Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1956 (SND Vol. IV).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1871-1913
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†GIG BOAT, n.comb. The name given to the horse-drawn passenger barge on the Aberdeenshire canal c.1840.Abd. 1871 W. Alexander Johnny Gibb xxvii.:
As the newspapers had just announced, the Aberdeenshire canal was “again open for navigation”, . . . and Mains was decidedly favourable to going by the “swift gig boat” as the cheapest means of conveyance.Abd. 1913 Abd. Free Press (1 July) 4:
The traffic on the Canal was conducted by two iron gig boats carrying passengers, . . . drawn by horse.
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"Gig Boat n. comb.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 9 Feb 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/gig_boat>
