In this, and other similar articles, the visitor is introduced to a number of words in Scots related to the concept of death and funerary customs. A brief explanation is given in the equivalent English together with audio files allowing the visitor to hear the pronunciation.

DEID-CLAES

The term deid-claes evolved in Scots as equivalent to the word shroud.

DEID-BELL

In many places in Scotland certain officers or persons were given custody of a bell which was used for making announcements of deaths and funerals.

DEID-HOOSE

The Latin word mortuary meant ‘place of death’ and deid-hoose evolved as the equivalent term in Scots. The function of the deid-hoose or mortuary has also evolved over the centuries.

DEID-KIST or DEID-BOX

The word coffin ultimately derives from Greek kophinos or ‘basket’ while the word box also derives from Greek and Latin words for ‘receptacle’. The normal equivalent to these ideas in Scots is the word ‘kist’ from Old Norse ‘kista’ and related to English chest.

HEIDSTANE

For several centuries it has been the custom to mark the place of burial with a monument which we call a heidstane in Scots or headstone in English. In Northern Scots this becomes heidsteen.

MORT-KIST

Mort-kist is a variation on the word deid-kist but uses the Latin mort (death) rather then Scots deid.

THRUCHSTANE

A thruchstane is different to a heidstane because it lies flat like a covering over the grave. Sometimes it rests on four feet.