The parish and village of Othery, established in 1515, sits on a detached extension of Sowy island on the Somerset Levels. It is 7 miles (11 km) east of Bridgwater and 4 miles (6 km) north-west of Langport. It borders the hamlets and villages of Pathe, Burrowbridge, Middlezoy, Westonzoyland and Aller, which it meets at Beer Wall. The border with Burrowbridge was defined in 1985, reducing Othery to 553 ha. Many of these borders are defined by ditches and walls created and rearranged, from the 13th century onwards, to drain and channel the waters of the River Cary and the River Parrett as they flooded the low-lying levels on their way to the Bristol Channel.