May Williamson: The Non-Celtic Place-Names of the Scottish Border ...

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Butterdalls, Blaeu. Probably ON búðar dalr, “dairy farms valley”, but perhaps OE butere
dæl, “valley where butter is made”. Dale has been made plural at a later date.
HURKLEDALE (Cum): (89, 1 G):
Hurderdale, 1304 CDS; Hurkildale (P), 1573 HMC (Jhn); -dall, Blaeu. Sc dialect hurkle, “to
crouch, cower”, which can mean “to wrinkle into folds” (Jam, s.v.) may be the first element.
The low hills beside which Hurkledale is situated may have suggested the idea of
“crumpled”. The first spelling however presents a difficulty, for -der- cannot be a misspelling
of -kil-.
MEIKLEDALE BURN (Ew):
Mikkildale, 1426 RMS; Mekildaill, 1532 ib. ON mikill dalr, “large valley”. /297/ The valleys
of most of the main rivers are known as dales. In each case this element is suffixed to the
stream-name, but in certain examples a genitival ending has been interposed, as in Nithsdale,
Liddesdale. In some instances, this dale must be derived from OE dæl, as the same
construction is to be found in NE England in Coquetdale, Glendale, Redesdale. Mawer
believes this usage to be “almost certainly, if not entirely due to Scandinavian influence” (PN
NbDu, 227).
ANNANDALE:
Anandredalle, c 1360 Scal; Anandyrdale (P), c 1375 (c 1490) Brus; Annandredale, 1381 JG;
Anandirdale, 1414 Cold; 1493 HMC (Drml); Anander-, 1501 RSS; 1504 ib; 1572-3 HMC
(Drml); Annandir-, 1508-9 ib; Annander-, 1510 RMS. Annandale was a praefectura or
sheriffdom, and as such was generally known as Strath Annan, or the Valley of the Annan:
Estrahanent, 1124 ESC; vallum de Anant, 1147-53 ib, etc. The spellings above denote
“nundr’s valley”, ON nundar-dalr: cf Ennerdale Cu (DEPN, 160). The original Celtic
river-name must have been identified by the Norsemen with a Scandinavian personal name. It
is strange that these forms do not appear until the 14 th Century. It may be that at that time the
name /298/ became confused with Ennerdale.
DRYFESDALE:
Driuesdale, c 1124 Glas; 1189 CDS; Drivis-, 1249 ib; 1452 HMC (Drml); Driffisdaill, 1501
ib; Drysdale (P), 1541 ib; Drisdaill, 1552-3 CSP. ON Drífsdalr, from a personal name Drífr
(Lind, 203). The river-name must be a back-formation from this. Dryfe is also recorded
independently as a place-name: in 1372 the lands of Over Driff are mentioned in HMC (Jhn).
Dryf, 1572 HMC (Drml), is a place or district, probably in the vicinity of the present Dryfe
Lodge (H & C). The Scots surname Drysdale comes from the 16 th Century spellings of
Dryfesdale.
NITHSDALE:
Nyddisdaill, c 1400 (c 1500) Wyntoun (w); Nithisdale, 1408 HMC (Jhn); Nethis-, 1440-1
RMS; 1553 HMC (Drml); Nid(d)is- 1544-5 ib; Blaeu. Compare Redesdale, Nb, for a Celtic
river-name with a genitival ending before -dale. Clydesdale is of the same type: Cliddisdaile,
c 1400 (1475-1500) Wyntoun (C); Clyddysdaill, c 1485 Wallace.
EWESDALE may also belong to this group: Ewytesdale, 1296 CDS; Ewithes-, 1333-6 ib;
Ewis- 1485 (16 th ) APS; Housdaill, c 1485 Wallace; Ews-, /299/ 1552-3 CSP. The first
element is obscure.
ESKDALE: