Insular Scots

{{short description|Varieties of Lowland Scots influenced by Norn}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{More citations needed|date=December 2006}}

{{Scots language}}

Insular Scots comprises varieties of Lowland Scots generally subdivided into:

• Shetland dialect
• Orcadian dialect

Both dialects share much Norn vocabulary, Shetland dialect more so, than does any other Scots dialect, perhaps because they were both under strong Norwegian{{Cite web |title=Scotslanguage.com - Shetland |url=https://www.scotslanguage.com/Scots_Dialects_uid117/Insular_uid118/Shetland_uid675 |access-date=2024-01-02 |website=www.scotslanguage.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Scotslanguage.com - Insular |url=https://www.scotslanguage.com/Scots_Dialects_uid117/Insular_uid118/Orkney_uid1243 |access-date=2024-01-02 |website=www.scotslanguage.com |language=en}} influence in their recent past.McColl Millar. 2007. Northern and Insular Scots. Edinburgh: University Press Ltd. p.5 In ancient times, Pictish was spoken in the islands. With Viking settlement of the islands came the establishment of Norn-speaking communities. Although the islands thereafter owed allegiance to Norway, they became politically involved with Scotland. Scotland then annexed the islands in 1472, after which Scots replaced Norwegian as the dominant language.

It should not be confused with the vernacular of the Islands of the Clyde.