{"id":1079,"date":"1875-12-28T20:21:00","date_gmt":"1875-12-28T20:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dorlach.scot\/?p=1079"},"modified":"2024-03-21T20:46:07","modified_gmt":"2024-03-21T20:46:07","slug":"daibhidh-surlan-how-david-macleod-was-named","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/daibhidh-surlan-how-david-macleod-was-named","title":{"rendered":"D\u00c0IBHIDH S\u00d9RLAN – How David MacLeod was Named"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Latha math dhuibh, a ch\u00e0rdan.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Time now to look at the short section of David MacLeod\u2019s diaries which deal with his namesake and uncle David Sutherland and also at how David himself came to be named after him. David is not an incredibly common name in the Scottish Highlands, but like Adam, seems to crop up often in Highland Caithness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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FULL TEXT WITH COMMENTARY (in brackets and italics)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

David Sutherland, my uncle \u2013 him after whom I have been named \u2013 was born in Leodibest, 15th<\/sup> February, 1816 (A time during which many a veteran of Waterloo would have recently returned home to the Latheron scene. I still have the medal belonging to the 2x g-grandfather of David\u2019s nephew-in-law, my own 4x g-grandfather Alasdair Gobha<\/strong> [Alexander Gow], \u00c0M)<\/em>.\u00a0 Went first to school \u2013 female conducted by \u2013 at the Rean[?] (I am unsure where this is, although from a brief internet search, there could be a place of similar name around Rogart, Sutherland, \u00c0M)<\/em>, then went to school near the old mill, Latheronwheel (Latharn a\u2019 Phuill<\/strong> [low-lying muddy place] I do not have a location for this school and would be much obliged if supplied with one, \u00c0M)<\/em>, then went to the Latheron School conducted by Mr Sinclair [below, left].\u00a0 Then kept school himself at John Barnie\u2019s, Upper Boultach (This sounds like Eathan B\u00e0rnaidh<\/strong> [a relative of both David and myself, \u00c0M] was running one of what were known as the \u201cparish schools\u201d \u2013 often operating out of people\u2019s homes. A member of the community would school those children who were able to attend in as many subjects as they could in exchange for whatever could be spared as a stipend, plus peats and comestibles. Crucially, in the Highlands, these schools often operated through the medium of the Gaelic language and while it is likely that English was taught from an early period in Caithness schools, Gaelic would have yet been well to the fore)<\/em>, then went three sessions to the Aberdeen University (at the time still King\u2019s College, Aberdeen)<\/em> at which he gained a bursary of \u00a316 in his second session.\u00a0 Was one year teaching the Rev. Cook\u2019s son (are we to assume this was the famous Archibald Cook Sutherland 1838-1910?)<\/em> in Reay\u2019s (is this Lord Reay?)<\/em> and one year teaching a son of Rev. Davidson\u2019s of Latheron [below] Church.\u00a0 He intended to study for the ministry.\u00a0 Died December 1842 (just before the Great Disruption of 1843 when the Free Church split from the Established, preventing him from having to \u201cpick sides\u201d)<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When I was born, some desired that I would be called afer my uncle and grandfather objected (David\u2019s grandfather \u00c0dhamh <\/strong>would no doubt have objected due to the tradition of a first son being named for his paternal grandfather, Seumas <\/strong>therefore being the correct appelation. He may even have been seeking the boy being named after himself of course!)<\/em>, but some old woman \u2013 no doubt a witch, or a good old worthie (\u201cworthie \/ worthy\u201d seems to be an English usage quite peculiar to Caithness, denoting a local character)<\/em> \u2013 threw her petticoat over me and named me Davie (Interesting that in a non-Scots-speaking area where the name \u201cDavie\u201d would not have been used, this spelling has probably been written so in order to give a nod to the Gaelic D\u00e0ibhidh <\/strong>which in pronunciation \/DAIY-vie\/ is much closer to the former name than the official form \u201cDavid\u201d from his birth certificate)<\/em>.\u00a0 That was enough; grandfather\u2019s opposition melted and I was duly sprinkled with water for my uncle. (The throwing of the petticoat over David would have been a protection against the advances of the Daoine Beaga<\/strong> [Wee Folk, Faeries] during the naming ceremony, showing that the old practices were well to the fore with the older generation during the mid 19th century)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2013<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fact that David refers to the old lady involved in naming him as \u201ca witch or a good old worthie\u201d is interesting. This suggests that he either did not know who the person was, or chose to retrospectively refer to her in this manner in an attempt to distance himself from anything that could be perceived as \u201cpagan\u201d. As the diaries go on, it will become obvious just how Abrahamic people were becoming in their beliefs. The story of the petticoat shows that the old ways, however under threat, lurked just below the surface. The chances are in fact that the anonymous \u201csome old woman\u201d would likely have been a relation, certainly a neighbour, and no doubt a lady of some knowledge when it came to plants, cures and Gaelic cosmology and spiritual tradition. I consider it a privilege even just to read of her existence and I take great pleasure in the fact that her presence was appreciated to the point of the practice of the petticoat-throwing being allowed to take place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Only recently, I had the honour of conducting a recording session with Latheron Parish tradition-bearer Diomag Dubh<\/strong> (James \u201cJimmag\u201d Black, 91, above) who regaled me with several fascinating stories about local witches whose abilities were considered very much to the fore even in the early years of his own lifetime. Below is one such story from Jimmag\u2019s precious treasury of lore:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo, evidently\u2026 There\u2019s some burn then and a tributary goes in till this burn.\u00a0 And it\u2019s a shepherd that came on her, supposedly.\u00a0 And she was sittin here where the burns met, that\u2019s the invers, where they come oot, they come all together.\u00a0 And there was a\u2026 the witch wifie was sittin there with a skellat and she was takin water wae the skellat oot a\u2019 the wan inver in till the next one or the next one and she was mutterin away \u201c[indistinct] and here\u2019s and yours and yours to mine\u201d and the shepherd came up on her back and he said \u201cyes \u2013 and yours to mine!\u201d and boy, the wifie gave a squall and away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, the shepherd went home and the wife went milkin and she coudna stop the milk; she\u2019d a bath full a\u2019 milk, an owld tin bath and goodness knows what and the milk was still comin oot the coo.\u00a0 So they were in a hell o a fix wae it, evidently.\u00a0 So, the shepherd had to go back where the confluence was and he said \u201cyes, I mind to ye\u201d and he went home and the coo was fine.\u00a0 So he\u2019d pittin the freet back.\u00a0 But I mean, it\u2019s a story; it couldn\u2019t possibly be true as far as I know!\u00a0 But does it no show ye?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the next blog<\/a>, we will look at David\u2019s early life before he took up his diary-writing at the age of 21. We\u2019ll learn about what he went through in order to acquire what education came his way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gach beannachd air an \u00e0m,<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00c0dhamh <\/strong>(\u00c0M)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Latha math dhuibh, a ch\u00e0rdan. Time now to look at the short section of David MacLeod\u2019s diaries which deal with his namesake and uncle David Sutherland and also at how David himself came to be named after him. David is not an incredibly common name in the Scottish Highlands, but like Adam, seems to crop […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1089,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","footnotes":""},"categories":[118],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-a-forgotten-gaeldom"],"blocksy_meta":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"gutentor_comment":4,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/PC_LATHERON_DIARIES_VOL1_004-5.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1079"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1157,"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1079\/revisions\/1157"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dalriada.scot\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}