Shetland Mainland
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Mainland is the main island of Shetland, Scotland. The island contains Shetland's only burgh, Lerwick, and is the centre of Shetland's ferry and air connections.
It has an area of 374 square miles, making it the third largest Scottish island and the third largest island surrounding Great Britain (excluding Ireland) after Lewis with Harris and Skye.
Mainland can be broadly divided into four sections.
- The long southern peninsula, south of Lerwick, has a mixture of moorland and farmland and contains many important archaeological sites.
- The Central Mainland has more farmland and some woodland plantations.
- The West Mainland
- the North Mainland - in particular the large Northmavine peninsula, connected to Mainland by a narrow isthmus at Mavis Grind - is wild, with much moorland and coastal cliffs. The North Mainland contains Sullom Voe, its oil terminal an important source of employment for the islanders.
[edit] Composition
Other settlements on the Mainland include:
- Aith
- Bigton
- Brae
- Bridge of Walls
- Hamnavoe
- Hillswick
- Levenwick
- North Roe
- Reawick
- Sandwick
- Scalloway
- Scousborough
- Sumburgh
- Toab
- Vidlin
- Voe
- Walls