From: Anthony Melling
<awm3@ukc.ac.uk>
Subject: Mushrooms
Date sent: Wed, 21 Aug 2002
greetings,
just a small enquiry really.
I am researching for my thesis in ethnobotany and am currently working on the association between pooka/puck and magic mushrooms that grow around the British Isles. I have been told that they (Psilocybe semilanceata) are referred to as pooka-piles at least around Kerry and Cork and parts of Scotland. What I am looking for is the antiquity of this association and related folklore. Any help in this area would be most appreciated.
many thanks,
Anthony Melling, Anthropology Dept, Eliot College, University of Kent, Canterbury, England
From Annie Allerdice
Dr. Taylor.
Thanks to Marian's help we have done some further research, which is being added to our families websites.
Marian believes you might have a different take on the Name. Or perhaps the age of the Ancient Lands of Alrethes, as they were noted in the time of William the Lion. 1156. Is Marians idea on what the name might mean accurate?
We were wondereing the 'term' Church Cell comes from older definitions found in published records used by the several members of the Archelogical Society. Dr. Maton published his observations of Stonehenge in the Archaeologia, Vol. XIII 1797. This quoted from the book of Geofrey Higgins esq. 1826. "The Celtic Druid" . Concerning the various Standing Stones, at Stonehenge. ..." were called the Temple, a Church Cell, or Sanctum"....
Is it possible that Alrethes was a ancient place of worship? or has it have Standing Stones in or around the area?
Allardice (Alrethes) Castle is still standing. I hope you can help us with further information. If not, is there any way that we can help you? I have been reading the notices at the Place Names website. It appears that your research is an ongoing process.
Perhaps we can give you information that you don't have. One of our counsin Bruce Allardice is an Historian who has written the family monograph back to 1156. And we are expanding the data daily. Adding our 100th family email address
to our growing list of Allardices worldwide. And, Mr. Cowie (Architect) and present owner of the Castle has provided us
with aerial shots and some history which is located at www.allerdice.net
I look forward to any information you can offer.
Simon Taylor replied:
.... Thanks to your inquiry I have now got a provisional entry for this name in the Scottish Place-Name Database,a print-out please find below. As you can see, it is a difficult name to interpret, and I would not claim that this is the last word on the subject. However, the various meanings I propose fit in well with what we know about early settlement-names in general - that they mainly describe conspicuous topographical features....
ALLARDICE (6716)
ARBUTHNOTT(ABT), Settlement NO81 74 (General (1km)) Alreches 1198 RRS ii, no. 404 [This is almost certainly a copying error for Alrethes, with common confusion of c and t. King William grants to Walter, son of 'Walterus Scottus', Alre<t>hes in feu and heritage for the service of one archer with horse and haubergel and the performance of the common aid due from 13 oxgangs of land (bovatas terre).]
Alexander de Allyrdas 1294 Aberdeen Reg., i, p. 37
Alisaundre de Allerdashe 1296 Cal. Docs. Scot., ii, p. 209
terris de Alrethes 1306x29 RMS, i app. 2 no. 434 (A) [Carta Duncani judicis de terris de Alrethes infra vicecomitatum de Kincardyn. Index B has Alrethis.]
Alexander de Allirdess' 1326 RRS v, no. 293 [Holding land in north Angus.]
Walter(us) de Allardes 1329x71 RMS, i app. 2 no. 1084 (A) [Carta Joannis de Morauia de warda Walteri de Allardes. Index B has 'the ward of Allardes' .]
