Skeo
A skeo is a local design , as it was common on the island groups of the Orkneys and Shetlands , which belong to Scotland . Skeos are small dry stone sheds designed to air-dry fish and meat from the wind blowing through the outer walls. After most of the properties on the islands owned such a skeo until the beginning of the 19th century, they subsequently fell out of use and increasingly disappeared. In addition to the Skeos for private use, there were also larger ones that were used for commercial purposes. One of the few remaining of this type is the Skeo from Symbister on the island of Whalsay . It is designated as a Listed Building and is therefore a listed building.
The term goes back to Old Norse skjá , which also describes a drying shed and is also found as part of geographical names . The word also found its way into the local colloquial language as a name for a residential building of inferior quality. Comparable to Skeos in structure and purpose, the Cleits , typical of the St. Kilda Islands are.
Web links
- Description of Skeos on the website of the Scottish Cultural Resources Access Network (SCRAN) of Historic Environment Scotland (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Skeo , definition in Merriam-Webster , accessed July 2, 2018 (English)
- ↑ Listed Building - Entry . In: Historic Scotland .
- ^ Glossary of Scandinavian origins of place names in Britain. Ordnance Survey website , accessed July 2, 2018
- ↑ Entry Skeo in the Scottish National Dictionary on the Dictionary of the Scots Language website, accessed July 2, 2018 (English)