The Your Scottish Archives Glossary defines archaic words and phrases, mostly Scots law terminology, commonly found in documents and records in Scotland’s archives. If you think a word or phrase should be added to the glossary, or an existing entry could be defined better, please contact us at your@scottisharchives.org.uk.
You can also use the Dictionary of the Scots Language as a further resource at https://dsl.ac.uk/ for Scots words and phrases (including legal terminology).
To find a term within the glossary, click on the initial letter of the word you are looking for, then select the relevant syllable segment displayed below.
Example: to find the term “roup” select section “R” then sub-section “Ro”
a magistrate in a burgh; but ‘baillies in that pairt’ (part) are representatives appointed to carry out a specific function, usually the giving of sasine. People appointed thus by the Crown are ‘sheriffs in that pairt’. The term can also be used to indicate a farm servant, for example a ‘cow bailie’ was a stockman looking after cattle.
children’s legal share of their parent’s moveable property on death; also called the legitim. It is one-third of the moveable property when the other parent survives, and one-half when both are deceased.