大象传媒

Bha mi ann an Srath Chonainn ann an Siorrachd Rois o chionn ghoirid. Tha an t-ainm Conainn inntinneach. Tha p脿irt de dh鈥橝bhainn Chonainn ann an Srath Bhr脿inn. Agus tha p脿irt dhith ann an Srath Chonainn.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Aig bonn an t-sratha tha an abhainn a鈥� sruthadh a-steach do Linne Chromb-aigh. Tha drochaidean tarsainn na h-aibhne an sin. Nuair a chaidh a鈥� chiad drochaid a thogail, chuir daoine 鈥淐onon Bridge鈥� air an 脿ite mar ainm. Tha baile an sin an-diugh.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Ach chan e 鈥淒rochaid Chonainn鈥� an t-ainm air ann an G脿idhlig. Canaidh sinn Drochaid Sguideil ris. Drochaid Sguideil.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Chan eil fios aig duine d猫 tha Sguideil a鈥� ciallachadh. Tha daoine a鈥� smaoineachadh gur e seann ainm Lochlannach a tha ann. Tha iad a鈥� smaoineachadh gur e skut-dalr an t-ainm a bha aig na seann Lochlannaich air Srath Chonainn. No rudeigin coltach ri sin.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Tha dalr a鈥� ciallachadh 鈥渄ail鈥� no 鈥済leann鈥�. 鈥橲 d貌cha gu bheil skut (ma tha e ceart) a鈥� tighinn bho fhacal a bha a鈥� ciallachadh n脿dar de bh脿ta no long. Bha na Lochlannaich a鈥� cleachdadh coilltean Rois. Bha iad a鈥� togail bh脿taichean leis an fhiodh. Cha robh fiodh mar sin ann an Arcaibh!

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Bha mi a鈥� coimhead air mapa a rinn an Seanalair Se貌ras Wade. Bha sin ann an seachd ceud deug is trithead (1730). Cha robh drochaid thar Abhainn Chonainn. Ach bha aiseag ann. 鈥橲 e an t-ainm a bha air, ann am Beurla, Ferry Sguigal. S-G-U-I-G-A-L. Sguigal, seach Sguideil.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Tha 貌rdugh nam faclan inntinn-each. Ann am Beurla 鈥檚 e Sguigal Ferry a bhiodh ann, chanainn. Leis gur e Ferry Sguigal a tha ann, tha mi a鈥� smaoin-eachadh gun t脿inig e bhon Gh脿idhlig Aiseag Sguigal no rudeigin coltach. Ach Sguigal? Chanainn fhathast gur e t霉s Lochlannach as coltaiche.

I was in Strathconon in Ross-shire recently. The name Conon is interesting. Part of the River Conon flows through Strathbran. And part of it is in Strathconon.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 At the bottom end of the strath the river flows into the Cromarty Firth. There are bridges across the river there. When the first bridge was built, people called the place 鈥淐onon Bridge鈥�. There is a town there today.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 But its name in Gaelic is not 鈥淒rochaid Chonainn鈥�. We call it Drochaid Sguideil. Drochaid Sguideil.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Nobody knows what Sguideil means. People are thinking it鈥檚 an old Norse name. They are thinking that the old Norse name for Strathconon was skut-dalr. Or something like that.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Dalr means 鈥渄ale鈥� or 鈥渧alley鈥�. Perhaps skut (if it鈥檚 correct) comes from a word that meant a type of boat or ship. The Norse were using the forests of Ross. They were building boats with the wood. There was no wood like that in Orkney!

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 I was looking at a map that General George Wade made. That was in 1730. There was no bridge across the River Conon. But there was a ferry. Its name in English was Ferry Sguigal. S-G-U-I-G-A-L. Sguigal, rather than Sguideil.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The word order is interesting. In English, it would be Sguigal Ferry, I鈥檇 say. Because it鈥檚 Ferry Sguigal, I think it came from the Gaelic Aiseag Sguigal or something similar. But Sguigal? I鈥檇 still say that a Norse origin is most likely..