Saints in Scottish Place-Names
Funded by a Leverhulme Trust Project Grant
Church of St Nicholas, Aberdeen
Grid reference
NJ 940 062 (accurate position)
Six-figure easting & northing
394000 806200
Latitude
57.14683324861408
Longitude
-2.099169392977513
County
Aberdeenshire
Nearby places
Aberdeen City, aka St Nicholas, parish (0 miles)
St Thomas's Hospital, Aberdeen (0.06 miles)
St Catharine's Hill, Aberdeen (0.12 miles)
St Catherine's Chapel, Aberdeen (0.12 miles)
Ladycroft, settlement Aberdeen (0.31 miles)
Object Classification
Antiquity
Ecclesiastical
Is linear feature?
No
Notes
According to NMRS (Canmore ID 20164), this was originally a twelfth-century cruciform church, some parts of which remain. The dedication of the crypt to St Mary is reflected in James Gordon's account of Aberdeen, circa 1647, in which he records that St Nicholas' Kirk is divided into three 'temples' [foci of worship], of which one is a crypt (fornix) dedicated to [Our] Lady of Pity (Dominae Misericordiae) (Geog. Coll. ii, 479). He add that 'in the time of Papacy, there were in these three 'templis' thirty altars in honour of different saints, as is the custom in papistry, each with its own revenues. To run through their names, of which there survives today hardly a trace, would be offensive to many, and tedious to most' (ibid., 480).
Relationships with other parishes
Within Aberdeen City, aka St Nicholas, parish (formerly)
Names
1 head-name linked to this place ?Church of St Nicholas
Head name
Church of St Nicholas
Place
Church of St Nicholas, Aberdeen
Certainty that this name applies to this place
Certain
The status of this name is
Current
Is this a current OS form? ?
Yes
Is this the original referent of the place?
Yes
Is the association of this name to this object hypothetical?
No
Ecclesia Sancti Nicholai 1243, Lind. Cart.
Historic formEcclesia Sancti Nicholai Head nameChurch of St Nicholas PlaceChurch of St Nicholas, Aberdeen Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceLind. Cart., no. 83 Date of citation1243 x 1243 |
Source code
Lind. Cart.
Source title
Chartulary of the Abbey of Lindores Scottish History Society
Year
1903
ecclesia Sancti Nycholai 1324, Arb. Lib.
Historic formecclesia Sancti Nycholai Head nameChurch of St Nicholas PlaceChurch of St Nicholas, Aberdeen Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceArb. Lib., i no. 355 Date of citation1324 x 1324 |
Source code
Arb. Lib.
Source title
Liber S. Thome de Aberbrothoc
Series
Bannatyne Club
Volume
1 & 2
Year
1848-56
ecclesia Beati Nicolaij 1407, Spalding Misc.
Historic formecclesia Beati Nicolaij Head nameChurch of St Nicholas PlaceChurch of St Nicholas, Aberdeen Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceSpalding Misc., v, 19 Date of citation1407 x 1407 Feature named in sourcechurch |
Source code
Spalding Misc.
Source title
Miscellany of the Spalding Club.
Year
1841-52
kirk of Sanct Nicolace 1483, Spalding Misc.
Historic formkirk of Sanct Nicolace Head nameChurch of St Nicholas PlaceChurch of St Nicholas, Aberdeen Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceSpalding Misc., v, 27 Date of citation1483 x 1483 |
Source code
Spalding Misc.
Source title
Miscellany of the Spalding Club.
Year
1841-52
Ecclesie parochiallis Beati Nicholaii 1512, RMS
Historic formEcclesie parochiallis Beati Nicholaii Head nameChurch of St Nicholas PlaceChurch of St Nicholas, Aberdeen Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceRMS, ii no. 3681 Date of citation1512 x 1512 Feature named in sourcechurch Notes on the context of this place-nameReprinted 1984 |
Source code
RMS
Source title
Registrum Magni Sigilli (Register of the Great Seal)
Editors
J.M.Thomson et al.
Volume
1-11
Year
1882-1914
Notes
Reprinted 1984
St Nicolas Paroche Kirk 1631, Aberdeen Burgh Chrs.
Historic formSt Nicolas Paroche Kirk Head nameChurch of St Nicholas PlaceChurch of St Nicholas, Aberdeen Certainty that this name applies to this placeCertain SourceAberdeen Burgh Chrs., p. 378 Date of citation1631 x 1631 Feature named in sourcechurch Notes on the context of this place-namePrinted by Order of the Lord Provost, Magistrats and Town Council |
Source code
Aberdeen Burgh Chrs.
Author
Peter John Anderson
Source title
Charters and other Writs illustrating the History of the Royal Burgh of Aberdeen,MCLXI-MDCCCIV
Year
1890
Notes
Printed by Order of the Lord Provost, Magistrats and Town Council
Saints in this place-name
Nicholas (ns) (certain)
Nicholas, bishop of Myra (certain)
Place-name data
The place-name data featured in this resource is copyright of the University of Glasgow.
Map Layers
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Satellite map:
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Satellite map with labels:
Base map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, CC-BY-SA, Imagery © Mapbox
Modern OS map:
Ordnance Survey OpenData. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right (2010)
OS 1840-1880 map:
National Library of Scotland Historic Maps
OS 1920-1933 map:
National Library of Scotland Historic Maps
