A Croft Is a Scottish Smallholding With Its Own Law
A croft is a small rented agricultural holding in the Scottish Highlands. It is a legal category, not just a size of farm.
A croft is a small rented agricultural holding, chiefly in the Scottish Highlands and Islands. It is not simply a small farm: crofting is a distinct legal tenure created by the Crofters Holdings Act of 1886, which gave tenants security against eviction after the Highland Clearances, along with fair rents and the right to pass the tenancy on. The tenant is a *crofter*, and most also work outside the croft, since few crofts can support a household alone.
- A small holding. *A croft on Skye.*
- Crofter — the tenant. *A working crofter.*
- Crofting — the system. *Crofting communities.*
- Common grazing — shared land. *The common grazing.*
- Highland Clearances — the background. *After the Clearances.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | croft | A small croft. |
| Plural | crofts | Neighbouring crofts. |
| Agent | crofter | A crofter. |
| Noun | crofting | Crofting law. |
| Old English | croft | An enclosed field. |
- The family has worked the croft for generations.Tenure.
- Crofters share the common grazing.Land use.
- The 1886 Act gave crofters security.Law.
What makes crofting distinct
- Security of tenure — a crofter cannot simply be evicted
- Fair rent — set by an independent body
- The right to bequeath the tenancy to a successor
- Common grazing shared between the crofts of a township
- Regulated today by the Crofting Commission
Old English *croft*, an enclosed field or small farm, of uncertain origin. The Scottish legal sense developed in the nineteenth century.
Is a croft the same as a small farm?
No. Crofting is a specific legal tenure in the Scottish Highlands and Islands, with its own rights and regulator.
Do crofters own their land?
Traditionally they are tenants with strong legal protection, though many crofts have since been bought by their tenants.