Shetland (Scottish Gaelic: Sealtainn), also called the Shetland Islands, lie to the north-east of Scotland. The islands are some 50 miles (80 km) to the northeast of Orkney and 170 miles (280 km) southeast of the Faroe Islands forming part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. This is also where Scotland meets Scandinavia.
In 2000/2001 DNA sampling in Shetland and Orkney people were found to have a strong Viking genetic heritage with 60 per cent of the male population having DNA of Norwegian origin. The remainder of the area’s population was identified as similar to the Ancient Britons, with no evidence of Anglo-Saxon or Danish influences. It is also a place of great beauty where of the more than one hundred islands just 15 of them are inhabited; it is a noted haven for wildlife.
In Lerwick, the capital of Scotland's Shetland Islands, a fire festival named Up Helly Aa is held every January. Other smaller such festivals are also held on other parts of the Shetland Islands.
