Saints in Scottish Place-Names
Funded by a Leverhulme Trust Project Grant
St Bridget's Church, Dunnotter
Grid reference
NO 862 851 (accurate position)
Six-figure easting & northing
386200 785100
Latitude
56.95709949730602
Longitude
-2.226929670596768
Altitude (metres)
30
County
Kincardineshire
Nearby places
Fetteresso, parish (0.69 miles)
St Caran's Church, Fetteresso (0.69 miles)
St Kiaran's Well, Fetteresso (1.12 miles)
St Ninian's Den, Dunnottar (1.23 miles)
St Ninian's Well, Dunnottar (1.29 miles)
Object Classification
Antiquity
Ecclesiastical
Is linear feature?
No
Notes
The church is close to the Carron Water, which forms the parish boudary. An interesting speculation as to the origin of the dedication (unfortunately without any substantiation) in the late seventeenth or early eighteenth century: ‘The Parish of Dunotir, alias St Brigid the Tutelar Saint thereof, but denominate now from the most eminent thing in it, viz. the Castle of Dunotir. It is very probably that the family of the Keyths having gained their Honours at the Sands of Barry, which was at that time in the Parish of Panbride, where St Brigid was worshipped, were obliged to an Annual Vow or Oblation, and to make a greater Compensation to that Saint, seeing they had no Dwelling contigue to Panbride, they erected this Church in their own territory to St Brigid, and gave the denomination to the same, as a Stone of an ells height four square, with the Keyths Scutcheon on the one side & + B. ARA on the other .... This stone being taken from the Altar, was erected in the said Church ....’ (Geog. Coll. iii, 231).
Relationships with other parishes
Within Dunnottar, parish
Names
1 head-name linked to this place ?St Bridget's Church
Head name
St Bridget's Church
Place
St Bridget's Church, Dunnotter
Certainty that this name applies to this place
Certain
The status of this name is
Obsolete
Is this a current OS form? ?
No
Is this the original referent of the place?
Yes
Is the association of this name to this object hypothetical?
No
St Bridget's Church 1843, OS 6 inch first edn.
Historic formSt Bridget's Church Head nameSt Bridget's Church PlaceSt Bridget's Church, Dunnotter Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceOS 6 inch first edn. Date of citation1843 x 1882 Notes on the context of this place-nameMid to late 19th c. |
Source code
OS 6 inch first edn.
Source title
Ordnance Survey 6 Inch to the Mile, First Edition
Notes
Mid to late 19th c.
Saints in this place-name
Brig, Brigit, Bride (ns) (certain)
Brigit ingen Dubthaig (of Kildare) (certain)