Gowk Stone
Encyclopedia
A Gowk Stone or 'Stane' in Scots means the stone of the 'Cuckoo' or 'Fool'. In Scotland the name 'Gowk' has been applied to certain standing stones and glacial erratic
s boulders, often found in prominent geographical situations. Other variants, such as gowke, gouk, gouke, goilk, goik, gok, goke, gook are found.
(Cuculus canorus) also a stupid person or fool. The word derives from the Old Norse 'gaukr', a cuckoo. Other explanations and origins for the term are also found.
The word derives from Anglo-Saxon (Old English) 'gouk' and was replaced in the south and central England by the French loan word 'coucou' after the Norman Conquest.
The Cuckoo
family gets its English and scientific names from the call of the bird.
The Scottish Gaelic names are Coi: Cuach: Cuachag (poetical name): Cuthag. The Welsh for cuckoo is cog.
The term Gowk is perhaps best known in the context of the old Gowk's Day, the Scottish April Fools Day, originally held on April 13 when the cuckoo begins to call, and when children were sent on a Gowk Hunt, a harmless prank involving pointless errands.
Gowk meant both cuckoo & fool, the latter were thought to be fairy-touched. The call of the cuckoo was believed to beckon the souls of the dead, and the cuckoo was thought to be able to travel back and forth between the worlds of the living & the dead.
It was once commonly thought that the first appearance of a Cuckoo also brought about a 'Gowk Storm', a furious Spring storm.
Cuckoos were said to have the power of prophesy and could foretell a person's lifespan, the number of their children and when they would marry.
It has also been suggested that the Gowk or Fool originated in the Dark Ages as a name for the Britons, given by the Saxons invaders, & carried some of the meaning of the "Devil" in the context of an arch foe, who is likened to the Fool.
In the Outer Hebrides a Cuckoo's call heard when a person was hungry was bad luck, however the opposite was true if the person had recently eaten.
in Wales is an old stone cross, carved with intricate knotwork. Villagers of Nevern would wait for their 'harbinger of spring' and on the 7th April, St Brynach's feast day, the first cuckoo of the year would arrive from Africa, alighting on the cross and singing to announce the arrival of spring.
A local belief of the Gaelic-speaking community on the Isle of Lewis was that when the sun rose on midsummer morn, the 'shining one' walked along the stone avenue at Callanish
, his arrival heralded by the cuckoo's call.
The cuckoo traditionally sends forth its first call in spring from the Gowk stone at Lisdivin in Northern Ireland.
A few Cuckoo Stones are present at sites in England and Cornwall.
Glacial erratic
A glacial erratic is a piece of rock that differs from the size and type of rock native to the area in which it rests. "Erratics" take their name from the Latin word errare, and are carried by glacial ice, often over distances of hundreds of kilometres...
s boulders, often found in prominent geographical situations. Other variants, such as gowke, gouk, gouke, goilk, goik, gok, goke, gook are found.
Etymology
As stated, Gowk in Scots and northern English dialect means a Common CuckooCommon Cuckoo
The Common Cuckoo is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, Cuculiformes, which includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals....
(Cuculus canorus) also a stupid person or fool. The word derives from the Old Norse 'gaukr', a cuckoo. Other explanations and origins for the term are also found.
The word derives from Anglo-Saxon (Old English) 'gouk' and was replaced in the south and central England by the French loan word 'coucou' after the Norman Conquest.
The Cuckoo
Cuckoo
The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...
family gets its English and scientific names from the call of the bird.
The Scottish Gaelic names are Coi: Cuach: Cuachag (poetical name): Cuthag. The Welsh for cuckoo is cog.
Cuckoo Folklore
Celtic mythology in particular is rich in references to cuckoos and the surviving folklore gives clues as to why some stones were given the 'Gowk' name.The term Gowk is perhaps best known in the context of the old Gowk's Day, the Scottish April Fools Day, originally held on April 13 when the cuckoo begins to call, and when children were sent on a Gowk Hunt, a harmless prank involving pointless errands.
Gowk meant both cuckoo & fool, the latter were thought to be fairy-touched. The call of the cuckoo was believed to beckon the souls of the dead, and the cuckoo was thought to be able to travel back and forth between the worlds of the living & the dead.
