The History of Glasgow

Chapter V - Early Place Names

JOCELINE says that on Kentigern's first arrival he came

as far as Cathures, which is "now called Glasgu." Thus
far the time when the latter name came into use is not
indicated, but as we are told that, on his election as
bishop, Kentigern established his cathedral seat in a town
called Glasgu, and that, following upon the death of two
of his enemies, King Morken and his wicked follower
Cathen, he "for many days enjoyed great peace and
quiet, living in his own city of Glasgu," it may be assumed
that, so far as the narrator knew, the two designations
were used contemporaneously. There has been much
discussion on the interpretation of these names.
"Cathures," it has been supposed, indicated the Fort or
encampment of the chief who held sway in the district.
With regard to "Glasgu" there have been various
conjectures. In one of the MSS. of Joceline's Life of St.
Kentigern it is said that his first church was erected in the
town called "Deschu," but, in the biographer's time, called
"Glaschu." The initial letter "d" in the first name is now
generally regarded as a misreading of "cl " (these letters
in old writing being often indistinguishable), so that, with
this correction, we are told that the town was at one time
called Cleschu and afterwards Glaschu. [St. Kentigern,
pp. 51, 55, 72 ; Rottenrow, pp. 36, 42.]

Ancient place names are very often derived from the

distinguishing physical feature of the locality, and from the
interpretations given in the footnote * a reasonable and
fairly convincing theory is established for the city, as it
existed in Joceline's time, being called Glaschu, a name
which by easy transition has now become Glasgow. The
qualities indicated by these interpretations fit the site of
the cathedral and adjoining ground in a sufficiently
general way; and it is not unlikely that this corner of the
future city alone bore the name before it acquired a `eider
application. "Glasgow" was the earliest name of the
stream now usually called St. Enoch's Burn. This burn,
rising near the cathedral, flowed westward, and after
receiving some small tributaries, joined the Clyde close
by the chapel dedicated to St. Tenew, the mother- of St.
Kentigern. Between the burn and the precincts of the
cathedral there was from early times a piece of land
called Glasgowfield, a name which still occurs in title
deeds. This locality, chosen as the site of the primitive
church or cells and the dwellings of St. Kentigern and his
evangelistic and colonizing community, might be
supposed to have grown in importance as the rath by
comparison diminished, till the name Cleschu or Glaschu
would gradually supersede Cathures, if indeed the latter
designation was ever applied

[* In his Old Glasgow, pp. 29-31. Dr. Macgeorge gives

several variations of the name in early writings and on
seals. Discarding the interpretation "grey smith," given by
some local historians, and also the suggestion "dais," a
ravine or hollow, and "dhu," dark, he arrives at the
conclusion that the name means the beloved green place
—from the British branch of the Celtic language " glas,"
viridis, and "cu" or "gu" carus; and, he adds, "it probably
took its origin from the spot where Kentigern and
Columba met, and where the first church was erected."

In a paper read to the Glasgow Archaeological Society on

18th January, 1883, Dr. William George Black has
gathered the opinions of various eminent authorities, and
there is general concurrence in holding that the first
syllable means green or grey, the translucent colour of
still water. The puzzle lies in the second syllable. One
suggestion was that it might be a phonetic rendering of
the Gaelic achadh, a field; and Glasachadh would thus
mean a green field. Among suggestions reaching Dr.
Black through the public press, were glas, blue, gwy,
water; and glas, green, cal, a field. (Glasg. Arch. Soc. ist
series, ii. pp. 219-28.)]

to anything but the ancient fort and its surrounding

structures.

[In his Medieval Glasgow (pp. 7-12) Dr. James Primrose

adopts Joceline's interpretation of Cleschu—the dear
family—as applicable either to the people or the church,
and after full discussion, comes to the conclusion that the
name signifies the dear church, a term bestowed by St.
Mungo on his return from Wales to the scene of his
earlier labours. Keeping in mind, however, that place
names have usually a tenacious hold, even under the
most changeful circumstances, it is not easy to see how
the suggested alteration could be permanently effected.
The greater likelihood is that the district within which St.
Mungo planted his church retained its descriptive name, a
designation which has been continuously recognizable in
all its forms from Cleschu to Glasgow.]

