17.4.16

Supplement to the Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language, C, D, E

Supplement to the  Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language
In Two Volumes.
Vol. I.
John Jamieson, D.D.
Edinburgh: Printed at the University Press;
for W. & C. Tait, 78, Prince's Street;
and Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, Brown, and Green, London.
MDCCCXXV (1825)
CASTING HOIS. "Ane pair of casting hois, Aberd. Reg. A. 1565, V. 26. Fr. castaign, chesnut-coloured?

CHAUVE, adj. A term denoting thet "colour in black cattle when white hair is pretty equally mixed with black hair." Surv. Nairn & Moray.
2. Also applied to "a swarthy person" when "pale." Ibid.
It is undoubtedly the same with Haw, Haave, q. v.

CLEW, s. A ball of thread. Winding the blue clue, one of the absurd and unhallowed rites used at Hallowmas, in order to obtain in sight into one's future matrimonial lot, S.
She thro' the yard the nearest taks, An' to the kiln she goes then, An' darklins grapit for the bauks, And in the blue-clue throws then, Right fear't that night. Burns, iii. 130.
"Steal out, all alone, to the kiln, and darkling, throw into the pat, a clue of blue yarn;  wind it in a new clue off the old one;  and, towards the latter end, something will hold the thread;  demand, Wha hands?  i. e. who holds;  and answer will be returned from the kiln-pot, by naming the christian [name] and sirname of your future spouse." N. ibid.
I am at a loss whether we should view this as having any connexion with the Rhombus, a kind of wheel formed by the ancients under the favourable aspect of Venus, and supposed to have a great tendency to procure love. This is mentioned by Theocritus in his Pharmaceutria. V. El. Sched. de Dis German, p. 159. It was an instrument of enchantment, anciently used by witches. While they whirled it round, it was believed that by means of it they could pull the moon out of heaven. V. Pitisci Lex. vo. Rhombus.
Creech thus translates the passage in Theocritus.
And, Venus, as I whirl this brazen bowl, Before my doors let perjur'd Delphid rowl.— Hark, Thestilis, our dogs begin to howl, The goddess comes, go beat the brazen bowl. Idylliums, p. 13
Bowl, however, does nol properly express the meaning of Gr. [...]

COLOUR-DE-ROY, s. "Ane gown of colourde-roy;" Aberd. Reg. A. 1543, V. 18S.
Fr. couleur de Roy, "in old time, purple; now the bright tawny;" Cotgr.

COLUMBE, adj. A kind of violet colour.
"Ane rest of columbe taffeteis contenin nyne ellis." Inventories, A. 1561, p. 159.
Fr. colombin, "dove-colour; or the stuffe whereof 'tis made;" Cotgr. Espece de coleur qui est de violet lavé, du gris de lin entre le rouge et le violet. Color violae dilutior. Dict. Trev.

CORCOLET, s. A purple dye, made from Lichen tartareus, Shetl.
As this is the same lichen with that called corcur, the name seems corr. from this.

CORKES, s. The ancient name for the Lichen omphalodes, now in S. called Cudbear, q. v.
Its name in E. is cork, Lightfoot, p. 818;  and it is singular that both this and our old designation should evidently indicate the same origin;  Gael, corcar being the name of Lichen tartareus, ibid. p. 812. Shaw gives corcuir as signifying, "purple, a red dye."

CORKIR, s. The Lechanora tartarea of the Highlands and Isles.
"The stones on which the scurf call'd Corkir grows, are to be had in many places on the coast, and in the hills. This scurf dyes a pretty crimson colour.— There are many white scurfs on stones somewhat like these on which the Corkir grows;  but the Corkir is white, and thinner than any other that resembles it." Martin's W. Id. p. 135. V. Corkes.

CRAMMASY, adj. Of or belonging to crimson; ingrained.
"Item ane gowne of crammasy satyne heich nekkit with ane small vane of crammasy velvot lynit all through with crammasy velvot without hornis." Inventories, A. 1539, p. 33.
It appears that the term was not restricted to the colour of crimson, but applied to any dark colour, of this tinge, which was ingrained. This corresponds with the use of Fr. cramoisie, in our own time. Les couleurs qui ne sont pas cramoisies sont appelleés couleurs communes; & les couleurs cramoisies sont celles qui se font avec la cochenille. Ainsi on dit, de l'ecarlate cramoisie, du violet cramoisi." Diet. Trev. V. Sad.

