Glossary of Gaelic, Scots, and Medieval Terms
Acha ‘n dà thearnaidh [Gaelic] MacMhathain war cry ‘The Field of the Two Declivities’
Birlinn [Gaelic] A type of small galley, similar to a Viking longship.
Bogle [Scots] a ghost or folkloric being.
Chevalerie [Old French] Horsemanship.
Crabbit auld schow [Scots] grumpy old sow.
Crann Tára [Gaelic] The fiery cross.
Crotals [Medieval English] Harness bells.
Cumberworld [Medieval English] idiot.
Destrier A highly trained war horse.
Dwale [Medieval English] An alcohol-based sedative that contained opium, hemlock, and vinegar.
Fiadh-chat [Gaelic] Wild cat.
A Scottish wild cat. Similar to but not a domestic breed. They are currently highly endangered due to cross breeding (Source: Peter Trimming)
Funder . . . dadding wyndis [Scots] be blown over.
Glowren [Scots] staring.
Gowkit-cled [Scots] Foolishly clothed.
Gravour [Medieval English] A long, thin instrument used to separate hair.
Gris [Medieval English] The grey-white part of squirrel fur. At its best when taken in winter.
Léine [Gaelic] A type of long linen or woollen tunic worn in the Highlands and Ireland. Typically shorter on men and longer on women.
Leuchd-crios [Gaelic] Bodyguards, equivalent to English knights.
Lucet A small, double-pronged tool used for making cord.
Lude Smitten [Scots] Lovestruck.
Màthair [Gaelic] Mother.
Mo Charaid, sgiath gu h-ard os cion na h-eileinan fhraochadh [Gaelic] My friend, fly high over the heathery isles.
Mo ciann [Gaelic] My chief – honorific for a clan chief/chieftain.
Mummer/Mummery [Medieval English] An actor/a play.
Nochtthenes [Scots] worthless/wickedness.
Palfrey A general riding horse with smooth paces.
Pell A training dummy.
Plaid A woven wool blanket.
Queynte [Medieval English] Female genitalia.
Quoits A ring-toss game.
Ranten Drukkin [Scots] Ranting/raving drunk.
Ryfftys off wynd an snorand [Scots] burping, farting and snoring.
Rouncey A horse used for both battle and general riding.
Some very well behaved palfreys (Source: Public Domain)
Sair heid [Scots] sore head.
Skaithit [Scots] Physically hurt
Scold A scold was a woman charged with being a public nuisance.
’S e’ Galla Bhruis a th’annad! [Gaelic] literal: ‘It’s the bitch of the Bruce in you’, meaning ‘You’re Bruce’s bitch’.
Sencliathe [Gaelic] Men who join the clan via bonds of manrent, marriage, or having ‘broken’ from other clans.
Sennachie [Gaelic] A clan’s historian and storyteller.
Slàinte mhath [Gaelic] A toast meaning ‘good health’.
Slat [Gaelic] Penis. Slat beag fleoidhte, a small, flaccid penis.
Sluagh Math [Gaelic] the ‘good folk’, fairies or demons.
Spunkie [Scots] A coastal will-o’-the-wisp.
Sumph [Scots] Fool/idiot.
Sumpter Pack horse/mule.
Tacksman [Scots] A renter of land, who sublets to others.
Tanist [Gaelic] Heir to the role of Clan Chief.
Tippets Detachable streamers of cloth and fur. The longer they fell, the higher the status.
Toom Tabard Derogatory name for the exiled John Balliol, King of Scots (1292-1296).
Tyke [Scots] A mongrel dog; or derisively implies lineage.
Uisge beatha [Gaelic] Whisky.
Win aff . . . heich naig [Scots] Get off your high horse.
Tippets, these appear to be made from fur (Source: Public Domain)