Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1941 (SND Vol. II). Includes material from the 1976 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1824, 1880-1920
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BULWAND, BULWINT, BUILWAN, BULL-WAND, BULLIWAN, n. [′bʌlwənd, -wɪnt, ′bølwən, ′bʌlɪ̢wɑn]
1. "The mugwort, Artemisia vulgaris" (Sh. 1866 Edm. Gl.; 1914 Angus Gl.; Ork. 1808 Jam.; 1929 Marw.); the stalk of this plant (Cai.3 1931).Ork.1 1920:
The gairden wes a' full o bulwints.
2. "The ragwort, Senecio Jacobæa" (Rxb. 1923 Watson W.-B., bull-wand).
3. "A bulrush, Typha latifolia" (Sh. 1866 Edm. Gl.).Sh. 1912 G. Goudie in Old-Lore Misc., Ork., Sh., etc. V. i. 16:
A man came one night to the burn of Hogrow . . . in Kunningsburgh, and observed a number of Trows cutting bulwands.Dmf. 1824 W. McVitie Tales II. 62:
A bullwand, a kind of coarse hollow reed that grows in shady places.
4. "The common dock (Rumex). Chiefly applied to the tall stems of this plant" (Ork. 1929 Marw.); "the stalk of a dock, rumex crispus or r[umex] obtusifolius" (Cai. 1907 D. B. Nicolson in County of Cai. 67, bulliwan; Cai.7 1937). Cf. Bunewand, n., 2.Ork.(D) 1880 Dennison Orcad. Sk. Bk. 37:
At ither times dey wad gang weegaldie wagaldie fae side tae side like builwans i' a breeze.
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"Bulwand n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 5 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/bulwand>
