Scottish Place-Name Society
Encyclopedia
The Scottish Place-Name Society (Comann Ainmean-Áite na h-Alba in Gaelic
) is a learned society
in Scotland
concerned with toponymy
, the study of place-names. Its scholars aim to explain the origin and history of the place-names they study, taking into account the meaning of the elements out of which they were created; the topography, geology and ecology of the places bearing the names; and the general and local history and culture of Scotland.
The Society was founded in February 1996. The Society's journal, the Journal of Scottish Name Studies, was published from 2007.
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
) is a learned society
Learned society
A learned society is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline/profession, as well a group of disciplines. Membership may be open to all, may require possession of some qualification, or may be an honor conferred by election, as is the case with the oldest learned societies,...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
concerned with toponymy
Toponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
, the study of place-names. Its scholars aim to explain the origin and history of the place-names they study, taking into account the meaning of the elements out of which they were created; the topography, geology and ecology of the places bearing the names; and the general and local history and culture of Scotland.
The Society was founded in February 1996. The Society's journal, the Journal of Scottish Name Studies, was published from 2007.
See also
- International Council for Onomastic Studies
- English Place-Name SocietyEnglish Place-Name SocietyThe English Place-Name Society is a learned society concerned with toponomastics and the toponymy of England, in other words, the study of place-names ....
- Ulster Place-Name Society
- Society for Name Studies in Britain and IrelandSociety for Name Studies in Britain and IrelandThe Society for Name Studies in Britain and Ireland is a learned society for members with interests in proper names, including place names, personal names and surnames relating to the British Isles....
Further reading
- Watson, W.J.William J. WatsonProfessor William J. Watson was a toponymist, one of the greatest Scottish scholars of the 20th century, and was the first scholar to place the study of Scottish place names on a firm linguistic basis....
, History of the Celtic Place-Names of Scotland. Reprinted, with introduction, full bibliography and corrigenda by Simon Taylor. Edinburgh: Birlinn, 2004. - Nicolaisen, W.F.H., Scottish Place-Names. Edinburgh: Edinburgh U.P., 2001.