lisa

Blaeu Atlas of Scotland of 1654 was written in Latin and translations appear at http://www.nls.uk/digitallibrary/map/early/blaeu (the search for Shetland) One of the descriptions carries the passage: "As for the name Shetland, it is spelled differently by Buchanan: when grouping all these islands together, he now calls them Hethland, now Zeland, now Shetland, even if each island enjoys its own particular nomenclature. These islands have the first name from their height, for in many places they rise quite high into the air; they have the second from their situation, for they are placed in their own, by far the coldest part of the sea; they have the third from the tribute which formerly and still today they pay both to the Kings of Scots and also to the Lords of Norway (this tax they call in their own tongue ‘scat’), as if one were to say tributary land." A footnote in James M Irvine's "Blaue's Orkneys and Schetland" which contains the maps and translated texts says that Hethland was derived from "highland", Zeland from "sealand" and Schetland from "scatland". The Latin names in the original texts was Schetlandiae and Hetlandicae.

I am seeking texts of the following documents: The Sheep Letter (1298) The Dog Letter (1350) The Country Acts (1611) If anyone can point me to a person or a place where I could obtain these I would be forever grateful. Lisa

Maybe this will help clear up the mystery a little, though it was written about the Lerwick coat of arms: from Black's Guide To Scotland, 1903 regarding the Town Hall of Lerwick built in 1881 "On the gable above the centre oriel are the arms recently granted to the burgh of Lerwick - a Viking galley surmounted by a Norwegian battle-axe, and for crest the Danish raven, with the motto Dispecta est Thule, from the Agricola of Tacitus - the first reference to the islands in the classics."

From "The Birds of Shetland" by S.H. Saxby 1871 "The Raven is resident and very abundant in Shetland, but large numbers, which are certainly not natives arrive in autumn, usually about the middle of October, remaining until the breeding season begins. At such times I have seen upwards of forty within the space of a few acres. In November also, when the yearly slaughter of the cows takes place, enormous numbers of ravens come to feed upon the offal, and this occurs throughout the whole islands..." The chapter describes how the ravens attacked weak ponies and sheep, snatched chickens & geese from cottage doorsteps and made a general nuisance. "Not long ago, a payment of threepence was offered for every Raven's head..."