Polmadie

[Matheous]

If any of you are from Glasgow, Scotland- Can you tell everyone how this district got it's name?

[Quizmonster]

"The pool haunted by wolves" in Gaelic, apparently. Click here and scroll down to Polmadie.

[david21]

Good question matheous(and answer),i stay in the gorbals (just next to polmadie) may i ask as to why you want to know?....thanks

[Matheous]

david21 -My ex-brother-in-law told me many years ago that Mary-Queen of Scots while in battle at Langside rode her horse appropriately named 'Pol' which was mortally wounded -and on parting company with the poor beast was supposed to have said "Pol may dee (die) and I must flee"
Hence Polmadie !!!
Sounded convincing- but perhaps not true ?

[Quizmonster]

Folk etymology - or etymythology as experts often call it - usually does sound convincing, superficially at least, Matheous. But it's a lovely story!

[david21]

as an added bit of interest,there is an area next to langside called crossmyloof,I was told by my old history teacher that this was a translation of 'cross(crucifix) in my hand,loof being an old scots word for hand,as mary was fleeing defeat from the battle to dumbarton castle were she had allies repotedly said' by the croos in my loof i will reach safety' but as quizmonster says more myth than fact methinks.

[heathfield]

'Haunted', QM?

[Quizmonster]

Yes...why not, H? If you clicked my link, you'll have seen I was just copying what was written there. Having said that, I can't see the problem with the word 'haunted'. The verb 'to haunt' just means 'to frequent' or 'visit often'. I imagine the wolves came to the pool for a drink of water...or am I missing some subtle point here?

[heathfield]

Yes, I did see the link. It's just that no word for 'haunted', (or 'frequented' or 'visited') is included in the original gaelic. I feel that 'Pool of the Wolves', or simply 'Wolves Pool' is a more apt and direct translation. No subltety involved!

[Quizmonster]

Ah! Shamefully, though a Scot, I have no knowledge of the Gaelic! Accordingly, I just took the link-writer at face value. Even so, I still quite like the idea of the pool's being 'haunted' by the creatures. Call it the poetic rather than the prosaic in me, if you will.

[THECORBYLOON]

On another site it says

'Polmaddie (Argyll), Poll a' Mhadaidh.
"The pool of the wolf".
Polmadie (Glasgow).
This appears to be "the pool of the son of God", from Poll Mac D�.'

Ye pays yir money etc. etc...

[heathfield]

That's an interesting alternative, Corbyloon. Shows up one of the problems with Gaelic. 'Madadh' is Gaelic for 'dog' or 'wolf', and the sea-loch 'Lochmaddy' is supposedly 'Loch of the Wolf'. But ''madadh' is also the Gaelic for 'mussel', which makes more sense to me.
Like you say, you takes your choice!

And QM, Ghostly wolves? A nice thought. I'll avoid walking through Polmadie at night!

[Quizmonster]

I have no idea what it's like nowadays, H, but - in times past - I would have been especially wary of walking through that area at any time, day or night, ghostly wolves or no wolves!
(No intention to offend, David and Matheous!)

[david21]

heathfield,i would'nt walk through polmadie at night,wolves or not.

[heathfield]

Thanks, guys. I'm aware of its reputation - just didn't want to upset the locals! Looks like nobody's got much to say about the place...
http://www.aboutbritain.com/towns/polmadie.asp

[Matheous]

Quizmonster - That's ok -I don't reside in that part of the city.....