Sutherland

Sutherland is a shire in the north and west of the Scottish Highlands. Having around 13,000 inhabitants, Sutherland is among the most sparsely populated counties in Great Britain. The county is mainly mountainous. The name is ultimately from Old Norse suðurland, meaning "southern land"; although Sutherland contains some of the northernmost land in Scotland, and indeed the United Kingdom, it was considered 'southern' to the Vikings who arrived from Norway in the 9th century. It is bound by coast to the north, south-east and west, having land borders with the counties Caithness, Cromartyshire and Ross-shire. The county town is Dornoch, which is the county's only former royal burgh.

Cultural references

The 1987 song "Letter From America" by The Proclaimers, a song about the Highland Clearances, contains the line "Sutherland no more".