Ordnance Survey – Great Britain's national mapping agency
![Ordnance Survey home page [logo]](/images/gui/logo-os.gif){kind=logo}
Place names are made up of components which are referred to as elements. These elements are simply the words people used to describe a place or their response to their environment. A more complete background to Scots in place names, pronunciation and spelling can be found accompanying Introduction to Scots origins of place names in Britain.
This is a glossary of the elements from Scots most frequently found in the place names of Britain. It does not claim to be a comprehensive list of Scots elements found in Scottish place names, but it can claim to be the most comprehensive to date. Some elements which are the same as English have not been included. The meaning given is that which occurs in place names. Examples (with grid references) are given for each element.
Abbreviations
adj = adjective
n = noun
| Element | Meaning | Examples |
| nab n | see knap | Nabhill NU0046, Rock Nab NU1720, The Nab HU2148 |
| ness n | headland | Kinghorn Ness NT2786, Lamb Ness HY6821 |
| nether adj | the lower-situated of two places, lower | Mid Netherton NS5858, Nether Achie NX6277 |
| neuk n | corner, projecting point of land into the sea, a remote place | Park Neuk NJ1855, Roughneuk NS2704 |
| nick n | narrow gap in a range of hills | Saddle Nick NS8203, Southerly Nick NT4038 |
| nook n | see neuk | Craignook NY5178, Parknook NJ4722 |
| noup n | nob | Kame of Riven Noup HU3631, Little Noup Head HY5539 |
| nowt n | black cattle | Nowt Bield HY2301, Nowt Rig NT1711 |
| paddock n | small farm | Paddockfield NH5015, Paddocklaw NJ6661 |
| pan n | in coastal areas referring to salt pans | Pan Rocks NS3131, Salt Pan Bay NW9667 |
| park n | enclosure for hunting or agriculture | Fowberry Park NU0227, Parkhill NJ4460 |
| path n | from peth: steep track leading through a ravine | Stoneypath NT6171, Moine Path NC5155 |
| peel n | fortified tower (Borders), fence, stockade, palisade | Leitholm Peel NT7843, Peel Hill NT4628 |
| peerie adj | small (Northern Isles only) | Peerie Breast HY4145, Peerie Hill HU5183 |
| perk n | see park | Perkhill NJ5705 |
| pike n | cairn of stones on the highest part of a hill | Pike Cairn NT3424, Pikestone Sike NY6990 |
| pin n | point, peak, summit | Pin Stane NS9410 |
| plain n | land free from trees, unwooded, piece of level ground | Blowplain NX6677, High Plains NY4274 |
| plea n | quarrel | Plea Moss NY2689, Plea Knowe NY2296 |
| port n | harbour, gate, gateway | Port Laing NT1381, Port of Rossdhu NS3589 |
| pow n | marshy place, slow-running stream | Bogmill Pow NO2726, Carse Pow NX9859 |
| pund n | enclosure for animals, especially stray animals | Green Pund HP6207, Lap Pund HP6107 |
| pyat n | magpie | Pyat Cleuch NY1591, Pyat Side NT3737 |
| pyet n | see pyat | Pyet Craig NX1386, Pyet Knowe NS2450 |
| quaw n | bog, marsh | Eildon Quaw NT3512 |
| rash n | rush | White Rashes ND3463, Rashfield NS1483 |
| rashie adj | covered with rushes | Rashie Sike NT2312, Rashy Grain NO7485 |
| raw n | ridge of ground, street, row | Blackraw NT0865, Cairnraws NX6274, Langraw NT5811 |
| reesk n | wet, boggy land, morass | The Reesk NJ4436 |
| reisk n | see reesk | Reisk NK0556 |
| rig, rigg n | ridge, long narrow hill, cultivated strip of land | Throw Rig NS8811, Tod Rig NY4395, Riggend NS7670 |
| risk n | see reesk | Risk NS3759, Riskend NS7378 |
| rispie n | long coarse grass | Rispie Cleugh NY5281, Rispie Lairs NT1412 |
| rounall n | see roundel | Marchfield Rounall NX9877, Beech Rounall NO0519 |
| roundel n | anything circular | The Roundel NN1404, West Roundel NS9646 |
| row n | see raw | Stone Row NH9354, White Row NX3495 |
| run n | from rin: stream, land beside a stream | Chair Run NC7615, Well Run NC8704 |
