Abstract
This article provides an overview of the development of the landscape of the Shetland Isles, with special reference to the period after 1700. After introducing Shetland's distinctive physical characteristics, it sketches the early history of settlement from the Neolithic to the arrival of the Norse. The Norse shaped Shetland's place-names and the traditions determining the management of land and resources, though the archaeological record of them is sparse. Shetland became part of the Kingdom of Scotland in 1469. Thereafter, the development of its landscape was related to much broader economic trends, in particular the movement promoting agricultural improvement of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The article looks in detail at the impact of fishing on the coastal landscape, the post-medieval evolution of settlement and the evolution and erosion of run-rig agriculture in the island townships. The role of the smaller islands, the impact of the herring fishing boom of 1880 to 1914 and recent developments such as the North Sea oil boom also receive coverage.
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