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431:), suggesting that there was a belief at one time that the dyke had been constructed by these mythical creatures. Trolls were also supposed to inhabit a nearby cave on the coast. A local story concerns the farm at Colbinstoft to the west of the dyke on the north coast of Fetlar. The farmer desired a boundary fence for his property and promised that if one appeared during the night he would give up his best cow to the Finns. The next morning the dyke had appeared but the cow was gone. There is also a tradition that it was constructed as a result of a disagreement between two landowners.
72:
215:, it has vanished in places at the southern end, although the ruins are clearly visible along much of the uninhabited north of the island, where it is a conspicuous feature of the landscape. The dyke's original purpose is not known, nor is its relationship to other archaeological sites of a similar age nearby. There are various folk tales about its construction, and it is the subject of various pieces of
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374:
the largest slabs and boulders placed either on end or on edge and forming the base. The human effort required would have been considerable and suggests a relatively high
Neolithic population for Shetland—perhaps as much as 10,000. Although most likely built as a territorial boundary of some kind, the original purpose of the dyke is not certain. In historic times it acted as a boundary marker or
435:
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There are numerous old boundary dykes in
Shetland and Funzie Girt is considered to be the best surviving example. It both divides the island west to east and also marks an upland/lower land boundary, with the higher slopes of Vord Hill to the east of the dyke. It is constructed from local stones with
306:
reserve to the west of Vord Hill, then vanishes near the enclosure of Whilsa Pund. It reappears at the southern shore of Skutes Water, and is particularly well-preserved between Riggin of Setter and Rivs Dale, but its line is then lost again as it skirts the settlement of Houbie. It may have crossed
320:
Whilsa Pund is constructed using a similar technique and was probably built at a similar time to Funzie Girt. Its stone-built perimeter is oblong in shape and measures roughly 293 metres (320 yd) from north to south and 128 metres (140 yd) transversely. The remains of various structures
381:
By contrast, "fealie dykes" were made of turf such as the nearby example at Burn of Feal less than 0.5 kilometres (550 yd) east of the line of the Funzie Girt south of Skutes Water. Even when they had stone bases these dykes needed regular maintenance and in historic times were often mounted
445:
Hjaltadans means "limping dance" and local folklore has it that a fiddler and his wife were dancing at night with trolls. They failed to notice the dawn and were all petrified in place when the sun rose, so turning the trolls into the circle of stones, with the two recumbent stones at the centre
410:
since
December 1957. The notification to Sir Harold Stanley Nicolson of Brough Lodge, Fetlar states that the protected area is "2000 yards or thereby" (i.e. about 1,828 metres) in extent. The text provides a detailed description and the associated map indicates the line of the wall. No land on
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A strip of land 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) wide that ran along the dyke's eastern side was once known as "Houbie", now the name of Fetlar's principal settlement. Fetlar was surveyed in 1850, at which time part of the Funzie Girt formed the east end of one of the important "marches" or property
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The dyke could have had a role in the naming of Fetlar itself. The division of the island by the dyke was so marked that the Norse seemed to treat Fetlar as two distinct islands—which they called "Est Isle" and "Wast Isle". Haswell-Smith (2004) suggests that the derivation of the name is from
369:
date has also been mentioned although the
Neolithic is quoted by some authoritative sources. However the distinction between the Neolithic and Bronze Ages is not especially marked in Shetland and a date prior to the 1st millennium BC is likely.
469:. There is also a fiddle tune called the "Muckle Reel O' Finnigirt", which accompanied a dance whose steps have now been lost, although it is known that it was played as a break from the more strenuous
278:
actually means "shoulder-straps", that this description is hardly an obvious one for an island name and Fetlar is thus most probably a Norse adaptation of a precursor language. This was probably the
211:, but the date of construction is not certainly known. The line of the wall, which ran for over 4 kilometres (2.5 mi), once divided the island in two almost equal sections. Also known as the
378:, but its huge scale is difficult to reconcile with the available prehistoric human resources. It has been described as a "Bronze Age Berlin Wall", which may have separated two competing tribes.
843:"Certificate of Service of Notice by the Ministry of Works: Affecting Funzie Girt Dyke, Parish of Fetlar, County of Zetland". AM 190269. (1958) Historic Scotland. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
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The hamlet of Funzie and the nearby Bay of Funzie and Loch of Funzie are some 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) east of Houbie and appear to have no direct connection with the dyke itself.
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either side is included. The scheduled area is however contiguous with that of the "irregular polygon" surrounding Whilsa Pund that received similar protection in 1998.
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north of Skutes Water, which is only 6 metres (20 ft) from the dyke, and the three stone circles of
Fiddler's Crus to the north-west. There are also two Neolithic
852:"Re: The monument known as Whilsa Pund, settlement and field system". Entry in the Schedule of Monuments. (5 August 1998) Historic Scotland. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
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boundaries for
Russeter, west of Colbinstoft on north Fetlar. At that time the oldest man on the island, one Andrew Johnson, claimed to have been on the last "
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reaching the south coast of Fetlar near Stack of
Billaclett, although local tradition asserts that it ended at the edge of the cliffs of Clemmels Geos (
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for a "strap" or a "tie", and that Fetlar could therefore mean "two islands tied together" by the dyke. Gammeltoft (2010) however, argues that
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lie within it and on the west side there is a shallow bay that forms an enclosure approximately 15 square metres (161 sq ft) in area.
