Kirkwall in Scotland, Scottish Regions

A Grand Tour of Kirkwall

For many years the Scottish have viewed the Orkney Islands as a somewhat unimportant northern outreach of Scotland, yet for many decades they played a very important role in Norse history. This is perhaps the main reason why Kirkwall, the capital of the Orkney Islands, has a strong Scandinavian feel. In fact, the town started life as a Scandinavian settlement and it only officially became a Scottish burgh in 1486. Its name is a misinterpretation of the original Norse name Kirkjuvager which meant Church Bay. Over time this name was shortened to Kirkwaa and since ‘wa’ in Gaelic means wall the town came to be called Kirkwall. Kirkwall was named for the church of St Olaf which was built here in the 11th Century.

The town of Kirkwall in Scotland was established for Rögnvald II who was later killed by Thorfinn. Not long after the church of St Olaf was built, Kirkwall became a bustling Scandinavian market center. People from surrounding farms would gather here to sell their wares and buy needed supplies. From this, the market grew into a small settlement then later into a town. By 1137, the second church, the St Magnus Cathedral, was built under the command of Norse Earl Rognvald, followed by the construction of Bishop’s Palace. In 1468 James III of Scotland determined that Kirkwall would have a good administrative capacity for the outlying areas of Orkney and Shetland and so he decided to lay claim to the land. This was the beginning of a long and interesting Scottish history which is best learned about at the local museum.

One of the more interesting periods in Kirkwall’s history is the period of illegal distilling and whisky smuggling which ultimately resulted in one of Kirkwall’s most visited tourist attractions - the Highland Park Distillery. It all started in 1798 when Magnus Eunson decided that the hillside overlooking the town was the perfect place to start producing the then illegal beverage. However, over time whisky came to be recognized as a legal beverage and his operation was legalized in 1825 as the Highland Park Distillery, Scotland’s northernmost Scotch whisky distillery. Despite the fact that Kirkwall has many other interesting attractions, the Highland Park Distillery remains one of the town’s most popular tourist attractions today.