 An influx of Scottish entrepreneurs helped to create a diverse and independent community that included farmers, fishermen and merchants that called themselves "Communitas Orchadensis" and who proved themselves increasingly able to defend their rights against their feudal overlords, be they Norwegian or Scots.This independence of mind may have been fostered by the influence of Norwegian government which was essentially communal and federal by contrast with Scotland.It was not until the mid 16th century that the Norse institutions were replaced by Scottish systems following large-scale immigration from the south and the islanders were probably bi-lingual until the 17th century.