It was once commonly thought that the first appearance of a Cuckoo also brought about a 'Gowk Storm', a furious Spring storm.
Cuckoos were said to have the power of prophesy and could foretell a person's lifespan, the number of their children and when they would marry.
It has also been suggested that the Gowk or Fool originated in the Dark Ages as a name for the Britons, given by the Saxons invaders, & carried some of the meaning of the "Devil" in the context of an arch foe, who is likened to the Fool.
In the Outer Hebrides a Cuckoo's call heard when a person was hungry was bad luck, however the opposite was true if the person had recently eaten.
The Gowk Stones
The use of the term Gowk at these sites suggests a link with Springtime and some of the surviving legends associated with standing stones do have a link with the heralding of spring by the first cuckoo of that season to arrive. In the churchyard at NevernNevern
Nevern is a small village or hamlet, of just a few houses in Pembrokeshire, West Wales. It lies in the valley of the River Nevern close to the Preseli Hills of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park east of Newport.-Nevern Parish Church:...
in Wales is an old stone cross, carved with intricate knotwork. Villagers of Nevern would wait for their 'harbinger of spring' and on the 7th April, St Brynach's feast day, the first cuckoo of the year would arrive from Africa, alighting on the cross and singing to announce the arrival of spring.
A local belief of the Gaelic-speaking community on the Isle of Lewis was that when the sun rose on midsummer morn, the 'shining one' walked along the stone avenue at Callanish
Callanish
Callanish is a village on the West Side of the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides , Scotland. A linear settlement with a jetty, it is situated on a headland jutting into Loch Roag, a sea loch...
, his arrival heralded by the cuckoo's call.
The cuckoo traditionally sends forth its first call in spring from the Gowk stone at Lisdivin in Northern Ireland.
A few Cuckoo Stones are present at sites in England and Cornwall.
Gowk stone sites
- Gowkstone, near Hazleden one mile south-west of Mearns near Glasgow. It was known as the 'Speaking Stone'.
- Gowk Stane, Laigh Overmuir, DarvelDarvelDarvel is a small town in East Ayrshire, Scotland, located at the eastern end of the Irvine Valley and is sometimes referred to as "The Lang Toon" due to its quaint appearance on Ordnance Survey maps....
, East Ayrshire. A glacial erratic boulder in a prominent position. - High Gowk Craig, Muirshiel Hills, Largs, North Ayrshire.
- Low Gowk Craig, Muirshiel Hills, Largs, North Ayrshire.
- Gowk Stane, Dumbrock Muir, StrathblaneStrathblaneStrathblane is a village and parish in the registration county of Stirlingshire, situated in the southwestern part of the Stirling council area, in central Scotland. It lies at the foothills of the Campsie Fells and the Kilpatrick Hills on the Blane Water, north of Glasgow, east-southeast of...
. A large glacial erratic. - Gowk Stone, Lisdivin, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. The gowk traditionally sent forth its first call in spring from this stone.
- Gowk Stone, Parish of Glenmuick, TullichTullichTullich is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is known as the birthplace of St. Nathalan and also as the site of some noted Pictish stones. -References:...
and Glengairn, Aberdeenshire. This standing stone is located at NGR NJ 454 004. - Gowk Stone, Auchencorth, PenicuikPenicuikPenicuik is a burgh and civil parish in Midlothian, Scotland, lying on the west bank of the River North Esk. The town was developed as a planned village in 1770 by Sir James Clerk of Penicuik. It became a burgh in 1867. The town was well known for its paper mills, the last of which closed in 2005....
, Lothians. This stone sits in a commanding site above the River North Esk and is also referred to as the Auchencorth Stone, meaning 'place of the fold or stone circle'. Located at Ordnance SurveyOSOS may refer to:* O.S. Old Stonyhurst, an old boy of the ancient Jesuit public school, Stonyhurst College* O.S. Engines, a Japanese manufacturer of model aircraft engines* Ocean Science, an Oceanographic Journal published by the European Geosciences Union....
