Birsay
Birsay is a small village on the north coast of Orkney Mainland. It's the site of the ruined Earl's Palace, and just offshore is the Brough of Birsay with medieval Norse remains.| Tap on a place to explore it |
Photo: Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Photo: Chmee2, CC BY-SA 3.0.
- Type: Village
- Description: human settlement in Orkney Islands, Scotland, UK
- Also known as: “Birgisherað”
Places of Interest
Highlights include Brough of Birsay and Brough of Birsay Lighthouse.
Brough of Birsay
Islet
Photo: Chmee2, CC BY-SA 3.0.
The Brough of Birsay is an uninhabited tidal island off the north-west coast of The Mainland of Orkney, Scotland, in the parish of Birsay. It is located around 13 miles north of Stromness and features the remains of Pictish and Norse settlements as well as a modern lighthouse.
Brough of Birsay Lighthouse
Lighthouse
Photo: Rob Burke, CC BY-SA 2.0.
The unmanned Brough of Birsay Lighthouse lighthouse was built in 1925 by David A Stevenson. It is located on the Brough of Birsay, an uninhabited tidal island off the northwest coast of Mainland in Orkney, Scotland, in the parish of Birsay.
St Magnus Church
Church
Photo: Otter, CC BY-SA 3.0.
St Magnus Church, Birsay is a 17th-century church located in the parish of Birsay on Mainland, Orkney in Scotland. Built in 1664 on the site of an earlier, 11th-century church, St Magnus was later expanded in 1760 and 1867.
Places in the Area
Nearby places include Twatt.
Twatt
Village
Photo: J M Briscoe, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Twatt is a settlement in the parish of Birsay on the Mainland of Orkney, Scotland. It was previously the location of RNAS Twatt, from 1940–1949. Twatt is situated at the junction of the A986 and the A967. Twatt is situated 2½ miles southeast of Birsay.
Birsay
- Categories: human settlement and locality
- Location: Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, Britain and Ireland, Europe
- View on OpenStreetMap
Latitude
59.1295° or 59° 7′ 46″ northLongitude
-3.3134° or 3° 18′ 48″ westElevation
46 feet (14 metres)United Nations Location Code
GB RSBOpen location code
9CFR4MHP+RMOpenStreetMap ID
node 5586342586OpenStreetMap feature
place=villageGeoNames ID
2655597Wikidata ID
Q1901485
This page is based on OpenStreetMap, GeoNames, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, and Wikivoyage.
We’d love your help improving our open data sources. Thank you for contributing.
Satellite Map
Discover Birsay from above in high-definition satellite imagery.
In Other Languages
From Basque to Norwegian Nynorsk—“Birsay” goes by many names.
- Basque: “Birsay”
- Danish: “Birsay”
- Dutch: “Birsay”
- German: “Birsay”
- Italian: “Birsay”
- Japanese: “バーセイ”
- Norwegian Bokmål: “Birsay”
- Norwegian Nynorsk: “Birsay”
- Norwegian: “Birsay”
Places with the Same Name
Discover other places named “Birsay”.
Localities in the Area
Explore places such as Marwick and Bigbreck Quarry (disused).
Orkney Islands: Must-Visit Destinations
Delve into Kirkwall, Stromness, Hoy, and South Ronaldsay.
Explore These Curated Destinations
Discover places selected for their distinct character and enduring appeal.
About Mapcarta. Data © OpenStreetMap contributors and available under the Open Database License". Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, except for photos, directions, and the map. Description text is based on the Wikivoyage page “Birsay”. Photo: Chmee2, CC BY-SA 3.0.