First birth in decades revives tradition on remote Scottish island
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Jorge Suarez and Alice Traill Ford welcomed their son, Duncan Wilder Thorstein Traill Suarez Ford, on North Ronaldsay, the northernmost island in the Orkney archipelago of Scotland. This birth marked the first on the island in over 30 years, since Thomas Brookman was born in August 1992.
The couple traveled over 8,000 kilometers so Duncan could be born in their family home, built by Alice’s ancestors.
The island’s small community celebrated Duncan’s arrival with a traditional custom, whisky, and the family raised a flag at Holland House to announce the birth, mirroring a practice used when the Laird, or landowner, was present. Alice explained that North Ronaldsay holds special significance for her, as she spent childhood summers there, and wanted Duncan to be born surrounded by the island’s energy.
The family worked with the UK’s National Health Service to make the birth on the remote island possible, valuing the connection to their ancestral home. North Ronaldsay is known for its unique sheep that graze on seaweed, and a traditional stone wall approximately 21 kilometers long surrounds the island to contain them. The Traill family purchased the island in 1727 and has maintained Holland House as a family residence ever since.
Duncan’s name honors Alice’s grandfather, a former Laird of the island, and the family plans to return to Costa Rica in November where they run a school, but hopes to maintain a yearly connection to North Ronaldsay for their son.