terras baronie de Allyrdas 1426 RMS, ii no. 68
(Name is Part Of) Castle of Allardice OS Pathf, 273
(Name is Part Of) Mains of Allardice OS Pathf, 273
(Name is Part Of) Mill of Allardice OS Pathf, 273
This is a difficult name to interpret. The earliest forms (Alrethes) suggest a root *alreth + the Gaelic (and possibly Pictish) locational suffix –es, thus giving ‘place of *alreth’. *Alreth itself is probably a compound noun, the first element of which would be the common place-name element ail (or its Pictish cognate *al) ‘rock, cliff’. The second element may be Pictish
*reth ‘bracken, fern’ (see Watson [History of the Celtic Place-Names of Scotland] 1926, 78), giving ‘place of the bracken rock or cliff’. However, the second element may also be a Pictish word cognate with Welsh rhyd, Old
Welsh rit ‘ford’, referring to a ford across the Bervie Water near some cliffs or a steep rocky bank, thus giving ‘place of the ford by a cliff or crag’. From the OS Landranger map it would seem that the north side of the river at the Castle of Allardice might provide such a feature.
The later development of the name may have been influenced by the north Angus parish of Tannadice (Thanetheis 1189x95 RRS ii, no. 333 Tanetheys’ 1250x59 Dunf. Reg., no.313 p.210).
Alan Bryson wrote:
I am a research editor for the general sixteenth century with the New DNB but was a postgraduate student at St Andrews. We shared the basement of the Crawford Arts Centre for a number of years. I understand that you know Fife like the back of your hand and that you are particularly interested in local place names. I would be very grateful if you could answer a question for me, if possible. We have a contributor of an article on James Wilson, one of the framers of the American constitution, who places his birth in 'Caskerdo (Caskerdy) near Ceres'. The author says the first version is the American spelling and that in brackets is the Scottish spelling. Having lived in Strathkinness for two years but being from the west coast, it is only natural that I should be completely ignorant of such a place but I thought if anybody would know you would. I would be grateful for your advice....
Simon Taylor replied:
Thanks for your inquiry. Herewith probably more info. than you ever wanted on Carskerdo! (simply printed out from my database). I was interested to hear of the link with the American constitution. Also interested that the author gives the Scottish spelling as Caskerdy, which he presumably got from papers belonging to Wilson himself. THis reflects local pronunication, still heard today, but the official Ordnance Survey form is as I give below (with intrusive r and archaic ending).
CARSKERDO Ceres Parish S NO39 07
(land of) Gaskerduf 1310x27 St Andrews University Library, MS 37490, no.1 [see below note {1}]
(land of) Gaskerduff c.1365x98 St Andrews University Library, MS 37490, no.2
(lands of) Gaskerduff 1419 (1450) St Andrews University Library, MS 37490, no.5
(lands of) Glaskerdow 1454 St Andrews University Library, MS 37490, no.6
Kaskeirdoch 1515 Fife Ct. Bk. 15 [Walter Hird of Pyeston MAI hanged for stealing 10 sheep from John Andersone, William Eldar and John Symsone dwelling in Kaskeirdoch]
Carskeirdo 1640s Gordon
Carskirdo 1828 SGF
G gasg 'ridge' etc. + ? P/G caer 'fort' + G dubh 'black': ? 'black fort ridge'. The farm-steading sits on the same ridge as Cassindilly CER, which shares the same generic. For part of its marches in the 14th c., see the translation of St Andrews University Library, MS 37490, no.1 (note {1}). Pronunciation: stress on the second syllable car'SKERdo - e as in egg, o as in doe; locally CaSKERdie.
Graham Mailer wrote:
"I'm trying to find information about the place name Kirkton of Mailer [about 3 miles south of Perth]. I realize that Kirk means church but I do not understand the meaning in the full content."
Mailer is the name of the estate, and Kirkton of M. seems to be the village that grew up around the estate church here. Kirkton is very common in Scotland, equivalent to the English Kirton, and Cheriton ‘church village'. The hard initial consonant perhaps exhibits Norse influence; and sometimes *cirice-tun has been replaced by ‘Kirkby'.
The estate name perhaps includes the Gaelic meall 'hill, mass, mount'. Ptolemy's Malaios, probably the island of Mull (Gaellic Muile) is perhaps cognate: Watson (History of the Celtic Place-Names of Scotland) suggests "Lofty Isle". Kirkton Hill would fit this!
