofter's Dwelling thereon

Since 1982, two thirds of the community's power has been supplied by wind turbines, and just one third by diesel generators. The island has a distinctive double electrical network. Standard electricity service is provided on one network, and electric heating is delivered by a second set of cables. The electric heating is mainly served by excess electricity from the two wind turbines that would otherwise have had to be dumped. Remote frequency-sensitive programmable relays control individual water heaters and storage heaters in the buildings of the community.

Ward Hill (715ft) played host to a hastily built RAF radar station during WWII, the ruins of which are still present today. There are also substantial sections of a crashed Heinkel He 111. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout

On January 29, 2004, Fair Isle was granted Fairtrade Island status. Events 904 - Sergius III comes out of retirement to take over the papacy from the deposed Antipope Christopher. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Fairtrade Town is a marketing tool in which this status is awarded by a recognized Fairtrade certification body (i

Fair Isle jumper done in the traditional style, from Fair Isle.

Transport

• Fair Isle Airport serves the island with flights to Lerwick
• The Good Shepherd IV plies between Fair Isle and Grutness
• In 2007 Loganair announced the introduction of a twice-weekly service between Kirkwall and Fair Isle, via North Ronaldsay. Fair Isle Airport, is a small Airport located on Fair Isle between Orkney and Shetland. For the aircraft see Saro Lerwick Lerwick is the only Burgh and main port of the Shetland Islands The Good Shepherd IV is a Ferry connecting Fair Isle to Shetland Mainland. Grutness is a small settlement and headland at the southern tip of the main island of the Shetland Islands, Scotland. Loganair is an Airline based at Glasgow International Airport in Scotland. Kirkwall is the largest town and capital of the Orkney Islands, off the coast of northern mainland Scotland. This service, running between May and October, is to continue in 2008.

See also

• Foula
• List of Shetland islands

Footnotes

External links

• Fair Isle community website
• Fair Isle bird observatory
• Fair Isle Electricity Company Ltd
• Details of its airport
• Photographic tour of the island
• Examples of Fair Isle Knitting

Coordinates: 59°32′0″N 1°32′0″W / 59.53333, -1.53333