List of Orkney islands Facts for Kids

Orkney islands map

The Orkney Islands are a group of islands located off the northern coast of Scotland. This amazing archipelago (which means a group of islands) is about 16 kilometers (10 miles) north of mainland Scotland. There are over 70 islands and small rocky islets called skerries in Orkney. About 20 of these islands have people living on them all the time.

The biggest island is called the Orkney Mainland. The other islands are grouped into the North Isles (north of Mainland) and the South Isles (south of Mainland). There are also the Pentland Skerries, which are tiny islands in the Pentland Firth. This area has very strong ocean currents. The Island of Stroma is sometimes thought to be part of Orkney, but it actually belongs to Caithness.

An island is defined as land surrounded by seawater every day, even if it's only at certain times of the tide. This definition does not include land connected by human-made bridges or causeways. Four islands in Orkney are linked to the Mainland by special causeways called the Churchill Barriers. These islands are South Ronaldsay, Burray, Lamb Holm, and Glimps Holm. Also, Hunda is connected to Burray by a causeway.

The Churchill Barriers were built during World War II by Italian prisoners-of-war. They were made to protect Scapa Flow, a large natural harbor, from enemy submarines. This was important after a German U-boat sank a British ship, HMS Royal Oak, in 1939. The Italian prisoners built a small Roman Catholic chapel on Lamb Holm. It was a place for them to worship while they were there.

Most of the Orkney islands are made of Old Red Sandstone. This rock is about 400 million years old! The islands have good land for farming and have been lived on for thousands of years. You can see this at the World Heritage Site called the Heart of Neolithic Orkney, which has ancient stone buildings. Because the islands are windy and have strong tides, there are many lighthouses to help ships navigate. The European Marine Energy Centre in Stromness is testing new ways to get energy from waves and tidal energy from the ocean. All the islands are part of the Orkney Islands Council. Many of the larger islands have groups that help support the local economy.

The total number of people living in Orkney grew from 19,245 in 2001 to 21,349 in 2011.

Discovering the Main Islands of Orkney

Ward Hill, the highest point on Hoy

This section lists the islands of Orkney that are larger than 15 hectares (about 37 acres). We don't have full records for when the smaller, uninhabited islands were last lived on. However, all the islands listed here were likely home to people at some point in history. This includes the Neolithic (New Stone Age), Pictish, or Norse times.

Many islands have a highest point called 'Ward Hill' or a similar name. These places were used to light warning beacons long ago.

Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall, a historic building on Mainland.

Start Point lighthouse, Sanday

Midhowe Broch, an ancient tower on Rousay

Skiffs (small boats) racing in the Bay of Pierowall, Westray

Island	Group	Area (ha)	Population	Last inhabited	Highest point	Height (m)
Auskerry	North Isles	85	4		West Hill	18
Brough of Birsay	Mainland	16	0	unknown	Brough Head	42
Burray	South Isles	903	409			80
Calf of Eday	North Isles	243	0	unknown		54
Calf of Flotta	South Isles	16	0	unknown		16
Cava	South Isles	107	0	1993		38
Copinsay	South Isles	73	0	1970s	Broad Lee	70
Damsay	North Isles	18	0	unknown		11
Eday	North Isles	2745	160		Ward Hill	101
Egilsay	North Isles	650	26			35
Eynhallow	North Isles	75	0	1842-90		30
Fara	South Isles	295	0	1960s	Thomson's Hill	43
Faray	North Isles	180	0	1940s		32
Flotta	South Isles	876	80		West Hill	58
Gairsay	North Isles	240	3			102
Glimps Holm	South Isles	55	0	unknown		32
Graemsay	South Isles	409	28		West Hill	62
Helliar Holm	North Isles	35	0	1967		28
Holm of Faray	North Isles	27	0	unknown		19
Holm of Grimbister	North Isles	16	3			8
Holm of Huip	North Isles	24	0	unknown		18
Holm of Papa	North Isles	21	0	unknown		15
Holm of Scockness	North Isles	22	0	unknown		18
Hoy	South Isles	13468	419		Ward Hill	479
Hunda	South Isles	100	0	unknown		41
Inner Holm	South Isles	2	1			7
Lamb Holm	South Isles	40	See below	1945		20
Linga Holm	North Isles	57	0	1842-90		18
Muckle Green Holm	North Isles	28	0	unknown		28
Muckle Skerry	Pentland Skerries	34	0	1994		20
North Ronaldsay	North Isles	690	72			23
Orkney Mainland	Mainland	52325	17162		Mid Hill	271
Papa Stronsay	North Isles	74	0			13
Papa Westray	North Isles	918	90		North Hill	48
Rousay	North Isles	4860	216		Blotchnie Fiold	250
Rysa Little	South Isles	33	0	19th century		20
Sanday	North Isles	5043	494		The Wart	65
Shapinsay	North Isles	2948	307		Ward Hill	64
South Ronaldsay	South Isles	4980	909		Ward Hill	118
South Walls	South Isles	1100	See Hoy		Gallow Tuag	57
Start Point	North Isles	24	0	unknown	Mount Misery	8
Stronsay	North Isles	3275	349		Burgh Hill	44
Switha	South Isles	41	0	20th century?		29
Sweyn Holm	North Isles	17	0	unknown		15
Swona	South Isles	92	0	1974	Warbister Hill	41
Tresness	North Isles	40	2			8
Westray	North Isles	4713	588		Fitty Hill	169
Wyre	North Isles	311	29			32