CROTAL, Crottle, s. An ancient name in S. for Lichen omphalodes, now called Cudbear. Lightf. p. 818. Gael, crotal, and crotan; Shaw.
"Parmelia omphalodes is much used by the Scottish Highlanders, under the name of crotal, for dyeing  a reddish-brown. In the north and west of Scotland these lichens are sometimes promiscuously called crottles." Edin. Encycl. xii. vo. Lichen, p. 739.
Perhaps we ought to trace Crotal to C.B. crot-iauw, to grow or cover over, or crawd, what grows over, a coat, or surface, from craw a covering.

CUDBEAR, s. R. The Lichen tartareus, Linn. Add;
"It is a species of moss named cud bear or cup moss, of spontaneous growth, and, so far as has yet
been ascertained, not admitting of any kind of cultivation. — Mr. Cuthbert Gordon — published in the Scots Magazine for Sept. 1776, certificates by several eminent dyers,—that they—found it answer their purpose well, for dyeing linen, cotton, silk," &c. Surv. Banffs. p. 60.
"At Glasgow it is called cud bear — a denomination which it has acquired from a corrupt pronunciation of the Christian name of the chemist who first employed it on the great scale (Dr. Cuthbert Gordon); at least it is the principal species used in the cudbear manufacture." Edin. Encycl. xii. 739.

CUTTY-BROWN, s. Apparently a designation for a brown horse that is crop-eared, or perhaps docked in the tail.
I scoured awa to Edinborow-town, And my cutty-brown together. Herd's Coll. ii. 220.

CYPRUS CAT, a cat of three colours, as of black, brown, and white, S. Tortoise-shell cat, E.


DACKLIE, adj. 1. Of a swarthy complexion, Ayrs.
2. Pale, having a sickly appearance, ibid.
Isl. dauck-r, doeck-r, obscurus. It is conjoined with many other words;  as, daukkblar, nigro-coeruleus, dark-blue;  daukkraud-r, nigro-ruber, dark-red, &c.

DIN, adv. Dun, of a tawny colour, S.
"If it be snails and puddocks they eat, I canna but say he is like his meat; as din as a docken, an' as dry as a Fintrum speldin." Saxon and Gael, i. 107.
C.B. dy, Armor, diu, Ir. dunn, id.
The Scottish language often changes u into i; as bill for bull, pit for put (Lat. ponere), nit for nut, &c.

DOZE-BROWN, adj. Denoting a snuff colour, or that of the fox, Fife.
Did not this suggest the idea of a light brown—we might suppose Doze to be softened in pron. from Dosk, dark-coloured.

DRAWARIS of CLAITHE.
—"It is statute—anentis drawaris of claithe &c. litstaris of fals colouris, that—gif ony drawaris of claithe beis apprehendit, that ane half of the saidis gudis to be our souerane lordis eschete, & the tother half to the burghe." Acts Ja. V. 1540, Edit. 1814, p. 376. Drawin claith.
"Gif the said seilar [sealer] beis fund culpable seland unsufficient colour or drawin claith, he to tyne his fredome, and tobe punist in his persoune and gudis." Ibid.
This seems to respect undue methods used for lengthening cloth, so as to make the measurement more than it ought to be. The E. v. to draw signifies, in a general sense, to lengthen. The same act mentions other illegal practices, which have been apparently used for thickening cloth, so as to make it appear of a better texture than it really possessed.
"Siclik of thame outwith burghe dingand calk, cresche, or flaland claithe." In Edit. 1566, fol. 139, b. it is, "flaland or cardand claith;" in Skene's flailland. This seems to signify, applying cards to it, or beating it with aflail, or some similar instrument, for the purpose of thickening it. Perhaps dinging " calk or cresche" means, driving chalk or grease into the web with the same design.

DULLYEART, adj. Of a dirty dull colour, Upp. Clydes.;  from Dull and Art, Ard, q. v.

DYED I' THE WOO', i. e. wool;  a proverbial phrase signifying, naturally clever, Kinross.

DYSTER, s. A dyer, S.;  synon. Litster.


EENBRIGHT, adj. Shining, luminous.
—"The brown bristly skin on the outside of it was morning all standing dew." Perils of Man, ii. 190.
This is an erratum for ee-bright. But even this has no authority.

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