page:  = Papa <unk> = 
   
   Papa <unk> is one of the Shetland Islands in Scotland , with a population of under twenty people , some of whom immigrated after an appeal for residents in the 1970s . Located to the west of mainland Shetland and with an area of <unk> hectares ( 3 @.@ 2 square miles ) , Papa <unk> is the eighth largest island in Shetland . <unk> of the soft volcanic rocks by the sea has created an extraordinary variety of caves , <unk> , arches , <unk> , and cliffs . The island and its surrounding seas harbour diverse populations of wildlife . The west side of the island is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and the seas around the island are a Special Area of Conservation . 
   The island has several Neolithic burial chamber sites , as well as the remains of Duke <unk> 's 13th @-@ century house dating from the Norse occupation of the island . The population reached 380 or more in the nineteenth century , when a fishing station was opened at <unk> in West <unk> . Subsequently there was a steady decline in population , although the numbers have increased from a low of 16 in the 1970s . 
   Today the main settlement on the island is <unk> , just to the east of which is <unk> <unk> from where the <unk> ferry arrives from its base at West <unk> on the Shetland <unk> . <unk> , especially sheep rearing , is the mainstay of island life . 
   Numerous <unk> have occurred around the coast , and the celebrated poem Da Sang o da Papa Men by <unk> recalls the drama of the days when Papa <unk> was a centre for deep @-@ sea fishing . 
   
   = = Geography = = 
   
   Papa <unk> is located at the south western end of St Magnus Bay . There are 34 kilometres ( 21 mi ) of rugged coastline which is <unk> by numerous small <unk> and four larger ' <unk> ' . <unk> <unk> ( Old Norse : ' harbour bay ' ) in the south is the most sheltered anchorage and the surrounding cliffs contain a natural rock arch . <unk> <unk> to the east ( Old Norse : ' house bay ' ) is less secluded but is the main harbour for the island and the ferry 's embarkation point . 
   <unk> <unk> and <unk> <unk> guard the harbour entrance to the south . The former is a <unk> island and was a <unk> colony until the 18th century ( although it has been suggested that many of the " <unk> " there were suffering from a <unk> <unk> rather than <unk> ) . The latter 's name relates to a story from the 14th century . Lord <unk> <unk> is said to have constructed the tiny house at its top , whose ruins are still visible , in order to " preserve " his daughter from men . Unfortunately for his plans , when she left she was found to be pregnant ; in another version of the story , she and her fisherman <unk> successfully <unk> . West <unk> , the inner part of which is called ' <unk> <unk> ' is the main <unk> in the north coast , the smaller <unk> <unk> lying immediately to the west . 
   The main settlement on the island today is <unk> , which <unk> <unk> <unk> and is surrounded by in @-@ bye land to the east of the hill <unk> ( which runs south from West <unk> ) . To the west the island is <unk> by a belt of glacial <unk> about one and a half kilometres in length . Much of the rest of the area consists of a shallow <unk> soil that may be derived from glacial till . There is an almost complete absence of peat on the island and due to the volcanic rocks the soils are relatively fertile . The lack of peat led to ' turf <unk> ' for fuel and the bare areas of rock in the interior . 
   The highest point on the island is in the north west at <unk> Field , which rises to 87 metres ( 285 feet ) . <unk> is possibly from the Old Norse for ' <unk> of stones ' . 
   
   = = = List of <unk> = = = 
   
   In addition to the larger <unk> mentioned above there are various other <unk> and <unk> around the coast of Papa <unk> . They include : <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> of <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> of <unk> , <unk> of <unk> , <unk> <unk> , <unk> <unk> , The Horn , <unk> <unk> and <unk> <unk> . The <unk> <unk> lie 5 kilometres ( 3 @.@ 1 mi ) to the north west . They include : <unk> , North <unk> , <unk> , <unk> and The <unk> . In between Papa <unk> and <unk> <unk> lies the shallow bank of Papa @-@ <unk> . 
   On 21 June 2008 , Stuart Hill , the owner and only resident of the 1 hectare ( 2 @.@ 5 acres ) island of <unk> <unk> ( which he has renamed " <unk> Island " ) made a declaration of dependence , creating the Crown <unk> of <unk> . On the basis of a marriage arrangement between King Christian of Norway and King James III of Scotland that dates to <unk> , Hill argued that the island should be considered a British crown dependency , and thus not a part of the United Kingdom or of the European Union . This claim was not recognised by the United Kingdom . 
   
   = = Geology = = 
   
   The island is composed of a variety of volcanic and <unk> rock formations from the Devonian period . At that time the Scottish <unk> formed part of the Old Red <unk> Continent and lay some 10 @-@ 25 degrees south of the equator . The <unk> of Old Red <unk> , laid down from <unk> to 370 million years ago , were created as earlier <unk> rocks , <unk> by the formation of <unk> , eroded and then were deposited into river <unk> . The freshwater Lake <unk> existed on the edges of the eroding mountains , stretching from Shetland to the southern Moray Firth . The structure of Papa <unk> is largely made up of ashes and <unk> from volcanic activity associated with this period , including bands of solidified volcanic ash and <unk> ( <unk> ) , but there is also a Devonian fish bed at <unk> Banks . There are numerous large boulders deposited by Pleistocene <unk> . 
   <unk> of the soft volcanic rocks by the sea has created an extraordinary variety of caves , <unk> , arches , <unk> , cliffs , <unk> and <unk> that are amongst the finest in Britain . The ' Holl o <unk> ' is a cave that passes right through the north @-@ west tip of the island . It is nearly half a mile long and wide enough to row through . <unk> ( or Christie 's ) Hole in the south west is another spectacular cave , part of the roof of which collapsed in 1981 . Yet another is ' <unk> 's Hole ' close to <unk> <unk> in the west . This was the favourite of John Tudor who wrote of the island in his Victorian memoirs and described the cave as : 
   ... in <unk> , so exquisite is the colouring of the roof and sides and so <unk> is the water ... [ with ] <unk> or <unk> like <unk> in a church . 
   In 1953 the spectacular headland , ' Da Horn o Papa ' fell into the sea during a storm . The nearby <unk> of <unk> <unk> also has caves that can be accessed by small boats when conditions permit . 
   
   = = Ecology = = 
   
   <unk> , grey seals , killer <unk> and harbour <unk> are frequently seen on and around Papa <unk> . Atlantic <unk> , Arctic and common <unk> , <unk> and Arctic <unk> , northern <unk> , common <unk> , <unk> , <unk> , <unk> , ringed <unk> and great black @-@ backed gull all breed on the island , and numerous migratory species have been recorded . 
   There is a <unk> of wild flowers , including mountain <unk> , spring <unk> and <unk> as well as the ubiquitous <unk> . The west side of the island is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and the seas around Papa <unk> are a Special Area of Conservation . The traditional Shetland Pony is still bred . 
   
   = = History and archaeology = = 
   
   Human settlement of the island dates from circa 3000 BC and there are remains of several Neolithic burial chambers known as ' heel @-@ shaped <unk> ' . Little is known of the pre @-@ Celtic and Celtic eras , but when the Norse arrived it is likely they found a religious settlement as the name of the island derives from <unk> <unk> meaning " Big island of the <unk> " ( Celtic monks ) , in distinction to Papa Little some 12 kilometres ( 7 @.@ 5 mi ) to the west . 
   
   = = = Norse period = = = 
   
   Papa <unk> is the subject of a <unk> manuscript written in Old Norse , which is the oldest surviving document from Shetland . It deals with a dramatic incident in the house of Duke <unk> <unk> , who was later to become King <unk> V of Norway . There is a circle of stones near the beach at <unk> <unk> , which are the remains of a ' <unk> ' , or local assembly . This was the scene of a duel , fought and won by Lord <unk> <unk> , who was accused of corruption in the <unk> document and was later called ‘ <unk> de <unk> ’ . ( The story of his unfortunate daughter is referred to above . ) The remains of Duke <unk> 's thirteenth @-@ century house are still visible near <unk> <unk> . 
   
