A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1951 (DOST Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1375-1420, 1475-1627
[1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0]
Dale, Dail(l, n.1 [ME. dale, OE. dæl, pl. dalu, ON. dal-r.] A dale, a valley. Freq. in dale and doun.Early examples in place-names are Teviettedale (c 1100), Drivesdale (1116), Teuidall (c 1154), Tvededale (1159), Lawederdale (c 1200), etc.(a) 1375 Barb. xix. 317 (E).
The dale wes strekyt weill, … On athyr sid thair wes ane hicht c1420 Wynt. i. 1082.
Nest lyis the landys off Lydys hale, Tyatyra, be down and dale a1500 Henr. Fab. 1691.
The dalis deip with dubbis drownit is a1500 Golagros and Gawane 29.
He fand … Bot deip dales … , dovnis and dellis a1500 Ib. 126.
Thay drive on the da deir be dalis and doun c1515 Asloan MS I. 246/26.
Eftir this Rether … conquerit out of Ynglis mennis handis a dale, and callit it Retherisdale 1513 Doug. vii. Prol. 68.
The deyr full dern doun in the dalis drew 1533 Boece i. viii. 53 b.
Vtheris of Pichtis blude … held the dale now callit Annandale 1535 Stewart 7193.
Quhill schawis schuik and trimlit all the eird, Dalis dynlit [etc.] 1596 Dalr. I. 12/3.
Our cuntrey men vses valayes to cal dales(b) c1420 Wynt. i. 1082 (C).
Be doun and dail c1475 Acts of Schir William Wallace viii. 1190.
Bathe fyrth, forrest, and daill 1513 Doug. iv. iv. 49.
The wild beistis doun to the dail thai dryve 1513 Ib. xii. Prol. 114.
Euery flour onlappit in the daill 1535 Stewart 4742.
Ouir doun and daill, ouir mony mos and mure 1549 Complaynte of Scotland 38.
The fresche deu, quhilk … hed maid dikis and dailis verray donc 1570 Satirical Poems x. 305.
Throw Ewisdaill, Esdaill and all the daills raid he 1570 Ib. xix. 29.
The sauage daillis he dantonit and maid thrall a1585 Maitland Quarto MS xlviii. 2.
Ȝe bankis of Helicon, Pernassus hillis & daillis ilkon 1587-99 Hume iii. 87.
The hils, and dails, and forest faira1627 Craig v. 34.
Throgh sheene shawes, & donk dailes
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Dale n.1". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 5 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/dale_n_1>