The surname 'Mailer' arises from at least three different roots: in Scotland from this place (1296 Johan de Malere); in Wales from Old Welsh *Maglorix (> Meilyr); and in England from (a)meilleur (Old French esmailleur) 'enammeller', where it is cognate with the name 'Ambler'. See GF Black The Surnames of Scotland; Reaney and Wilson A Dictionary of English Surnames.
Henry Gough-Cooper
A query re ‘Lamden near Kelso':
I assume it is Lambden, which is not far from Kelso but is in Greenlaw parish, Berwickshire. The earliest form is Lambedena (c. 1214 Kelso Liber), and derives from Anglo-Saxon 'valley of (the) lambs' - it would have probably been coined when this part of Scotland ws part of Northumbria i.e. before the 10th century.
Source: Johnston, J.B., 1940, The Place-Names of Berwickshire (The Place-Names of Scotland Series, No.1, published by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, Edinburgh).
Simon Taylor
A query from John Dancy: "Are there any areas, outside Gaelic speaking areas, or areas where the names are mainly Gaelic derived, where accents occur as part of the place-name on a regular basis?"
The answer is no - accents (or length-marks) are found in Scotland only in place-names written in Gaelic orthography. (It's not so much a question of the derivation of the name - many place-names in the Gaelic-speaking areas are Norse derived, but if they are written in Gaelic orthography, they will use the Gaelic length-marks. On the other hand many place-names in the Scottish Lowlands are Gaelic-derived, but show no length-marks because they are written in Standard Scottish English orthography.)
Simon Taylor
Doug Stone enquired about Norse/Gaelic studies, below is Simon Taylor's suggested reading for the Norse component of a university course he teaches at St Andrews on Scottish toponymics:
NORSE Surveys:
Nicolaisen, SPN, ch. 6 ‘Scandinavian names' [Nicolaisen, W.F.H.,
1976, Scottish Place-Names (London; second impression with additional information 1979): the best general introduction to the subject of Scottish place-names, and to methodological approach. (last edn paperback 1986, but out of print)].
Oftedal in Thomson, Companion to Gaelic Scotland, under ‘Place-names, Norse' [The Companion to Gaelic Scotland, ed. D.S. Thomson (rev. ed. Glasgow 1994)].
A useful listing of common Norse names and terms is in MacAulay, D. 1971-2 ‘Studying the place names of Bernera', Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness 47, 329-30: basic elements; 330-6: examples of modifying elements, structure and usage of Norse place-names.
Crawford, B. E., 1987, Scandinavian Scotland (Leicester)
Crawford, B.E. 1995 (ed.), Scandinavian Settlement in Northern Britain (London)
Fellows-Jensen, G. 1984, ‘Viking Settlement in the Northern and Western Isles', in The Northern and Western Isles in the Viking World, eds A. Fenton & H. Pálsson, 148-68.
Fellows-Jensen, G., 1990, ‘Scandinavians in Southern Scotland?' Nomina 13 (1989-90), 41-60.
Taylor, .S., 1995, ‘The Scandinavians in Fife and Kinross: the Onomastic Evidence', in Scandinavian Settlement in Northern Britain, ed. B.E. Crawford (London), 141-67.
The most thorough treatment of the subject has unfortunately not been published. It is:
Jennings, A. 1994, ‘An Historical Study of the Gael and Norse in Western Scotland from c.795 to c.1000', unpublished PhD, Edinburgh University.
