Skerry
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{{wiktionarypar|skerry}}
{{see also|Skerry (disambiguation)}}
A '''skerry''' is a small rocky island, usually defined to be too small for habitation. It may simply be a rocky [[reef]].
The term skerry is derived from the [[Old Norse]] ''sker'', which means a rock in the sea. The Old Norse term ''sker'' was brought into the [[English language]] via the [[Scots language]]. It is a [[cognate]] of the [[Scandinavian language]]s' words for ''skerry'' – [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]], [[Faroese language|Faroese]]: ''sker'', [[Danish language|Danish]]: ''skær'', [[Swedish language|Swedish]]: ''skär'', [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]]: ''skjær'' / ''skjer'' and [[Finnish language|Finnish]]: ''kari''. In [[Scottish Gaelic]], it appears as ''sgeir'', e.g. [[Sula Sgeir]].
==Formation==
Skerries are most commonly formed at the outlet of [[fjord]]s where submerged glacially formed valleys at right angles with the coast join with other cross valleys in a complex array. In some places near the seaward margins of fjorded areas, the ice-scoured channels are so numerous and varied in direction that the rocky coast is divided into thousands of island blocks, some large & mountainous while others a merely rocky points or rock [[reef]]s, menacing navigation.
==Examples==
The island fringe of [[Norway]] is such a group of glacially formed skerries (called a ''skjærgård''); many of the cross fjords are so arranged that they parallel the coast and provide a protected channel behind an almost unbroken succession of mountainous islands and skerries. By this channel one can travel through a protected passage almost the entire 1,600 km route from [[Stavanger]] to [[North Cape, Norway|North Cape]], Norway. The [[Blindleia]] is a skerry-protected waterway that starts near [[Kristiansand]] in southern [[Norway]], and continues past [[Lillesand]].
The “inside passage” provides a similar route from [[Seattle]], [[Washington]] to [[Skagway]], Alaska. Yet another such skerry-protected passage extends from the [[Straits of Magellan]] north for 800 km (500 miles).
The [[Sweden|Swedish]] coast along [[Bohuslän]] is likewise skerry guarded. Even the east coast of Sweden, in the Baltic sea has many big skärgårdar (archipelago) , notably [[Stockholm archipelago]] - Stockholms skärgård - ''skjærgård''.
The southwestern coast of [[Finland]] also has a large amount of skerries, so many, in fact, that they form an [[Archipelago Sea|archipelago]].
In the [[Russian Federation]] the best examples are the [[Minina Skerries]], located in the [[Kara Sea]], in the western shores of the [[Taymyr Peninsula]], and the [[Sumsky Skerries]] (Sumskiye Shkhery) {{coor dm|64|24|N|35|30|E|}}, located in the [[White Sea]].
The [[United Kingdom]] has a large number of skerries including [[Staple Island]] (an Outer [[Farne Islands|Farne Island]]) in England, a small rocky outcrop near the [[Fowlsheugh]] in northeast [[Scotland]] and numerous reefs in the [[Hebrides]] such as [[Dhu Heartach]] and [[Skerryvore]].
The most southerly skerries are perhaps the [[Skrap Skerries]] off South Georgia.
For a list of the various islands and island groups with ''skerry'' or ''skerries'' as part of their name see: [[The Skerries]].
[[Category:Scottish coast and countryside]]
[[Category:Scots language]]
[[Category:Islands]]
[[Category:Landforms]]
[[Category:Fjords of Norway]]
[[af:Skeer]]
[[da:Skær]]
[[de:Schäre]]
[[et:Skäär]]
[[lt:Šcheras]]
[[nl:Scherenkust]]
[[nb:Skjær]]
[[nn:Skjer]]
[[pl:Szkier]]
[[ru:Шхеры]]