As distinguished, apparently, from "Glaschu," another

place of residence is referred to on two occasions.
Through a flood the barns and grain of King Morken were
carried to "the place called Mellingdenor, where the saint
was at that time accustomed to dwell." St. Columba
meets Kentigern at "the place called Mellindenor, where
the saint abode at that time." [St. Kentigern, pp. 70, 106.]
Perhaps the name Glasgu was at first restricted to the
area adjoining the old encampment, and Mellingdenor,
where the monks dwelt, was situated nearer the banks of
the stream which has since then appropriated the name,
latterly transformed to Molendinar, from the erroneous
notion that it was so called on account of its supplying
water power to the several mills erected along its course.
The name of the burn appears as Malyndoner in 1463
[Reg. Episc. No. 389.] and 1542, and as Mollendinor in
1455. [Lib. Coll. pp. 24, 253 ("Malyndonar" in 1542).]
Joceline says that Kentigern used to bathe in the stream
and to dry his limbs on the brow of a hill called Gulath by
the water side, near his own home. Wester Craigs, on
which the Necropolis has been formed, is on the left bank
of the Molendinar, exactly opposite the cathedral, and so
far as situation is concerned is likely enough to have
been the hill referred to. Though Gulath means Dewhill,
[Macgeorge's Old Glasgow (1880), p. 150; St. Kentigern,
pp. 54, 344] the suggestion that it and Dowhill, ground
situated to the south of Wester Craigs, and sloping
towards Gallowgate, are identical, does not seem to be
based on sufficient authority. The name Dowhill occurs
frequently in sixteenth century title deeds, from 1501
onwards. Old Acts of Parliament contain many
regulations as to the erection and maintenance of
Dowcats or Dovecots, and if one of these was placed on
Dowhill the name is easily accounted for. Part of the Old
Green of Glasgow was called Doucat Green and Dove
and Dovecot enter into numerous place names
throughout Scotland.

Highways in Kentigern's time must have been better than

might be gathered from the narrative of his biographer,
who represents the bulls yoked to the funeral car as
miraculously travelling towards Cathures in a straight line
where there was no path. Now it is known that the road
from Stirling and St. Ninians, over the Campsie Fells, to
Glasgow, is a very ancient route, and there can be little
doubt that this or some parallel road was in use in Roman
times, if not long before The Roman road which ran from
"Coria" by Cleghorn, Carluke, Motherwell and Bellshill to
Tollcross and thence through Glasgow, along the old
Drygait, to Partick and the wall beside West Kilpatrick has
been already referred to. [Antea, p. 7.] A military way was
visible in Sibbald's time from Glasgow to Cadder, and
seems from thence, he says, "to have reached from
Cairpentollach, called now Kirkintillo." Continued still
further to the north, this would be the route which was
followed by St. Kentigern. [Rottenrow, pp. 37, 38;
Sibbald's Historical Inquiries (1707), P. 39.]

Most of the devices on the bishops' seals, the chapter

seals and the early seal of the municipality, represent
incidents of a miraculous or legendary nature narrated in
Joceline's work. [The theory has been propounded that
the emblems are not to be accounted for by the legends,
but rather that the legends arose from the presence of
relics and monuments of pre-Joceline times. (See Lecture
by Ludovick McL. Mann, reported (with illustrations) in
Evening Times, 1st April 1918.)]

One exception is the bell, though even here all the stories
regarding its history cannot be accepted. That the Pope,
as is asserted, gave Kentigern the bell while the latter
was in Rome, on the occasion of his seventh visit, is not
believed, nor is there any probability that Kentigern was
ever in that city. But the bell is known to have been in
existence in Glasgow from a very early period till so late
as the middle of the seventeenth century. Quadrangular
in shape and similar to those made in this country or in
Ireland up to but not much later than the ninth century, it
is just possible that the bell may have been given to
Kentigern at the time of his ordination by the bishop who
came from Ireland to perform that office. Such bells,
usually four or five inches in height and a little less in
breadth, were used at altar services and were also rung
through the streets by friars or clerics for the repose of
the souls of the departed. The printed records of Glasgow
contain several references to the ringing of St. Mungo's
bell through the town in services for the dead.

The salmon with the ring in its mouth represents the

recovery by St. Kentigern of the Queen of Cadzow's ring,
which she had furtively given to a knight from whose scrip
it was abstracted by the King and thrown into the river.
This put the Queen into a serious plight, and, having
sought Kentigern's assistance, the saint got one of his
people to take a salmon from the river, in the mouth of
which fish the ring was found. It was at once sent to the
Queen, thus enabling her to show it to the King and save
her life. The whole scene is represented on the counter
seal of Bishop Robert Wyschard, made about the year
1271.

The tree was at first only a twig or branch, and is so

shown on the oldest seal of the burgh, an impression of
which is affixed to a document granted in 1325. This
device commemorated the frozen bough which Kentigern
miraculously kindled into flame when the holy fire in the
refectory at Culross monastery had, during his sleep,
been maliciously extinguished by his envious
companions. The remaining device, that of the bird,
represents the robin redbreast, a favourite of St. Serf,
which had been accidentally killed but was miraculously
brought back to life by St. Kentigern.

[These devices or emblems, fuller particulars of which will

be found in Macgeorge's Old Glasgow (i88o), pp. 19-29,
are alluded to in this popular jingle:

"The tree that never grew

The fish that never swam
The bird that never flew
And the bell that never rang."]