| sauchie n | place abounding in willows | Sauchie Banks NY1396, Sauchie Wood NS5383 |
| scad, scald adj | see scawd | Scad Cairns NO3160, Scald Law NT1961 |
| scalp n | see scaup | Scalp Rock NG2963 |
| scar n | see scaur | Scar Brae NY0984, Scar Point NY0065 |
| scarf n | cormorant, shag | Scarf Craig NJ2271, Scarf Rocks NC9666 |
| scart n | see scarf | Scart Isle NR6320, Scart Rock NS2144 |
| scaud adj | see scawd | Scaud Knowe NT9514, Scaud Law NT6801 |
| scaup n | bank for shellfish in the sea, infertile stony ground, small bare hill | Scaup Burn NY6599, Scaup Pikes NY6598 |
| scaur n | steep, eroded hill, cliff face, long ridges running from cliff at low tide | The Scaurs NJ4738, Scaur Wood NJ7308 |
| scawd adj | having bare patches, bare of vegetation | Scawd Bank NY4393 |
| scaw’d adj | see scawd | Scaw’d Fell NT1402, Little Scaw’d Law NS9104 |
| score n | see scaur | Inner Score HU5145, Meikle Score ND2175 |
| scree n | mass of small loose stones on a steep hillside, narrow steep hollow | Scree Gully NO2774, Scree Road NC4300 |
| scroggie adj | covered with stunted bushes | Scroggiehill NO1542, Scroggie Hall NX6779 |
| scrogs n | rough land covered with stunted bushes | Scrogs Field NT1841, Crossford Scrogs NX8388 |
| scug n | shelter, slope of a hill | Scug Wood NJ3642, Scuggate NY4474 |
| seggy adj | overgrown with sedges or reeds | Seggy Burn NS5916, Seggycrook NJ5252 |
| shade n | see shed | Sick Man’s Shade NO7262, Bradeshade NO7379, Broadshade NJ8107 |
| shank n | projecting point of a hill, slope of a hill | Shank Glen NS2915, Shank of Auchnafoe NO5073 |
| shaw n | small wood, thicket | Shaw Wood NS4961, South Cowshaw NY0284 |
| shed n | strip of land, distinct separate piece of land | Upper Broadsheds NK0358, Bandshed Moss NJ7513 |
| shiel n | hut, shepherd’s summer shelter | Shiels NJ9319, Mid Foulshiels NS9864 |
| shield, shields n | see shiel | Shepherdshield NY7674, Shields Rig NT0453 |
| shin n | shin, ridge or steep face of a hill, projecting part of a piece of high ground | Whiteshin NK1038, The Shin ND0822, Brown Shin NS9107 |
| short adj | low, short | Shortrighead NS8371, Short Hope NT3801 |
| shot n | division of land | Heathershot NS7697, Cothall Shot NJ0056 |
| side n | hillside; also English ‘side’ | South Suttieside NO4651, Stony Side NT6458 |
| sike n | see syke | Bushy Sike NS7408, Tod Sike NY2984 |
| siller n | silver, money | Siller Hill NJ6462, Siller Stane NT5532 |
| sink n | low-lying area where water collects | Brierysink NS3053 |
| skelly n | rock, skerry | Bailiff’s Skelly NK0663, Black Skelly NO4182 |
| skew n | twist, turn, state of ruin | Skew Skerry HU3789, Skew Bridge NS6425 |
| slack n | hollow between hills, pass, pit, hole | Thief’s Slack NJ5421, Wain Slack NT6762 |
| slag n | morass | Slag Hill NS9880 |
| slap n | pass, shallow valley between hills | Slap of Setter HY3415, Thunderslap Hill NJ3033 |
| sloch n | see slock | Berrysloch NO5894 |
| slock n | hollow between hills | The Wolf Slock NX4589 |
| slot n | pit, hole in the ground | Slot Burn NS6832, Buittle Slot NX8161 |
| smiddy n | smithy | Smiddyhill NJ9755, Backsmiddy NJ7745 |
| snab n | steep, short slope | Buckstone Snab NT2469, Coldwell Snab NY4897 |
| sneck n | notch, dip in the ground, saddle between hills | Red Sneck Burn NJ3123, Sneck of Corinch NO3564 |
| snout n | projecting point of land | Black Snout NX9199, Burnsnout NH9456 |
| souter n | cobbler, shoemaker | Outer Souter Cleuch NT8419, Souterford NJ7822 |
| spout n | waterfall, boggy spring | Spout of Balbowie NS6487, The Black Spout NN9557 |
| stab n | see stob | Stab Hill NX1472 |
| stane n | stone | The Lecker Stane NO0803, The Nine Stanes NO7291 |
| stank n | ditch, pond, moat | The Stank NT8128, Black Stank NJ2351 |
| starry adj | covered in sedges | Starryheugh Farm NX9575, Starry Geo HY5237 |
