A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1971 (DOST Vol. IV).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1375-1438
[1,1,1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
Merdale, Mardale, n. [OF. merdaille worthless rabble, f. merde n. (see Merd n.) with collective suffix: also e.m.E. merdaille (1687) rabbie, ‘scum’, and mod. north-eastern Sc. dial. mardle, mairdle, merdle, a crowd or swarm.] A collective term for: Camp followers, the rabble following an army. — 1375 Barb. ix. 249 (C).
Behynd thame set thai thar merdale [: battale; E. poweraill] a1400 Legends of the Saints xl. 921.
Quheine eschapit but merdale That for to tak ves nan awaile ?1438 Alex. ii. 9154.
The pepill he scalit and all to-frushit, For thay war pure small mardaie [: faill v.]
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Merdale n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 17 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/merdale>