Re Laphroaig: I haven't seen any early forms – which always makes analysis very risky – but it does look like the second element (proaig) is from Norse breið-vík ‘broad bay' (and therefore of the same origin as Brodick, Arran). There is also a settlement called Proaig in the same parish (Kildalton and Oa) but on the east coast of Islay (NR45 57), which has the same origin and shows the same phonological development. I don't know what the first element might represent. If it is of Gaelic origin, as it may well be, this does not mean that it is a mixed Gaelic-Norse name strictly speaking. Rather it is a Gaelic name which incorporates an existing place-name which happens to be of Norse origin. In other words, Norse could have ceased to be spoken on Islay for centuries before the name ‘Laphroaig' was coined. This important point is well made in the articles of Richard Cox e.g.
Cox, R. A. V., 1989, ‘Questioning the value and validity of the term ‘hybrid' in Hebridean place-name study', Nomina 12, 1-9.
Cox, R. A. V., 1991, ‘Allt Loch Dhaile Beaga: Place-name Study in the West
of Scotland', Nomina 14 (1990-91), 83-96.
Simon Taylor
Barrie Minney enquired about the meaning of some names in Dumfries and Galloway exhibiting the element minni- / minny.
There are several authorities one can refer to for Scottish place-name etymologies, the principal one being W.J. Watson's 'History of the Celtic Place-names of Scotland' 1926 Edinburgh and London, reprinted 1993. One might also refer to Sir Herbert Maxwell's 'The Place Names of Galloway', Glasgow 1930, but this is perhaps a less authoritative source. Otherwise, there are no satisfactorily thoroughgoing 'dictionaries' of Scottish place-names. There are several reasons why the study of place-names in Scotland has lagged behind that of England, but not least is the scarcity of early documents for name-forms and the number of different languages involved.
In brief, the names in minni / minny are difficult in that (as Watson explains at some length op.cit. pp.391-407) this seems to represent at least 3 different words: monadh, moine and muine. The original meanings of these words seem to have shifted with their migration from Ireland to Scotland (and perhaps their use within Scotland as well) but, as far as I can make out, monadh means 'upland grazing, moorland', muine is 'thicket, shrubbery', and moine is 'bog, moss'.
Only three of your examples seem to have earlier recorded forms: Minnigaff (NX4166) was 1504 Monygof (second element is 'smith'?); Minnygap was c.1370 Monygaip, -kip, -kipper, Munygep, Mungep (second element is G. ceap 'block'?); and Minniwick was 1602 Mynivick (perhaps to be compared with *Minuirc, a stone where a battle was fought in 717, and where the second element is uirc 'roebuck'). Maxwell (op.cit.) suggests the second element in Minnigall is 'stranger' or 'standing stone'.
I have no idea what the second element in Minnygryle might be, and I do not know what Minny E'Hill represents, but both of these are located in fairly elevated positions. Minniwick is associated with Minniwick Moss, and Minnigall Lane is a small tributary watercourse, so perhaps both of these indicate moine 'bog, moss'.
An interesting counter-example for the first element is Daphne Brooke's examination of the obsolete *Menybrig (Transactions of the Dumfries and Galloway Natural History and Antiquarian Society, ns LXXI, 1996, p.115f) which she demonstrates to be old British Maen-y-brig 'stone of the ....', perhaps from the even older Brigomono (found in the 'Ravenna Cosmography'), located somewhere near NW9856. This is found as 1426 Menybrig, 1487 Men-y-brig, and 1499 Monybrig, but this last is perhaps from an assimilation to the more familiar Gaelic mony- forms.
Henry Gough-Cooper.
From Andy Mitchell, RSPB, Onziebust, Egilsay, Orkney: "I've been trying to find out the meaning of my house name since I moved here. Local knowledge has come to a dead end after establishing that 'bust' (or 'bist') means farm or steading. No-one can help with 'onzie' (pronounced 'onny' locally). There is only one other xample of the name - another farm on the island of Wyre. This farm is almost opposite here. In fact I can see it out of the kitchen window. Can you help?"