| stead n | farmhouse and buildings | Low Greystead NY7785, Lynestead NY5478 |
| steel n | steep bank, hill-ridge | Steelend NT0593, Cockston Steel NT6671 |
| stell n | deep pool in a river, enclosure for sheep, clump or plantation of trees, shelter | East Stell NT2983, Fir Stell NT5046 |
| steps n | stepping stones | Foulsteps NU0930, Black Steps NX3878 |
| stey adj | steep, very steep | Stey Brae NX6679, Stey Fell NX5560 |
| stob n | stake, post | Easter Stobwood NS9553 |
| stot n | young bull, ox | Stot Hill NJ5903, Stotfaulds NO4939 |
| straik n | long, narrow tract of land | Broadstraik Farm NJ8106 |
| strand n | gutter, channel, drain for water, rivulet | Whitewell Strand NT9116, West Strand NS5905 |
| strath n | broad flat river valley | Green Strath NJ4320, Helshetter Strath NC9661 |
| stripe n | narrow tract or strip of land, rivulet | Auchmadies Stripe NJ3247, Black Stripe NJ4754 |
| swart adj | black, dark | Swart Howe HY5003, Swartmill HY4846 |
| swine n | pig | Swine Burn NU0811, Swine’s Cleugh NT3351 |
| swire n | hollow between hills, level place near the top of a hill | Swire Knowe NT4700, Windy Swire NT4700 |
| syke n | marshy hollow, esp. one with a stream, small burn | Threepsikes NT0294, Ormscleugh Syke NT4651 |
| tack n | farm, leaseholding | Tackhouse NS6443, Upper Tack NJ8916 |
| tae n | toe, branch of a drain | Broad Tae NT0712, Hard Tae NT7607 |
| taft n | homestead and its land | Evertaft HY4551, Tafts HU6091 |
| tail n | lower end of a field | Laidler’s Tail NU0737, Wester Tail HU5999 |
| tammock n | see tummock | Cairn Tammock NX5764 |
| tap n | head, hill, heap | Craw Tap HU2550, Bruntwood Tap NJ6621 |
| tappin n | peaked top of a hill, cairn on a hilltop | The Tappins NX3596, Welltrees Tappin NS7504 |
| tappit adj | hooded, crested | Tappit Knowes NS8202 |
| thorn n | hawthorn | East Thorn HY4846, Hardthorn NX9477 |
| threap, threep, threip n | argument, dispute | Threapland Wood NJ2959, Threepsikes NT0294, Threip Moor NX9595 |
| tod n | fox | Low Todhill NS4343, Tod Fell NX7959 |
| toe n | see tae | Toe Head NF9594, West Toe HY5640 |
| toft n | see taft | Colbinstoft HU6193, Easter Tofts NS8635 |
| toun n | township, farm | Upper Carlestoun NS6175, West Westertoun NS8667 |
| trough n | from troch: channel or bed of a river, valley | Green Trough NS8911, Castletrough Burn NY0191 |
| tummock n | small hillock | Dogtummock NX9460 |
| type n | low conical hill | White Type NT0511, The Types NX5073 |
| waird n | see ward | Backwaird NJ7417, Swinewaird NO8680 |
| wall n | well, wall | Wall Sike NY6099 |
| ward n | piece of pasture, division, beacon hill | Littleward NJ5139, Brae Ward NS3158 |
| water n | stream, river, rivulet | Pow Water NN8919 |
| wedder n | wether, castrated ram | Wedder Law NS8828, Wedderhill NO8797 |
| wee adj | little | Wee Cleuch NS8806, Wee Doon NX4871 |
| weel n | pool, deep still part in a river | Weel Pool NS4308, Barmuck Weel NS3106 |
| wester adj | western(-most), lying to the west | Wester Aberdour NT1885, Wester Bows NN7306 |
| wham n | broad valley through which a stream runs, marshy depression | Wham Rig NS6905, Gillwham NX9265 |
| whaup n | curlew | Whaup Crags NY6578, Whaup Knowe NX9793 |
| whin n | gorse | The Whin NT4739, Wester Whin NS8668 |
| whinnie adj | gorse-clad | Whinniemuir NO1225 |
| wiel n | see weel | McKie’s Wiel NX3776, Quaking Ash Wiel NX3775 |
| wynd n | long, narrow lane frequently curving | Cow’s Wynd NS7810, Stonywynd NO5614 |
| yair n | fish trap | Yair Hope NT4333 |
| yard n | yard, garden | Corseyard NX5948, East Grassyards NS2264 |
| yearn n | eagle | Yearn Cleuch NS8807, Yearn Gill NT0120 |
| yella adj | yellow | Yella Moor HU4466 |
| yett n | gate, natural pass between hills | Upper Yetts NO0001, Whiteyett NY2494 |
| yird n | earth | Fox Yird NS6000 |
| yonder adj | more distant | Yonderton NJ8452, Yonderhaugh NS9082 |