Barrhead is a town in East Renfrewshire

East Renfrewshire

East Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. Until 1975 it formed part of the county of Renfrewshire for local government purposes along with the modern council areas of Renfrewshire and Inverclyde...

, Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) southwest of Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

 on the edge of the Gleniffer Braes

Gleniffer Braes

‎Gleniffer Braes is a short range of hills to the south of Paisley, Scotland which form the boundary of Renfrewshire and Ayrshire.-Area:...

. As of the 2001 census its population was 19,813.

Historically, most of what is now Barrhead lay within the parish of Neilston

Neilston

Neilston is a village and parish in East Renfrewshire set in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies in the Levern Valley, southwest of Barrhead, south of Paisley, and south-southwest of Renfrew, at the southwestern fringe of the Greater Glasgow conurbation...

, in the county of Renfrew

Renfrewshire (historic)

Renfrewshire or the County of Renfrew is a registration county, the Lieutenancy area of the Lord Lieutenant of Renfrewshire, and one of the counties of Scotland used for local government until 1975. Renfrewshire is located in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland, south of the River Clyde,...

. The name Barrhead comes from the agricultural term Barr meaning long ploughed furrows for cultivation of crops. The original homestead or hamlet lay at the head of barrs and became known as Barrhead.

In 2007, Readers Digest magazine voted East Renfrewshire the second best place in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 to raise a family.