List of English Words of Scottish Gaelic Origin - Place-name Terminology

Place-name Terminology

There are numerous additional place-name elements in Scotland which are derived from Gaelic, but the majority of these has not entered the English or Scots language as productive nouns and often remain opaque to the average Scot. A few examples of such elements are:

• a(u)ch- from Gaelic achadh, a field; hence Auchentoshan, Auchinleck
• ard- from Gaelic àird, a height or promontory; hence Ardnamurchan, etc.
• bal- from Gaelic baile, a town; hence Balgowan, Balgay etc.
• dal- from Gaelic dail, a meadow (not to be confused with "dale", from the Norse dalr meaning a valley); hence Dalry
• drum- from Gaelic druim, a ridge; hence Drumchapel, Drumnadrochit etc.
• dun- from Gaelic dun, a fort; hence Dundee, Dumbarton, Dunedin/Edinburgh
• inver- from Gaelic inbhir, a river mouth or confluence; hence Inverclyde, Inverleith
• kil- from Gaelic cill, a churchyard; hence Kilmarnock, Kilbride etc.
• kin- from Gaelic ceann, a head; hence Kinlochleven, Kinloss etc.