An Orkney Anthology

An Orkney Anthology
Author: Ernest W. Marwick
Publisher:
Total Pages: 608
Release: 1991
Genre: History
ISBN:

Orkney's history, folklore, language and way of life are skilfully recreated in this outstanding collection. The Anthology draws together a wealth of fascinating material from journals, newspaper articles and broadcast strips, and includes much previously unpublished writing. It forms a major new contribution to the story of Orkney. The first of two volumes, this book focuses on Orkney's folklore and history. The articles range from unique collections of domestic, farming and sea superstitions to the remarkable ABC of Orkney Food, Fifty Years of Scapa Flow and Northern Witches, an account of witchcraft in Orkney. Ernest Marwick combined research into archives and oral tradition in a blend of styles. Both the serious analytical articles, and the more anecdotal light-hearted pieces, will reward the student and the interested layman alike

An Orkney Tapestry

An Orkney Tapestry
Author: George Mackay Brown
Publisher: Polygon
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2021-06-03
Genre: Orkney (Scotland)
ISBN: 9781846974809

First published in 1969, An Orkney Tapestry, George Mackay Brown's seminal work, is a unique look at Orkney through the eye of a poet. Originally commissioned by his publisher as an introduction to the Orkney Islands, Brown approached the writing from a unique perspective and went on to produce a rich fusion of ballad, folk tale, short story, drama and environmental writing. The book, written at an early stage in the author's career, explores themes that appear in his later work and was a landmark in Brown's development as a writer. Above all, it is a celebration of Orkney's people, language and history. This edition reproduces Sylvia Wishart's beautiful illustrations, commissioned for the original hardback.Made available again for the first time in over 40 years, this new edition sits alongside Nan Shepherd's The Living Mountain as an important precursor of environmental writing by the likes of Kathleen Jamie, Robert Macfarlane, Malachy Tallack and, most recently, Amy Liptrot.

The Folklore of Orkney and Shetland

The Folklore of Orkney and Shetland
Author: Ernest Marwick
Publisher: Birlinn Ltd
Total Pages: 170
Release: 2020-05-07
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1788852729

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.

Orkney Folk Tales

Orkney Folk Tales
Author: Tom Muir
Publisher: The History Press
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2014-03-03
Genre: History
ISBN: 0750955333

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.

An Orkney Tapestry

An Orkney Tapestry
Author: George MacKay Brown
Publisher: Polygon
Total Pages: 242
Release: 2021-08-03
Genre: History
ISBN: 1788852354

First published in 1969, An Orkney Tapestry, George Mackay Brown's seminal work, is a unique look at Orkney through the eye of a poet. Originally commissioned by his publisher as an introduction to the Orkney Islands, Brown approached the writing from a unique perspective and went on to produce a rich fusion of ballad, folk tale, short story, drama, and environmental writing. The book, written at an early stage in the author’s career, explores themes that appear in his later work and was a landmark in Brown’s development as a writer. Above all, it is a celebration of Orkney's people, language and history. This edition reproduces Sylvia Wishart’s beautiful illustrations, commissioned for the original hardback. Made available again for the first time in over 40 years, this new edition sits alongside Nan Shepherd’s The Living Mountain as an important precursor of environmental writing by the likes of Kathleen Jamie, Robert Macfarlane, Malachy Tallack and, most recently, Amy Liptrot.

Beside the Ocean of Time

Beside the Ocean of Time
Author: George Mackay Brown
Publisher: Calgary : Bayeux Arts
Total Pages: 236
Release: 1994
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9781896209128

1994 Booker Prize short-listed story of Thorfinn Ragnarson's dreams re-living his birthplace.

The New History of Orkney

The New History of Orkney
Author: William P. L. Thomson
Publisher: Origin
Total Pages: 578
Release: 2008
Genre: History
ISBN:

For much of its history, Orkney had its own language, culture and institutions. The prehistoric inhabitants created monuments which are unmatched anywhere in Europe, and the medieval period saw the magnificent earldom that expressed itself through the Orkneyinga Saga and the building of St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall. Like Shetland, Orkney was heavily influenced by Viking traders and raiders from Scandinavia, and for a long period it formed an outlying part of the kingdom of Norway.Over 500 years ago, however, the islands lost their Scandinavian links and since then have had a sometimes difficult association with mainland Scotland. More recent times have seen the use of Orkney as a strategic stronghold during two world wars, and the far-reaching impact of oil and gas exploitation in the North Sea. This classic book covers the whole fascinating story and will be of interest to readers far beyond the rocky shores of Orkney itself.