 Fishing Boats at Elgol on Skye |
Scotland has over 6,000 miles of coastline and, wherever you go in the country, you are not far from the sea. Dotted around this long and complex coastline are over 400 ports and harbours ranging in size from the very large to the tiny. Despite the decline of the fishing industry in recent times, a fascinating aspect of exploring Scotland's coast is the many fishing boats - also ranging in size from the very large to the tiny - on view in these ports and harbours.
This page is for anyone who ever wondered about the origin of fishing boats you see while travelling around Scotland. By law each fishing boat must have a "Port of Registration", and this is identified by one, two, or three letters preceding a number, painted on the boat. In the example shown in the header image, a remote jetty at Elgol on the Isle of Skye was paying host to WY164, registered in Whitby, England; and CO511, registered in Caernarvon, Wales.
The first table below lists Scottish ports in which fishing boats can be registered, and the registration letters associated with each. The second table lists other British Isles ports of registry with their identifying letters. Other European fishing fleets also use registration letters and some of these can sometimes be seen in Scottish ports. You can find a list online here.
Scottish Fishing Boat Registration Letters |
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| A: Aberdeen | AA: Alloa | AH: Arbroath |
| AD: Ardrossan | AR: Ayr | BA: Ballantrae |
| BF: Banff | BO: Bo'ness | BRD: Broadford |
| BCK: Buckie | BU: Burntisland | CN: Campbeltown |
| CY: Castlebay | DE: Dundee | DS: Dumfries |
| FR: Fraserburgh | GH: Grangemouth | GN: Granton |
| GW: Glasgow | GK: Greenock | INS: Inverness |
| IE: Irvine | K: Kirkwall | KY: Kirkcaldy |
| LH: Leith | LK: Lerwick | ML: Methil |
| OB: Oban | ME: Montrose | PD: Peterhead |
| RO: Rothesay | SR: Stranraer | SY: Stornoway |
| TN: Troon | TT: Tarbert, Loch Fyne | UL: Ullapool |
| WK: Wick | WN: Wigtown | |
Other British Isles Fishing Boat Registration Letters |
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| AB: Aberystwyth | BE: Barnstaple | BW: Barrow |
| BS: Beaumaris | B: Belfast | BK: Berwick on Tweed |
| BD: Bideford | BH: Blyth | BN: Boston |
| BR: Bridgwater | BL: Bristol | BM: Brixham |
| C: Cork | CA: Cardigan | CE: Coleraine |
| CF: Cardiff | CH: Chester | CK: Colchester |
| CL: Carlisle | CO: Caernarfon | CS: Cowes |
| CT: Castletown | D: Arklow/Dublin | DA: Drogheda |
| DH: Dartmouth | DK: Dundalk | DO: Douglas |
| DR: Dover | E: Exeter | F: Faversham |
| FD: Fleetwood | FE: Folkestone | FH: Falmouth |
| FY: Fowey | G: Galway | GE: Goole |
| GR: Gloucester | GU: Guernsey | GY: Grimsby |
| H: Hull | HH: Harwich | HL: Hartlepool |
| IH: Ipswich | J: Jersey | L: Limerick |
| LA: Llanelli | LI: Littlehampton | LL: Liverpool |
| LN: King's Lynn | LO: London | LR: Lancaster |
| LT: Lowestoft | LY: Londonderry | M: Milford Haven |
| MH: Middlesbrough | MN: Maldon | MR: Manchester |
| MT: Maryport | N: Newry | NE: Newcastle |
| NN: Newhaven | NT: Newport, Gwent | P: Portsmouth |
| PE: Poole | PH: Plymouth | PL: Peel |
| PN: Preston | PT: Port Talbot | PW: Padstow |
| PZ: Penzance | R: Ramsgate | RN: Runcorn |
| RR: Rochester | RX: Rye | RY: Ramsey |
| S: Skibbereen | SA: Swansea | SC: Scilly |
| SD: Sunderland | SE: Salcombe | SH: Scarborough |
| SM: Shoreham | SN: North Shields | SO: Sligo |
| SS: St Ives | SSS: South Shields | ST: Stockton |
| SU: Southampton | T: Tralee | TH: Teignmouth |
| TO: Truro | W: Waterford | WA: Whitehaven |
| WD: Wexford | WH: Weymouth | WI: Wisbech |
| WO: Workington | WT: Westport | WY: Whitby |
| YH: Great Yarmouth | ||