NT20425764. - Gowk Stone, Easter Dunglassie, FalklandFalkland-Places:*Falkland, British Columbia, Canada*Falkland, Nova Scotia, Canada*Falkland Ridge, Nova Scotia, Canada*Falkland, Newbury, a ward of Newbury, Berkshire, England.*Falkland, Fife, a burgh in Fife, Scotland....
, Lothians. - Gowk Stone, Great Cumbrae Island. A standing stone.
- Gowk Stane, Oyne, InverurieInverurieInverurie is a Royal Burgh and town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately north west of Aberdeen on the A96 road and is served by Inverurie railway station on the Aberdeen to Inverness Line...
. NJ677257. A standing stone, about 2 metres high, standing on the brow of a hill. - Gowk stone, Old KilpatrickOld KilpatrickOld Kilpatrick is a village in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland.The village is on the north bank of the River Clyde immediately to the north of the Forth and Clyde Canal, three miles from Clydebank on the road to Dumbarton. The Great Western Road runs through Old Kilpatrick, and the next village to...
, Dumbartonshire. A ruined house had this name. - Gowk Stone, DyceDyceDyce is a civil parish and suburb of Aberdeen, Scotland, about north west of Aberdeen city centre, and best known as the location of the city's airport. It is on the River Don.- History :...
, South Aberdeenshire. - Gowk Stone, Caskieben, Aberdeenshire.
- Gowk Stone, MethlickMethlickMethlick is a village in the Formartine area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, situated on the River Ythan north-west of Ellon.- Services :Methlick is served by a general store, a garage and hardware store, one hotel and a village hall...
, Aberdeenshire. - Gowk Stone, St Johns Town of DalrySt. John's Town of DalrySt. John's Town of Dalry, usually referred to simply as Dalry, is a village in Dumfries and Galloway, formerly in Kirkcudbrightshire. It is located sixteen miles from Castle Douglas along the A713 road, and is at the southern terminus of the A702 road...
, Dumfries & Galloway - Gouk Stone, Kinaldie, Hatton of FintrayHatton of FintrayHatton of Fintray, commonly referred to as Fintray, is a village on the River Don in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, in the parish of Fintray. It was a textile village and its church dates from 1821, and there used to be a nearby ferry crossing the river....
, Aberdeenshire. Same as Gowk Stone Caskieben and Gowk Stone Dyce (NJ 834 151)
Cuckoo Stones
- Cuckoo Stone, WiltonWilton- England :*Wilton, Cumbria, a place in the county of Cumbria*Wilton, Herefordshire, a village in south Herefordshire*Wilton, North Yorkshire, a place in the county of North Yorkshire*Wilton, Redcar and Cleveland, a place in the borough of Redcar and Cleveland...
, OSOrdnance SurveyOrdnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
SU146433. Alfred WatkinsAlfred WatkinsAlfred Watkins was a businessman, self-taught amateur archaeologist and antiquarian who, while standing on a hillside in Herefordshire, England, in 1921 experienced a revelation and noticed on the British landscape the apparent arrangement of straight lines positioned along ancient features, and...
stated that this, now recumbent, standing stone was associated with an alignment originating from WoodhengeWoodhengeWoodhenge is a Neolithic Class I henge and timber circle monument located in the Stonehenge World Heritage Site in Wiltshire, England. It is north-east of Stonehenge in the parish of Durrington, just north of Amesbury.-Discovery:...
. - Cuckoo Stones, situated at the break of slope above South Dean Beck, HaworthHaworthHaworth is a rural village in the City of Bradford metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is located amongst the Pennines, southwest of Keighley and west of Bradford. The surrounding areas include Oakworth and Oxenhope...
, Yorkshire. Two Cuckoo Stones exist here. - Cuckoo Rock, Penzance, Cornwall. OSOrdnance SurveyOrdnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
SW 4406 3392. This standing stone is now known as the Carfury Stone.
Related stones
- Gogar Stane, a single standing stone in the middle of a field on the west side of the Gogar area, south of Edinburgh Airport, Scotland. Gogar may derive from 'Cog', a Celtic word for a Cuckoo.
External links
- Harvie-Brown, J. A. & Buckley, T. E. (1888). A Vertebrate Fauna of the Outer Hebrides. Edinburgh : David Douglas.