“Blackbarony: what’s in a name?”: the etymology of place names in the Eddleston Valley
George Futers
Tuesday, 14th January 2020
Eastgate Theatre, Peebles, 7.30 p.m.
Peebles Professor John Veitch (1829-1894) (Glasgow University) once referred to the history of the Scottish Borders being painted in its place names. This is certainly true of the Eddleston Valley where the history of the valley is painted in the languages of its various inhabitants over the years.
From the early Celtic speaking locals to the later visitors from Scandinavia and Western Europe, the place names tell their own story. After the Celts, Vikings, Normans and Templars left their indelible marks on the locale, many of these names were reinterpreted by the later inhabitants.
The talk will conclude with a selection of anecdotes from the Parish.
George Futers moved to the Borders after leaving Kinlochleven in the Highlands in 1991, when he met his wife.
Having worked in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Servicing, he took employment at Barony Castle as a Maintenance Technician where he started researching the local history and compiling a book on the subject.
