Vikings, Pirates, and Shipwrecked Princesses (Kirkwall)

Come and hear the legends of how families and places in Orkney got their names.

Many families have a story or legend that explains their surname. One story goes that a Russian ship came ashore on Westray, and the only survivor was a little boy. He couldn't say his name, but the wrecked ship was named 'Archangel', so the infant was called Archie Angel. He grew up in Westray and later married a local girl, Jane Drever, and so Archie Angel became the ancestor of the Angels.

Another shipwreck survivor off the Spanish Armada was called Sebastian. Orkney folk found this Spanish name difficult to pronounce, so his descendants became known as the Sabistons. The Clouston family were, according to legend, descended from a baby who was found abandoned on a doorstep. He had a ball of wool – a 'clew' – and a stone beside him, and therefore got the name Clew-Stone.

The Gentlemen's Ha is a cave where Jacobites hid after the Battle of Culloden, the Fairy Gate is where the fairies make their way to the hills, and Puldrite is where the notorious Viking Sweyn Asleifarson pulled right. Come and hear more such folktales at this storytelling event.

Please contact the event organiser for booking information.