Burwick, Orkney

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Burwick
Orkney
The Church, Burwick , South Ronaldsay, Orkney Islands - geograph.org.uk - 224194.jpg
The Church, Burwick
Location
Island: South Ronaldsay
Grid reference: ND436839
Location: 58°44’24"N, 2°58’23"W
Data
Post town: Orkney
Postcode: KW17
Dialling code: 01856
Local Government
Council: Orkney
Parliamentary
constituency:
Orkney and Shetland

Burwick is a small village and harbour on the island of South Ronaldsay, the southernmost inhabited island of Orkney. It is the closest Orkney harbour to the mainland of Great Britain and is the terminus of a passenger ferry which operates in the summer to John o' Groats in Caithness.

The name was first recorded in about 1225 as "Bardvik", derived from the Old Norse bar vík, meaning "bay of the extremity", for its position near the southernmost point of the island.[1]

The remains of the Castle of Burwick, a defended Iron Age fort and probable secondary monastic settlement, occupy the promontory west of the harbour.[2]

Outside links

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References

  1. Mills, A.D.; Room, Adrian (2002). A Dictionary of British Place-Names. Oxford University Press. Burwick. 
  2. {{cite web|url=http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/9561/details/south+ronaldsay+castle+of+burwick/ South Ronaldsay, Castle of Burwick] - Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland