E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Orkneys.
Either the Teutonic Orkn-cys (the water or islands of the whirlpool), in allusion to the two famous whirlpools near the Isle of Swinna; or else the Norwegian Orkeyjar (northern islands), the Hebrides being the Sudreyjar, or southern islands.
