SCOTS have sparked a discussion about the ins and outs of life on a tiny remote Atlantic island whose only town shares a name with the Scottish capital.
Edinburgh of the Seven Seas is located in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean and serves as the capital of Tristan da Cunha – the world’s most isolated inhabited island.
Founded by William Glass of Kelso, Scottish Borders in 1816 the town was built at the bottom of the island’s active volcano, Queen Mary’s Peak.
The island lies a whopping 1,732 miles from the nearest populated centre – Cape Town, South Africa.
One curious Scot brought the island town, named after Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, to the attention of others who were left baffled by the intricacies of life in the remote corner of the world.
Scots quickly fell down a rabbit hole learning about the island that owes its namesake to the capital, whilst also cracking some tongue-in-cheek jokes about Edinburgh’s namesake.
The island boasts a single road jokingly nicknamed the “M1” by residents which links the town to the even further isolated farms on the island – known as the Potato Patches.
Inaccessible by any means other than an 18-day boat journey, the population of the island are left to fend for themselves most of the year.
The island’s population boasts a mere nine last names with founder William Glass’s descendants still living there as part of the community.
One Scot alleged moving to the Island required every current resident’s approval – making joining the community a difficult thing to do for any hoping for a quiet island life.
The island was also evacuated in the 60s when the volcano erupted, forcing residents to flee to England where most were met with severe culture shock.
One Scot shared a post to social media yesterday in the hopes of finding out more about life on the tiny island with the caption: “What’s life like in Edinburgh of the Seven Seas?”
The post received over 320 likes and more than 100 comments from Scots who were amazed by the world’s most remote inhabited island.
One user said: “Met someone who’s been there, and he said it was the most gossipy place he’s ever been.”
Another joked: “Glasgow of the Seven Seas has better nightlife.”
A third wrote: “Tristan da Cunha. I was taught about this place as an example of the founder effect in biology.
“If I remember right, there is a high level of asthma and poor eyesight as several of the founding fathers had asthma and wore glasses.”
Another quipped: “I heard they are complaining about the trams and clowncil.”
A fifth commented: “I’m assuming it’s like life in Edinburgh, but on the Seven Seas.”