To which Peder Gammeltoft (gammelt@hum.ku.dk) replied:
Dear Mr. Mitchell
I have been asked by the Scottish Place Name Society (Dr. Simon Taylor) to help you with the place-name of Onziebust. As you state in your letter, you would like to know the etymology of this place-name. It is a very interesting name, and one which I spent a long time pondering when I did research for my Ph.D.-thesis on place-names in Old Norse bólstaðr in Norway and in the Scottish Isles.
The etymology of this name, and its Wyre counterpart is not entirely certain, although there can be little doubt that the name is certainly of Norse origin, probably Viking Age, or at least Late Norse. The last element, -bust/-bist, is the place-name element Old Norse bólstaðr, meaning a 'farm' or 'dwelling'. My research has shown that 'farm' is probably the most appropriate, as the typical location a name in bólstaðr refers to is normally of a decent size. This place-name element is more common in the Scottish Isles than in its country of origin, Norway, as there are some 236 or so examples of this place-name type in Scotland, but only about 108 in Norway, which must mean that this place-name element was highly fashionable
in the Viking Age proper.
The first element, Onzie-, is problematic. There is preciously little Old Norse linguistic material which fits this present form (which is, as you say is pronounced [onje-]). The fact that there is similar place-name on the other side of the Sound of Rousay, is also intriguing. The only real possible etymology I see for Onzie- is that it itself an original, but now lost, name of the Sound of Rousay, *Öngi, meaning 'the narrow one' or 'the tight one'. This place-name was then later used to form the first element in the name (*Öngabólstaðr) of two localities situated near the sound, one of which you now live at. The present name of the sound must at a later point have replaced the original name which appears only to be reflected in the two Onziebust/-bists. That the names of watercourses and bodies of water may form the first element in place-names in Old Norse bólstaðr is attested from Norway.
The most likely etymology for the place-name of Onziebust is thus: 'the farm by the Öngi'. Needless to say, this etymology is not entirely certain, but it is, as far as I am aware, it is the only attempt ever made to make sense of the name. It is interesting to note that Hugh Marwick in his 'Orkney Farm Names' (Kirkwall, 1952) does not attempt to find an etymology of the first element, as he finds it 'quite obscure'.
[Footnote: Interesting stuff, eh? There must be some amount of imitation (or analogy, depending on how you look at name-formation) in the formation of the one of the Onziebusts. It is not uncommon that an otherwise unique place-name has an exact counterpart in a neighbouring parish, town, or island. From Denmark I know of the field name 'Sølvgryderne' "the Silver Cauldrons", which is found twice in the same parish, but some 2-3 miles apart on the land of two different villages.]
Peder Gammeltoft (Institut for Navneforskning)
From Paul Bibire,
Subject: Caiplie
"A technical question: do you know what the etymology of Caiplie [Kilrenny par. between Crail and Anstruther, Fife] is, and what interesting forms it might have had. Ray Page has a reference that someone found runes carved on the wall of a cave, and told George Stephens about it (1866). He gives the place-name as Capeluchy, which Ray (quite understandably) cannot trace."
I quote relevant bit from the elements index of my PhD (sorry I cannae give you a page ref., as only have a disk version to hand, and its pagination is completely out).
"capull G m.; 'mare, horse'; OIr and MG 'work-horse' (see Thurneysen 1946, 567), a loan-word into OIr from a modified form of Lat caballus (see Thurneysen, loc. cit.). It appears in Caiplie KRY (Caplawin 1235 NLS Adv. ms. 8487, Caplachy and Caplochy 1381 RMS i no.644), meaning 'place of (work-)horses'. Compare Caplich in Rosskeen par. ROS (Watson 1904, 71). Watson loc. cit. describes the name as 'fairly common'. Other examples are Caplich in Urray par. ROS (ibid. 109) and Caiplach on Skye (Bracadale par. INV, four km south-west of Beinn nan Capuil, Portree par. INV).
Apart from Caiplie KRY, this element is also found in Fife in Capledrae ADN and Kincaple SSL."
