also Shelty, type of small, sturdy horse, 1640s, "Shetland pony," an abbreviation of Sheltand, a metathesis of Shetland. Or the word may represent the Orkney pronunciation of Old Norse Hjalti "Shetlander."
Entries linking to sheltie
Shetland
group of islands north of Scotland, from Old Norse Hjaltland; in reference to a type of pony, 1801; as a breed of sheep, 1794. Related: Shetlander.