Scottish toponymy



Scottish toponymy derives from the languages of Scotland. The toponymy varies in each region, reflecting the linguistic history of each part of the country.

Goidelic roots accounts for most place-names in eastern Scotland, with a few Anglic names in Fife and Angus and with a small number Pictish elements assimilated into the total toponymy.

Nearly every place-name in the Northern Isles has Norse roots (see Norn language and Scandinavian toponymy), as do many in the Western Isles and along the coasts of the mainland.

In the highlands, the names are primarily from Scottish Gaelic, with emphasis on natural features; elements such as Glen- (Gaelic: Gleann, valley) and Inver- (Gaelic: Inbhir, confluence, mouth) are common. Some Gaelic elements may themselves also be ultimately of Pictish or Brythonic origin, such as Obar (Aber-, meaning confluence; cf modern Welsh Aber-) and Srath (Strath-, a wide, shallow river valley; cf modern Welsh Ystrad).

In lowland Scotland, names are of more diverse origin. Many are Gaelic, but many also derive from the Brythonic branch of Celtic languages (such as Lanark). There are also a substantial number of place names, particularly in the east lowlands, derived from the northern dialect of Old English (see Northumbrian language) and later Scots. For example, -dale as used in e.g. Tweeddale, is from Old English.

Places in Scotland where the Gaelic and English placenames appear to differ
This is a list of names which are not cognate, i.e. they are not from the same root or origins. Some names which appear unrelated in fact are; for example the name Falkirk ultimately derives from a calque (i.e. a word-for-word translation) of its Gaelic name An Eaglais Bhreac (literally 'the speckled/variegated church').