The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word SHETLAND
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
S
H
E
T
L
A
N
D
More clues leading to the result SHETLAND
- Man replaces firm in Caledonia? Part of it
- Island group quiet, and for French, secure
- Female extremely tactful with island group
- Like some ponies let out, with special stable boy around?
- Sheepdog the lads let loose around noon
- Straight line separating smooth sort of sheep
- The lads going on tour, taking in Northern isles
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Part of it" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case part of it = shetland.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.