As you can see, Capeluchy a perfectly acceptable early form of this place, though I suspect that Stephens' informant was intentionally archaising.
KRY = Kilrenny parish
ADN = Auchterderran
SSL = St As and St Leonards.
Simon Taylor
From Norman Reid
Re: Emsdorf, Lower Largo, Fife.
"My enquirer comments that it sounds more Germanic than 'Netherlandish', and wonders as to the origin in this area. It appears on the 1854 OS map. He wonders if prior to 1802 (the earliest Sasine entry he has seen) it was called Upper Drumochie. Was it changed thereafter, and if so when and why?"
Emsdorf must be an import from north Germany - couldn't find it on Times World Atlas 2000, but lots of Ems- place-names along the river Ems, which runs along the German side of the border with the Netherlands into the North Sea west of Bremen - the kind of area familiar to East Neuk traders. I'd love to know when it was coined, and by whom. Nothing in index of Wood, W., 1887, East Neuk of Fife (2nd edition). Might well have been formerly Upper Drummochy - whole bit of Lower Largo west of Largo Burn was so-called - earliest ref. I have found is villa de Drummoquhy 1540 RMS iii no.2147 [king creates free burgh of barony
of ‘villa de Drummoquhy' within the mains land of Lundyne on the west of the
‘torrens de Largo'].
Local pronunciation stresses second syllable.
Simon Taylor
Also in reply to Norman Reid
Re: etymology of CONDIE
Refer enquirer to discussion of name in (Perth and Kinross District Libraries published]:
Watson, A(ngus) 1995 The Ochils: Placenames, History, Tradition, (Perth), pp. 44-5. [where there's also a photie of the farm of Path of Condie taken in 1909 + one of the ruins of House of Condie taken in same year.] I would go for the explanation that it contains the Gaelic root con (nominative cù) 'dog', and was the name originally of the Chapel Burn - it is quite common to find animal names in the names of water-courses.
Note also the same element is probably contained in
PATHCONDIE, Monimail, Fife [MML S NO292144 1 362 100m SOF]
Petcunty 1452 RMS ii no.1444
Petcunte 1542 St A. Rent. 134 [with Murefeild]
Pitkeanduy 1590s 54B
Pitkenduy 1590s Pont/EF [not on Gordon/Fife]
Pathcondie 1828 SGF
Unlike Path of Condie, this definitely does contain the Gaelic from Pictish element pett (later Pit-) 'farm, estate, land-holding'.
Simon Taylor
From Hope Johnston, Foggylone, 8850 County Road 26, Maple Plain, USA
"Hi, I am curious about the origins of the name Foggyloan. My home is located on a secluded ridge above a small lake and is often enveloped in thick fog. I thought Foggylone was an appropriate name. There is a small town, near where my auntie lives in Banff, called Aberchirder. But, locals sometimes call the town Foggyloan. Which name is correct and what does Foggyloan mean?"
Thanks for your enquiry. Foggy is a Scots word meaning 'mossy, moss- or lichen-covered'; loan is a lane or track through fields.
You're right about Aberchirder - the locals refer to the village as Foggyloan, and use Aberchirder to refer to the parish. Hence the joke, when on the subject of how little link there sometimes seems to be between how a Scottish place-name is written and pronounced: 'Question - How do you pronounce Aberchirder? Answer - Foggyloan'.
Simon Taylor
From Lucie Cantrell
Re: Boleston Parish (circa 1820) Invernessshire
"If you have any information on the above parish I would be very interested in it as one of my ancestors - John Macdonald came from there to Canada. Thank you for any information you are able to provide to me."
Boleston is for Boleskine, now combined with Abertarff to form the joint parish of Boleskine and Abertarff. It lies at the southern end of Loch Ness, Inverness-shire. The best general source of information for parishes around 1800 is the Old Statistical Account, which has an overview of all the parishes in Scotland in the 1790s written by the local ministers. It's in print. Hope that helps.
Simon Taylor