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Originally 1 metre (3 ft) wide it begins at the north shore by the cliffs of Muckle
Funziegord Geo ("big Finns' dyke
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Vord Hill from the west - Funzie Girt runs along the side of the hill at about 90 metres (295 ft) above sea level
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form of the letter z. An earlier name for the dyke was simply "Finnigord" and
Finnigirt dyke is thus tautologous as
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inhabitants of the islands who were said to possess magical powers. (The later Iron Age inhabitants of the
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A large rock known as "the Haljer o' Fivlagord" lies near the south end of the dyke.
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There are various other prehistoric ruins near the line of the wall, including the
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recorded the song "Da Hill o' Finnigirt – Da Burn o' Finnigirt" on her 1985 album
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The date of construction is unknown. Haswell-Smith (2004) speculatively implies a
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Funzie Girt, south-west of Vord Hill and north of Whilsa Pund and
Fiddler's Crus
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The northern, and most complete section of Funzie Girt has been protected as a
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950:. T. & J. Manson. Published on-line by Archive.org. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
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The name "Funzie Girt" means "Finns' dyke", the Finns being the legendary pre-
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in Shetland, Scotland. Some sources describe it as having been built in the
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An Island Odyssey: Among the Scottish Isles in the Wake of Martin Martin
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an area known as Vallahamars by the ruins of a later
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although there is no unequivocal evidence for this.
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897:Shetland and Orkney Island-Names – A Dynamic Group
339:unique to Shetland, near the summit of Vord Hill.
60:Funzie Girt, south-west of the summit of Vord Hill
571:Fetlar Interpretive Centre. Retrieved 15 May 2011
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695:. Undiscovered Scotland. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
490:, parallel rows of Neolithic menhirs in Armenia
957:. Grantown-on-Spey. Colin Baxter Photography.
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250:is due to widespread confusion of the letter
971:. London. B. T. Batsford/Historic Scotland.
662:. Tobar an Dualchais. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
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890:The Northern Isles: Orkney and Shetland
864:shetlopedia.com. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
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768:. Canmore. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
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354:A fealie dyke at Burn of Feal on
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1100:Zenith of Iron Age Shetland
953:Schei, Liv Kjørsvik (2006)
716:Gammeltoft (2010) pp. 19-20
650:Haswell-Smith (2004) p. 473
488:Hartashen Megalithic Avenue
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934:. Edinburgh. Mainstream.
888:Fenton, Alexander (1997)
874:"The Fiddler's Companion"
465:which features guitarist
403:" of the bounds in 1820.
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1150:Broch of West Burrafirth
1069:Standing Stones of Yoxie
1059:Pettigarths Field Cairns
913:. Edinburgh: Canongate.
756:. Retrieved 15 May 2011.
748:29 November 2013 at the
617:Hunter (2000) pp. 44, 49
1054:Hjaltadans Stone Circle
944:Jakobsen, Jakob (1897)
676:Jakobsen (1897) no. 73
329:Hjaltadans stone circle
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1110:Broch of Cullingsburgh
704:Gammeltoft (2010) p.17
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386:History and scheduling
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262:already means "dyke".
766:"Fetlar, Whilsa Pund"
467:Peerie Willie Johnson
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1030:Prehistoric Shetland
910:The Scottish Islands
606:"Fetlar, Funziegirt"
567:3 March 2016 at the
1230:History of Shetland
967:Turner, Val (1998)
834:Fenton (1997) p. 70
825:Turner (1998) p. 25
816:Turner (1998) p. 51
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1245:Neolithic Scotland
1140:Ness of Burgi Fort
1105:Broch of Clickimin
955:The Shetland Isles
883:General references
789:Schei (2006) p. 53
780:Schei (2006) p. 10
587:Schei (2006) p. 52
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91:Location in
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1135:Huxter Fort
1049:Funzie Girt
1044:Benie Hoose
743:"Get-a-map"
201:Funyie Girt
156:Funzie Girt
127: /
103:Coordinates
85:Funzie Girt
35:Funzie Girt
1209:Categories
495:References
455:Papa Stour
439:Hjaltadans
367:Bronze Age
363:Mesolithic
326:Bronze Age
220:folk music
112:60°37′23″N
1037:Neolithic
506:Footnotes
483:Biruaslum
286:Geography
272:Old Norse
254:with the
226:Etymology
209:Neolithic
115:0°52′05″W
1189:Jarlshof
1093:Iron Age
1079:Vementry
746:Archived
693:"Fetlar"
565:Archived
477:See also
314:HU620905
252:ȝ (yogh)
217:Shetland
147:HU620938
93:Shetland
46:Scotland
42:Shetland
1160:Pictish
930:(2000)
542:8 March
521:, p 141
463:'s Song
423:means "
256:cursive
240:Pictish
1255:Fetlar
994:RCAHMS
975:
961:
938:
917:
726:"Norn"
461:Selkie
451:fiddle
401:riding
356:Fetlar
276:fetlar
270:, the
268:fetill
248:Funzie
205:Fetlar
501:Notes
471:reels
425:troll
376:hagri
309:broch
300:gully
232:Norse
197:Scots
48:, UK
973:ISBN
959:ISBN
936:ISBN
915:ISBN
544:2013
459:The
421:Fivl
304:RSPB
260:gord
246:and
244:Finn
992:by
899:".
185:ɜːr
1211::
794:^
773:^
752:.
733:^
709:^
681:^
667:^
631:^
592:^
576:^
552:^
473:.
222:.
199::
195:;
44:,
1022:e
1015:t
1008:v
923:.
546:.
191:/
188:t
182:ɡ
177:i
174:n
171:ɪ
168:f
165:ˈ
162:/
158:(
20:)
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