A-Z of Orkney Placenames - Paperback

When the Vikings arrived in Orkney, they set about naming the islands and the landscape in their usual literal manner. In understanding these names, we must remember that Viking Orkney was very different from the familiar landscape of our present day. What they knew as wetlands and heather-covered slopes have long since been drained and cultivated.

In this extensive collection of Orkney placenames, Gregor looks at the meanings of some 8,000 words, mostly descriptions in Old Norse. He also unearths intriguing hints of earlier names, given by the people who lived in Orkney before the new invaders came.

Gregor Lamb traces the etymology of common Orkney names in his A-Z, such as quoy, geo, fiold and bister, and considers as well the significance of those words relating to battles, to people and even to the supernatural.