Gullane

Coordinates: 56°02′13″N 2°49′37″W / 56.037°N 2.827°W / 56.037; -2.827
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Gullane
  • Scottish Gaelic: Gualainn[1]
Gullane Village, looking along the A198
Gullane is located in East Lothian
Gullane
Gullane
Gullane is located in Scotland
Gullane
Gullane
Location within Scotland
Population2,810 (mid-2020 est.)[2]
OS grid referenceNT486830
Civil parish
Council area
Lieutenancy area
CountryScotland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townGullane
Postcode districtEH31
Dialling code01620 84****
PoliceScotland
FireScottish
AmbulanceScottish
UK Parliament
Scottish Parliament
List of places
UK
Scotland
56°02′13″N 2°49′37″W / 56.037°N 2.827°W / 56.037; -2.827
Gullane church window

Gullane (/ˈɡʌlən/ GUL-ən or /ˈɡɪlən/ GIL-ən) is a town on the southern shore of the Firth of Forth in East Lothian on the east coast of Scotland. There has been a church in the village since the ninth century. The ruins of the Old Church of St. Andrew built in the twelfth century can still be seen at the western entrance to the village; the church was abandoned after a series of sandstorms made it unusable, and Dirleton Parish Church took its place.

Gullane Beach

Gullane Bents, the village's award-winning

long-distance footpath along the coast between Musselburgh and Dunglass
.

The local population includes a higher than average percentage of elderly people, but also attracts young families and commuters for Edinburgh.

commuter village for nearby Edinburgh (22 miles (35 km) away), despite the poor transport to the village. Amenities include the village hall and a variety of shops. There is a primary school, and local children attend secondary school (5 miles (8 km)) away in North Berwick
.

Toponymy

The etymology of Gullane is uncertain. It may come from Scottish Gaelic word Gualainn[3] or A' Ghualainn. However, this could be unlikely, as East Lothian and surrounding regions were mostly outside of the Gaelic sphere of influence, even at the language's peak in the country around the 11th century. The region mostly spoke Old English, Middle English, or Early Scots, depending on the timeframe.

The village used to be known as Golyn. So the name could come from a Brythonic language (likely Cumbric) word lyn or linn (cognate with the Welsh word lyn/llyn, meaning lake.) This name may have come from a now drained piece of water that sat at or near the old parish church of St Andrews.[4]

The name Golyn may also come from the Middle English work gōl (meaning boundary or limit.) This could be because Golyn parish (the kirk being moved from Gullane to Dirleton in 1632 by an act of the Scottish Parliament) was one of the most northern parishes of Anglo-Saxon influence in Britain in early medieval times, as anything north of the Firth of Forth would have been under the control of the Picts or Gaels. It is unknown if the area was named Golyn before or after the Scottish annexation. The church that served the parish was built around 1170, after East Lothian had been annexed by the Kingdom of Scotland. But the people of the time may have still viewed themselves as being Anglo-Saxons, or English, rather than Scottish.

Buildings of interest

Sir Edwin Lutyens; the gardens were designed by Gertrude Jekyll
.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service formerly had their training school based at Gullane (which was relocated to new buildings in Cambuslang in 2013).

Gullane War Memorial was erected in 1914, reflecting both the immediate loss of life to the community, but also the emotional impact. Although not unique in having such an early memorial it is nonetheless unusual. Names were added as the war continued. The monument was designed by

Sir Robert Lorimer.[5]

Golf

Gullane is the home of

Ladies Scottish Open
in 2018.

Frank W Wood
painted a view of Gullane in 1933.

Abutting Gullane Number 3 course is the Luffness Golf Club course and a Children's Course.

Notable residents

See also

References

  1. ^ "Gaelic Place-Names of Scotland database". Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
  2. ^ "Mid-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland". National Records of Scotland. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  3. ^ Gaelic Placenames collected by Iain Mac an Tailleir (2003)
  4. ^ The New Statistical Account of Scotland - Vol. II: Linlithgow, Haddington Berwick. Edinburgh: William Blackwood & Sons. 1845. p. 203.
  5. ^ Dictionary of Scottish Architects: Robert Lorimer

External links