   = = = Scots rule and fishing = = = 
   
   In <unk> Shetland came under nominal Scottish control , although the Norse ' <unk> of Norway ' kept their Papa <unk> estates until the 17th century . In the 16th century merchants from <unk> and Hamburg were operating a summer trading booth to buy fish from the local fleet . By the 18th century , two Scottish <unk> , Thomas <unk> of <unk> , and Arthur <unk> of <unk> , owned the island . They maintained a prosperous <unk> ( Old Norse : ' deep sea ' ) fishing industry , undertaken in the summer months using six @-@ <unk> boats known as <unk> . 
   In addition to the <unk> colony on <unk> <unk> there may have been another at <unk> <unk> overlooking <unk> <unk> . A recent archaeological survey was inconclusive but suggests the site may be much older than the supposed 18th century colony . 
   The island church , which <unk> Kirk Sand in the bay of Fore <unk> , was founded in 1806 . 300 metres from the present church there may be an older chapel site of <unk> or <unk> on the headland between the west end of Kirk Sand and the bay of <unk> . It is called the ' <unk> <unk> ' by locals and referred to by the Ordnance Survey as " the site of a <unk> chapel belonging to about the twelfth century " . There is a tradition that the work there was <unk> with by supernatural powers and that each day 's work on the building was destroyed during the night . Eventually the <unk> were moved overnight by these <unk> agencies to the present site of the church and work was re @-@ commenced there successfully . Excavations in 2004 found little besides large blocks of <unk> and a piece of whalebone rib , suggesting that the oral tradition may have some truth to it . 
   In the 19th century the <unk> fishing station in West <unk> was opened and the island had a population of 360 people or more . However , fuel shortages and a decline in fishing due to the introduction of steam <unk> saw a fall in population from the 1870s on . At this time another duel entered the history of Papa <unk> . Edwin Lindsay , an Indian army officer and the son of the 6th Earl of <unk> , was declared insane and sent to the island in disgrace after refusing to fight in one . He spent 26 years as a prisoner before the Quaker preacher Catherine Watson arranged for his release in 1835 . Lindsay 's Well is a spring at the south of the island where he was allowed to bathe . 
   There are good examples of horizontal water mills , also known as Norse or <unk> Mills , around Dutch Loch . Originally these were two story buildings with turf roofs , built into banks to give access to the upper floor where the mill @-@ stone was sited . Inside the building there was a fixed lower <unk> , and a rotating upper <unk> driven by the water falling onto the <unk> below . Some were still in use on Papa <unk> in the early years of the 20th century , and there is still a working example of one of these mills on the Burn of <unk> , at <unk> in the south <unk> of Shetland . 
   
   = = = 20th and 21st centuries = = = 
   
   In common with many small Scottish islands , Papa <unk> 's population peaked in the 19th century and has experienced a significant decline since then ( see e.g. <unk> ) . By 1970 the island school had closed and the population had declined to sixteen ' fairly elderly ' residents , but an advertisement in Exchange and Mart reversed the decline . A <unk> and five sheep were offered free of charge to <unk> which brought a flood of applicants . By 1981 the census recorded a population of 33 . However , by 2005 the population had fallen to 20 after serious <unk> between <unk> led to several court cases . A number of people left the island and the school closed . By early 2008 the population had dropped to just nine after a family of seven left . The 2011 census recorded a usually resident population of 15 - during the decade 2011 @-@ 11 Scottish island populations as a whole grew by 4 % to 103 @,@ 702 . 
   Overview of population trends 
   
