MY HOMETOWN

[Kiya]

Thought you would like to see a video of my hometown I found on YouTube , a lot of the photos are from down my way.

[Horus]

Very nice Kiya, lots of places I recognise from some of your piccies, but where is the famous bench?
I notice how they snook in a quick version of Flower of Scotland into the video "And stood against him, proud Edwards army and sent him hameward, ta think agen" tra la. Any hoo, lang may yer lumb reek!

[Kiya]

The photo you see in video " The Gadle Braes " just misses my bench by a few feet.

And lang may yer lumb reek ina........ta muckle

[Horus]

ina........ta muckle

Yer welcome lassie

[LovelyLadyLux]

I tried to look at your UTube Video Kiya and it isn't available in my country!

[Horus]

Does this play for you as an embedded link?
[youtube][/youtube]

[Kiya]

ina........ta muckle

Yer welcome lassie

Up in my corner we don't use the word " lassie " that is used further south in & around Glasgow area.

In Peterhead & round about we use " quine " in friendly terms for female & for male...."loon"

Quine pronounced as " dine " with a Q

[Horus]

To much association on my part Kiya with those ruffians from the Kingdom of Fife

[Grandad]

Thanks for that Kiya and, as Horus has said, so nice to see many places that you have shown us in your own photos. If it was always SO sunny up there as in the pictures I might consider moving.......but

Does "Gadle Braes" have some meaning????

I just cannot start to join in with these language lessons.....just come back from trying to learn a little Croatian for the last week....... and before you ask, I will tell you about it when I have sorted some pictures, don't hold your breath though, I have about 800 so it might take some time

[Kiya]

To much association on my part Kiya with those ruffians from the Kingdom of Fife

That answers it then

Grandad you can always come up for a weekend break or a week, there is the lovely caravan site at the lido facing the bay & marina.

Gadle Braes where I live is built on sloping braes as is all the side streets off it, as far as I'm aware " Gadle " is after a Captain Gadle perhaps from the whaling times..........not too sure I'll have to ask around

Look forward to seeing your photos

[Horus]

I was waiting until after you had posted your answer Kiya, my own research also indicates it is a surname rather than an object of some kind, so your whaling captain may be correct. It is a name that appears in several other languages and it may have a connection to a type of boat (but that is just speculation on my part). The name itself does not seem to have an origin or meaning as you would find with say Smith, Fletcher, Cooper etc.

Your Scottish braes are of course our hills, or a steep slope as in:

Ye banks and braes o' bonnie Doon,
How can ye bloom sae fresh and fair?
How can ye chant ye little birds,
And I sae weary, fu' o' care?

Ye'll break my heart, ye warbling birds,
That wanton through the flow'ry thorn,
Ye 'mind me o' departed joys,
Departed never to return.

Oft hae I rov'd by bonnie Doon,
To see the rose and woodbine twine;
And ilka bird sang o' its love,
And fondly sae did I o' mine.

Wi' lightsome heart I pu'd a rose,
Fu' sweet upon its thorny tree;
And my fause lover stole my rose,
But ah! he left the thorn wi' me.

The last verse probably a reference to Robbie Burns getting her pregnant and then legging it. You know what they say Kiya, if Robbie Burns had owned a bicycle we would all be related.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Nope - can't open the link H, it also "is not available in my country." I'll try again end of the month when I'm up in Canada. Might get it there. Who knows why it is blocked here......must be all those top secret government messages that out Kiya sends out.

[Kiya]

Mmmm never heard of Gadle being any connection to a boat either, later I remembered reading somewhere of a Captain Geddel, I can only think of the whaling ships & the surname has change slightly over the years.

My street is pre WW2 built & being a busy whaling/fishing port in past years & many streets named after Captains I'm guessing that where the name comes.

[Horus]

I seem to recall reading a very old maritime report that mentioned a ‘gadle’ as part of the protection for a fleet of ships, so I assumed it may have been a type of ship, but I am only guessing.

[Kiya]

Recently an old friend from primary school found me on FB, he sent me this old map of Peterhead, I'm not sure what year the map was printed but, as you see at top " THE GADLE " written on top of the rocks, as far as I understand it is another name for a "group of rocks " or " rocky coastline " & as I said before it is all braes down my way infact the whole town is built on a steep brae.

When you look at the map " Great North of Scotland Railway " the 6 - 8ft high granite wall that the railway ran along is still there today at the bottom of our gardens, just a shame they knocked down the station it would make commuting to the city of Aberdeen much easier.

[Horus]

That's very interesting Kiya, so 'Gadle' in your local street name is obviously a reference to those rocks I would think.

[Kiya]

Yes I think so Horus, if you look at map bottom right hand corner the name " Roanheads " this is an area close to the harbour & there is also a street with this name, I think Roan has something to do with rocks also, I have heard of boats going on the " roan " but I may be wrong.

[Horus]

Now I can help you there Kiya, the word Roan actually means a Brownish - red, so maybe they were called "the red rocks"

[Kiya]

It could well be, it is all pinkish/redish granite around here, most of the town is built with granite from the local quarries.

Did you notice in middle of map " Poorhouse " I've heard of the poor houses but never seen it on a map before.