Crofting

Crofting is a form of land tenure.^[1] It also involves small-scale food production, particularly in the Scottish Highlands.^[2] Within the 19th century, townships, and individual crofts were established on the better land. Then a large area of poorer-quality hill ground was shared by all the crofters of the township for feeding their livestock.^[3]

Practice

Crofting is a traditional social system in Scotland defined by small-scale food production. It is a group of common working communities, or "townships". Individual crofts are typically established on Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1850: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). of in-bye^[4] for better quality forage, arable and vegetable production. Each township manages poorer-quality hill ground as common grazing for cattle and sheep.^[5]

Despite its challenges, crofting is important to the Highlands. In 2014-15 there were 19,422 crofts, with 15,388 crofters.^[6] S

Requirements

Tenants and owner-occupier crofters are required to comply with a range of duties specified in sections 5AA to 5C and 19C of the Crofters (Scotland) Act 1993. There is a requirement to be ordinarily resident within 32 km of the croft. If the croft is the sole dwelling and the crofter's family are resident while the croft is away this would probably be accepted as ordinarily resident. Other situations involving other places of residence would need to be assessed individually. In addition to the duty of residence tenants and owner occupier crofters are required to ensure the croft is cultivated, maintained and not neglected or misused.^[7]

Crofting Media

Modern stack of drying pattern-laid machine-cut peat turfs in Ness, the Outer Hebrides (2007). Traditional crofting involved heavy labour to make hand-cut turfs using wood-handled metal peat-cutters with a blade set at 90 degrees (a tushkar).
Port Duntulm (2015) on the Island of Skye in the Inner Hebrides. Duntulm is a crofting township. Sheep can be seen in the distance, held in stone-walled enclosures.
The coast south of Duntulm (1986) where barren high land is broken at lower level by farmable areas. The beach is bouldered. Housing is limited.
Croft in Upper Ardelve, a Highland settlement on Loch Alsh (2007). Image shows farmhouse behind a modest livestock shed. Cows graze the rear fields.
Crofting land of Fair Isle (1974). Image taken in August shows hay stacked in traditional stooks ready to be gathered and kept to feed livestock in the winter months.
Boreraig Burn by Boreraig, a crofting town NW of Dunvegan on Skye (2008). Image shows the rough quality of land used for cattle grazing.
Crofting community in Ormiscaig by Loch Ewe, Wester Ross in the NW Highlands (1972). The layout and whitewash appearance of houses is characteristic of these settlements.
Garrabost on the north coast of the Eye Peninsula, Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides (2007). Image shows complicated fencing patterns necessary on crofting land; modern or modernised buildings in traditional design.
Taobh Tuath on the Island of Harris in the Outer Hebrides (2001). Image shows crofting settlement in relatively protected lower areas. Harris is famous for its tweed weaving industry.
Ruined buildings (stone walls or foundations) are commonly seen in crofting areas. These are in the settlement of Boreraig, Skye which was cleared in 1853 and are probably remains of one of the houses that was abandoned at that time.