Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1713-1714, 1791-1795, 1863
[0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]
SISTER, n. Sc. usages in combs.: 1. Sister-bairn, the child of a parent's sister, hence a cousin on the mother's side (Cai. 1904 E.D.D.; Sh., Cai. 1970); 2. sister-part, under the Sh. udal system: a daughter's portion of her father's property which was only half that of her brother or brothers, hence proverbially = less than one's right, little or nothing for one's share (Sh. 1866 Edm. Gl., 1914 Angus Gl.); 3. sister('s) son, a nephew, the son of one's sister (I.Sc. 1970).2. Sh. 1795 Stat. Acc.1 VII. 584:
As these udallers divided their Lands among all their children (the son got two merks, and the daughter one; hence the sister part, a common proverb in Shetland to this day), the possessions soon become trifling.3. Sc. a.1714 Earls Crm. (Fraser 1876) II. 490:
Monro of Foulls, sister sone to this Johne.Sc. c.1791 Sir Andrew Barton in Child Ballads No. 167 B. xlvi.:
Sir Andrew calld his nephew then; says, Sisters son I hi nè mae.Ork. 1863 St Andrews Gazette (16 May):
Peter Knight, son of the late Magnus Knight, and a sister's son of the former.
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Sister n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 4 Apr 2026 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/sister>
