VisitShetland

Cultural

Cultural Life

Shetland's world-famous music is the heart and soul of the place. Some of the old fiddle tunes are Norwegian - for 600 years the islands were a province of Norway, until mortgaged to Scotland in 1469 as part of a royal wedding dowry (commemorated in Lerwick Town Hall's stained glass windows).

The pledge was never redeemed but islanders continued to speak a form of Old Norse until about 1700. Modern Shetland dialect still uses hundreds of Norwegian words.

Viking boat designs, fire festivals and fiddle music remind us that, over a thousand years ago, Shetland was the first stepping stone on the Vikings' invasion of northern Scotland, Ireland, Iceland and Greenland.

Ancient links with Norway were strengthened during the Second World War, when Shetland was the secret base for resistance fighters raiding their Nazi-occupied homeland. The 'Shetland Bus' museum in the village of Scalloway records this saga of courage and endurance.

Surrounded by fishing grounds and oil & gas fields, Shetlanders have now enjoyed almost Scandinavian prosperity for the past quarter of a century - but also managed to keep their environment largely unspoiled.

Islanders but not insular, Shetlanders are a cosmopolitan lot. Seafaring is a long tradition and, because of the fish trade, Shetland was in regular contact with the outside world from earliest times.
We're still great travellers.

For hundreds of years new islanders have been arriving here - many Shetland families can trace Scots, English, Dutch, German, roots - while others were emigrating. There are probably more people of Shetland descent in Australia, New Zealand and Canada than in Shetland itself. So genealogy is a favourite pastime and many of our visitors come tracing kith and kin.

Shetlanders tend to feel a strong attachment to 'The Auld Rock', a place of intricate heritage as well as great natural beauty. We don't do 'industrial tourism' - to us you're an individual, a welcome guest. We look forward to sharing our lovely islands with you.

• Find out about the new Centre for Nordic Studies which is set to open in Lerwick this year.
  

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2008 Photo Competition

VisitShetland are pleased to announce their fourth annual photographic competition, open to local and visiting amateur photographers. The competition seeks entries which capture the imagination and the role that the Shetland landscape plays in our cultural identity.

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Shetland Food Directory

From lamb to seafood, Shetland's produce is considered a benchmark for quality. A new website, The Shetland Food Directory, lists sources of fine Shetland food and drink and some of the wonderful places to eat out in Shetland.

www.foodshetland.com

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Buy Shetland Knitwear

Choose from our wide range of Shetland knitwear including Fair Isle tank tops, cushion covers and bags.  Also a range of rugs made with 100% pure Shetland wool.

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Swan Trips 2008

Enjoy a trip on the Swan this summer and experience the world of a resilient vessel restored to glory. Join a crew who love the sea, and be part of a learning experience!

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Sunday Times article

News

Treasure Returns to Shetland

Shetland Museum and Archives welcomes St Ninian’s Isle Treasure for three month loan...

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