The small island of Holm of Grimbister had people living on it in 2010. The population of Inner Holm was one person in 2001. Lamb Holm is counted as an inhabited island, but it had no regular residents in 2001 or 2011. Papa Stronsay had 10 residents in 2001, but it seemed uninhabited in 2011.

Exploring Smaller Islets and Skerries

The famous Old Man rock stack on Hoy

Saeva Ness Lighthouse, Helliar Holm

This list continues with smaller Orkney islands that are not inhabited. Many of these are called "Holm". This word comes from an old Norse word meaning a small, round islet. Some are tidal islets, meaning they are only separated from other land at high tide. Others are skerries, which are only visible at low tide.

These smaller islands are found near:

Auskerry: Lunga Skerries, Oessen Skerry, The Clett.
Calf of Eday: Lashy Skerries, The Bow.
Cava: Barrel of Butter.
Copinsay: Black Holm, Corn Holm, Horse of Copinsay, Scarf Skerry, Sow Skerry, Ward Holm.
Eday: Green Holm, Red Holm, Rusk Holm.
Egilsay: Kili Holm.
Eynhallow: Sheep Skerry.
Gairsay: Holm of Boray, Holm of Rendall, Little Seal Skerry, Skertours, Taing Skerry.
Glimps Holm: Dulse Skerry, Glimpsholm Skerry.
Graemsay: Middle Skerry, Skerry of Cletts, Sour Skerry, Sow Skerry.
Hoy: Grassy Cletts, Inner Skerry, Middle Skerry, Old Man of Hoy, Outer Skerry, The Needle.
Mainland: Bo Skerry, Bow Skerries, Braga, Brough of Bigging, Holm of Houton, Holm of Rendall, Iceland Skerry, 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, Yesnaby Castle.
Muckle Skerry: Clettack Skerry, Little Skerry, Louther Skerry.
North Ronaldsay: Altars of Linnay, Green Skerry, Hoe Skerries, Reefdyke, Seal Skerry.
Papa Stronsay: Jack's Hole, Jack's Reef.
Papa Westray: Cairn Head, Muckle Quoy.
Rousay: Little Brig, Muckle Brig.
Sanday: Baa Gruna.
Shapinsay: Broad Shoal, Grass Holm, Skerry of Vasa.
Stronsay: Holms of Spurness, Ingale Skerry, Little Linga, The Bow.
Swona: Selki Skerry, South Clett, The Tails of the Tarff, West Wini Skerry.
Westray: Holm of Aikerness, Shell Holm, Skea Skerries, Wart Holm.
Wyre: Wyre Skerries.

The distant islets of Sule Skerry and Sule Stack are about 37 miles (60 km) west of the main Orkney islands. They are considered part of Orkney for local government purposes.

List of Orkney islands facts for kids

Discovering the Main Islands of Orkney

Exploring Smaller Islets and Skerries

See also