West cliffs, looking southwest towards Malcolm's Head.

Fair Isle (from Old Norse frioar-øy) is an island off Scotland, lying around halfway between Shetland and Orkney Island at 59°32′N 1°32′W. Three miles (4.8 km) in length and 1.5 miles (2.4 km) wide, it has an area of 1402 acres (5.61 km²). The island is situated around 25 miles (40 km) south-west of Sumburgh on the Shetland mainland. For governmental and local council purposes it is treated as part of Shetland. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (426x640, 100 KB) West cliffs, Fair Isle. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (426x640, 100 KB) West cliffs, Fair Isle. ... Old Norse is the Germanic language spoken by the inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300. ... Motto: (Latin for No one provokes me with impunity)1 Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official language(s) English, Gaelic, Scots2 Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen of the UK Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Jack McConnell MSP Unification    - by... See Shetland (disambiguation) for other meanings. ... ... Sumburgh may refer to: Sumburgh Head Sumburgh Airport Category: ... Shetland Mainland shown within Shetland Islands Mainland is the main island of Shetland, Scotland. ... See Shetland (disambiguation) for other meanings. ...

The majority of the 70 islanders live in the crofts on the southern half of the island, with the northern half consisting of rocky moorland. The western coast consists of cliffs of up to 660 feet (200 m) in height. The population has been decreasing steadily from around 400 in around 1900. There are no pubs or restaurants on the island, but there is a single primary school. After the age of 11, children must attend a boarding school in Lerwick. The Shetland Crofthouse Museum, with peat stacked out front. ... Heaths are anthropogenic habitats found primarily in northern and western Europe, where they have been created by thousands of years of human clearance of natural forest vegetation by grazing and burning on mainly infertile acidic soils. ... 1900 (MCM) was an exceptional common year starting on Monday. ... Location within the British Isles The Market Cross,Central Lerwick Lerwick is the only burgh and main port of the Shetland Islands, found more than 160 km (100 miles) off the north coast of mainland Scotland. ...

Although it is marginally closer to North Ronaldsay Orkney, Fair Isle is administratively part of Shetland. It gives its name to one of the British Sea Areas. North Ronaldsay is the northernmost of the Orkney Islands, Scotland. ... The Shipping Forecast is a regular feature of BBC Radio 4 and is provided by the UK Meteorological Office. ...

Fair Isle has been occupied since the Bronze Age which is remarkable because of the lack of raw materials on the island, although it is surrounded by rich fishing waters. It has a permanent bird observatory because of its importance as a bird migration watchpoint and this provides most of the accommodation on the island. It is unusual amongst bird observatories in providing catered accommodation rather than hostel-style. Many rare species of bird have been found on the island, and it is probably the best place in western Europe to see skulking Siberian passerines like Pechora Pipit, Lanceolated Warbler and Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler. The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ... A bird observatory is a centre for the study of bird migration and bird populations. ... // Long-distance land bird migration Many species of land migratory birds migrate very long distances, the most common pattern being for birds to breed in the temperate or arctic northern hemisphere and winter in warmer regions, often in the tropics or the temperate zones of the southern hemisphere. ... Orders Many - see section below. ... A common understanding of Western Europe in modern times. ... Siberian Federal District (dark red) and the broadest definition of Siberia (red) Siberia (Russian: , Sibir’; Tatar: Seber) is a vast region of Russia and northern Kazakhstan constituting almost all of Northern Asia. ... Families Many, see text A passerine is a bird of the giant order Passeriformes. ... Binomial name Anthus gustavi Swinhoe, 1863 The Pechora Pipit (Anthus gustavi) is a small passerine bird which breeds in the tundra of the far north of Asia from Russia eastwards. ... Binomial name Locustella lanceolata (Temminck, 1840) The Lanceolated Warbler (Locustella lanceolata) is an Old World warbler in the grass warbler genus Locustella. ... Binomial name Locustella certhiola (Pallas,, 1811) The Pallass Grasshopper Warbler, Locustella certhiola, is an Old World warbler in the grass warbler genus Locustella. ...

The island was bought by the National Trust for Scotland in 1954 from George Waterson, the founder of the bird observatory. The standard of the NTS The National Trust for Scotland, or NTS, describes itself as The conservation charity that protects and promotes Scotlands natural and cultural heritage for present and future generations to enjoy. ... 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Croft houses.

Fair Isle is famous for its knitted jumpers, with knitting forming an important source of income for the women of the islands. The principal activity for the male islanders is crofting. Image File history File links Fair_Isle_-_Croft_houses. ... Image File history File links Fair_Isle_-_Croft_houses. ... The Shetland Crofthouse Museum, with peat stacked out front. ... Knit hat, yarn, and knitting needles. ... In Scotland a croft is a small parcel of agricultural land that is occupied and farmed by a crofter who pays rent to the landlord who owns the land. ...

Ward Hill (715ft) played host to a hastily built RAF radar station during WWII, the ruins of which are still present today. There are also substantial sections of a crashed Heinkel he111. RAF is an three letter acronym for: Royal Air Force -- the Air Force of the United Kingdom (see also Air Ministry) Red Army Faction (Rote Armee Fraktion) -- a German terror organisation Rigas Autobusu Fabrika -- a factory making buses in Riga, Latvia Rapid Action Force in India Računarski Fakultet RAF... Heinkel Flugzeugwerke was a German aircraft manufacturing company founded by and named after Ernst Heinkel. ... The Heinkel He 111 was the primary Luftwaffe medium bomber during the early stages of World War II, and is perhaps the most obvious symbol of the German side of the Battle of Britain. ...

On August 20, 1588 the flagship of the Spanish Armada, El Gran Grifón, was shipwrecked in the cove of Stroms Heelor, forcing its 300 sailors to spend six weeks living with the islanders. The wreck was discovered in 1970. August 20 is the 232nd day of the year (233rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1588 was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. ... The Spanish Armada or Great/Grand Armada (Old Spanish: Grande y Felicísima Armada, large and most fortunate navy; but called by the English, with ironic intention, la Armada Invencible, the Invincible Fleet) refers to the Spanish-controlled fleet which sailed against England in 1588, with the intention of escorting... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ...

On January 29, 2004, Fair Isle was granted Fairtrade Island status. January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Fairtrade Town is a status awarded by the Fairtrade Foundation in the United Kingdom and Channel Islands, describing an area which is committed to the promotion of Fairtrade-labelled goods. ...

Transport

• Fair Isle Airport serves the island with flights to Lerwick
• The Good Shepherd IV plies between Fair Isle and Grutness

Fair Isle Airport (IATA: FIE), is a small airport located on Fair Isle between Orkney and Shetland. ... Location within the British Isles The Market Cross,Central Lerwick Lerwick is the only burgh and main port of the Shetland Islands, found more than 160 km (100 miles) off the north coast of mainland Scotland. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

External links

• Fair Isle community website
• Fair Isle bird observatory
• Details of its airport
• Photographic tour of the island
• Map sources for Fair Isle