A strath is a large valley

Valley

In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...

, typically a river valley that is wide and shallow (as opposed to a glen

Glen

A glen is a valley, typically one that is long, deep, and often glacially U-shaped; or one with a watercourse running through such a valley. Whittow defines it as a "Scottish term for a deep valley in the Highlands" that is "narrower than a strath."...

 which is typically narrower and deep).

An anglicisation of the Gaelic

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....

 word srath, it is one of many that have been absorbed into common use in the English language

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

. It is commonly used in rural Scotland to describe a wide valley, even by non-Gaelic speakers.

It occurs in numerous Scottish

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...

 place names (such as Strathspey

Strathspey, Scotland

Strathspey is the area around the strath of the River Spey, Scotland, in both the Moray council area and the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area of Highland....

 and Strathclyde

Strathclyde

right|thumb|the former Strathclyde regionStrathclyde was one of nine former local government regions of Scotland created by the Local Government Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government etc Act 1994...

), Strath-Taieri

Strath-Taieri, New Zealand

The Strath-Taieri is a large glacial valley and river plateau, surrounded by rugged hill ranges located to the north and west of Otago Harbour. Since 1989 it has been part of the city of Dunedin...

 in New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, Strathfield, a suburb of Sydney, Australia, Strathewen, Victoria

Strathewen, Victoria

Strathewen is a locality situated near Kinglake National Park, from central Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, with a population of around 200. It is an apple and pear producing area and is home to small local vineyards and wineries.-History:...

, Australia, Strathmore, Alberta

Strathmore, Alberta

Strathmore is a town located along the Trans-Canada Highway in southern Alberta, Canada, east of the city of Calgary, within the boundaries of Wheatland County.- History :...

 and various places in Canada named Strathcona.

It also occurs in the names of four P&O

Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company

The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, which is usually known as P&O, is a British shipping and logistics company which dated from the early 19th century. Following its sale in March 2006 to Dubai Ports World for £3.9 billion, it became a subsidiary of DP World; however, the P&O...

 liners that brought thousands of migrants to Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 between the 1950s and the 1960s: the Strathhaird, the Strathnaver, the Stratheden and the Strathmore. The ships also acted as troop carriers during the Second World War.

The word is related to Old Welsh Ystrad, as in Ystrad Clud, the Old Welsh name for the Kingdom of Strathclyde

Kingdom of Strathclyde

Strathclyde , originally Brythonic Ystrad Clud, was one of the early medieval kingdoms of the celtic people called the Britons in the Hen Ogledd, the Brythonic-speaking parts of what is now southern Scotland and northern England. The kingdom developed during the post-Roman period...

.

In Keith

Keith, Moray

Keith is a small town in the Moray council area in north east Scotland. It has a population of around 4,500....

 there is a distillery producing the Strathisla

Strathisla Single Malt

Strathisla is the oldest continuously operating distillery in Scotland. It was founded as the Milltown Distillery by George Taylor in 1789 as an alternative to the waning of flax dressing industry. He leased the land from the Earl of Seafield....

 whisky. It is a single malt whisky that is also an ingredient to the blend Chivas Regal

Chivas Regal

Chivas Regal is a blended Scotch whisky produced by Chivas Brothers, owned by Pernod Ricard. According to the brand packaging, Chivas Brothers was first established in 1801 in Aberdeen, Scotland. The Chivas brand's home is Strathisla Distillery at Keith, Moray in Speyside, Scotland.It is the...

.