   = = = <unk> = = = 
   
   The coasts around Papa <unk> have claimed numerous wrecks . In <unk> , <unk> <unk> alone has sunk Dutch , French , German and Norwegian ships . 
   The Aberdeen trawler Ben Doran <unk> , <unk> on the <unk> <unk> 3 miles northwest of Papa <unk> , on the evening of 28 March 1930 while on her way to the village of <unk> to land her catch . When she grounded weather conditions were fairly good but it was not until the following day that a passing trawler saw , and reported the wreck . By the time that various rescue attempts were launched by the <unk> and local volunteers ( there being no lifeboat in Shetland at that time ) , weather conditions had deteriorated to the point where it was impossible to approach the <unk> . A request had been made for the <unk> lifeboat from Orkney , only 120 miles away , to launch , but the request was made too late to be of help . All 9 crew perished in the wreck . Only 3 bodies were recovered , that of James Mitchell , which was returned to Aberdeen , and the bodies of J. <unk> and <unk> <unk> , which were buried in <unk> . 
   The cargo ship SS <unk> ran aground in fog on <unk> <unk> in February 1940 . On this occasion the conditions were <unk> and only the ship and cargo were lost . In 1967 the Aberdeen trawler <unk> ran aground in <unk> Sound at the bottom of the 60 metres ( 200 feet ) cliffs . The 12 man crew were rescued by the <unk> lifeboat , the <unk> being awarded the <unk> silver medal for this rescue . 
   Papa <unk> 's most recent <unk> occurred on 9 December 1977 when the Aberdeen trawler Elinor Viking <unk> , <unk> Alec <unk> , <unk> on the <unk> <unk> . The <unk> <unk> came to the scene but was unable to get near enough to rescue the crew because of the sea conditions . At the request of Alec Webster , <unk> Station Officer , <unk> , a volunteer crew in a British Airways <unk> <unk> helicopter from <unk> Airport was <unk> . They managed to <unk> all the boat 's crew to safety within hours of the <unk> , despite the storm force winds . The helicopter crew later received a number of awards for bravery . There was no loss of life , but this incident prompted the building of a lighthouse on the <unk> in 1979 , and may also have been the example required for the formation of the present Search and Rescue helicopter unit , based at <unk> Airport . 
   
   = = Economy & Transport = = 
   
   <unk> is the mainstay of island life . <unk> form the backbone of the agricultural economy but a diversity livestock are kept , including cattle , pigs , goats , chickens , ducks and <unk> . <unk> are grown too , often in the shelter of circular walls , such plots being known as ' <unk> <unk> ' . <unk> is still conducted but on a relatively small scale . There is a post office at the pier , but no shop . <unk> electricity only came to the island at the close of the twentieth century . The Papa <unk> Project is a Christian supported housing service offering accommodation to men with drug and alcohol issues . <unk> now sail across the Sound of Papa to West <unk> on the Shetland <unk> . The crossing takes 45 minutes , and although the <unk> carries cars , there is only one short road on the <unk> visiting <unk> the four main <unk> provide good shelter , but the strong tides in both the Sound of Papa and to the north west require considerable care . 
   
   = = = <unk> = = = 
   
   There is an airstrip which <unk> for regular flights from <unk> . 
   
   = = Culture and the arts = = 
   
   The Papa <unk> sword dance may be of Norse origin and bears similarities to the long sword dance of the north east of England . A description of the dance appears in The Pirate by Sir Walter Scott . 
   The writer and journalist John Sands lived on Papa <unk> and <unk> for a while during the late nineteenth century . The writer , <unk> and musician , George P. S. Peterson was brought up on Papa <unk> . 
   It is also the ' Papa ' of <unk> 's poem Da Sang o da Papa men , now adopted as part of the <unk> tradition , as set to music by <unk> Manson . The <unk> chorus chant , ' <unk> <unk> <unk> ! ' , is particularly striking . 
   " <unk> <unk> da Horn o Papa , 
   <unk> <unk> <unk> ! 
   <unk> a hidden piece o water , 
   <unk> <unk> <unk> ! 
   <unk> da boat da tide @-@ <unk> <unk> , 
   <unk> <unk> da <unk> is <unk> ; 
   We <unk> <unk> <unk> fish is <unk> , 
   <unk> <unk> <unk> ! " 
   " <unk> <unk> <unk> ! " refers to the <unk> ' practice of rowing their open fishing boat out to sea until the high cliffs of <unk> were no longer visible . This entailed the boat being some 96 kilometres ( 60 mi ) west of Papa <unk> . The ' tide @-@ <unk> ' are increased swells of unusual size due to the combined action of wind against tide . The <unk> final image of the piece is of the fishermen being led back home to Papa by the ' scent o <unk> ' across the water . This is an example of <unk> 's ability to create a vivid sensual impression of a situation . An extra layer of meaning is added by the knowledge that Da Horn o Papa collapsed in a storm around the time of this poem 's composition , so that it is a tribute not just to a lost way of life , but a noted geographical feature . 
   
   