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Home » Shetland Place Names Project » Fishing Meids » Mapping

Mapping

All information on place names used in meids and the location of fishing grounds is plotted in a database and linked to a Geographic Information System (GIS) digital mapping system. This allows us to plot the landmarks and grounds and link the recorded place names to the Shetland Place Names Database.

This is the first time ever that the historic fishing grounds have been mapped. We can now visualise the extent and complexities of the fishing grounds and truly appreciate the skill of fishermen precisely locating the boundaries of grounds by no more than the naked eye, often working in rough sea conditions and poor levels of visibility. When overlaid on geological maps, the edges of areas of hard or soft seabeds identified by the lining up of pairs of onshore landmarks are a perfect fit.