Twatt, Orkney

Twatt
Road sign pointing to Twatt
Twatt  Twatt shown within Orkney
OS grid reference	HY270242
Civil parish	Birsay
Council area	Orkney Islands
Lieutenancy area	Orkney Islands
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	ORKNEY
Postcode district	KW17
Dialling code	01856
Police	Scottish
Fire	Scottish
Ambulance	Scottish
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Orkney and Shetland
Scottish Parliament	Orkney
List of places UK Scotland

Coordinates: 59°05′53″N 3°16′26″W / 59.098°N 3.274°W

Twatt is a small settlement in the parish of Birsay on the Mainland of the Orkney Islands, Scotland. It was previously the location of a RNAS airfield, HMS Tern, 1940–1949.^[1][2][3] Twatt is situated at the junction of the A986 and the A967.^[4][5]

Etymology

Remains at Twatt airfield

Twatt Church

The settlement name originates from the Old Norse þveit, meaning 'small parcel of land'. The Norse word commonly produces in England the place name element Thwaite.

The name Twatt is similar to the common English expletive "twat", (an insulting word used by someone to express contempt or derision for another individual, although it can also colloquially refer to a vagina). Its name featured at number four in a list of the most vulgar-sounding names in Rude Britain, along with its Shetland counterpart. There is also an Upper Twatt Road on the island in Stenness.^[6]

References

1. "RNAS Twatt airfield, HMS Tern". Control Towers.co.uk. Retrieved 13 October 2007.
2. "Twatt". Abandoned, Forgotten and Little Known Airfields in Europe. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
3. "Twatt Airfield". Canmore. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
4. "A986". Sabre. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
5. "A967". Sabre. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
6. "Orkney Islands Council - Development and Environment Services - List of public roads as of 1 December 2010" (PDF). Orkney Islands Council. Retrieved 18 October 2014.

External links

• Buildings at Risk - Control Tower, Twatt Aerodrome