River Avon, Strathspey
Encyclopedia
The River Avon is a river
in the Strathspey
area of the Scottish
Highlands
, and a tributary
of the River Spey
. It drains the north-eastern area of the Cairngorm Mountains
and is largely contained within the Cairngorms National Park
The source of the River Avon is not on Ben Avon
but some 10 miles further west on the slopes of Ben MacDui
, (Gaelic
: Beinn MacDhuibh). From Ben MacDui, the headwaters flow down to Loch Avon. The river then continues east down Glen Avon for another 10 miles before turning north towards the village of Tomintoul
and Strath Avon.
the Avon gathers to itself numerous small burns, the most notable of which are the Burn of Loin and the Builg Burn originating at Loch Builg.
A mile to the southwest of Tomintoul, the Water of Ailnack enters from the confines of a precipitous gorge - the higher reaches of this watercourse are known as the Water of Caiplich. Downstream of Tomintoul, the Conglass Water originating at the Lecht, enters from the east and the Burn of Lochy enters from Glen Lochy to the west. Above Bridge of Brown, the Lochy is fed in turn by the Burn of Brown. The lowermost tributary of the Avon is the River Livet which enters from Glenlivet
on the right bank at Drumin just as the Avon leaves the national park.
abhainn meaning 'river' or 'stream'. The word, in common with the Welsh
afon, is thought to originate from an early Indo-European
root ab or aub. The implications of this (and other) waterways being called simply '[The] River' may be an indicator of ancient beliefs or superstitions. It is known that the ancient inhabitants of north-western Europe
venerated wet or watery places, including rivers (as attested by both literary and archaeological evidence, eg. ritual deposition in rivers or bogs). It is possible that particularly sacred rivers became commonly known simply as '[the] river' or '[the] water', because their 'real' names were sacred and pronouncing them was 'dangerous', or ritually unacceptable (cf. 'taking the name of the Lord in vain' in the Judaeo-Christian tradition).
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
in the Strathspey
Strathspey, Scotland
Strathspey is the area around the strath of the River Spey, Scotland, in both the Moray council area and the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area of Highland....
area of the Scottish
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...
Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
, and a tributary
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the River Spey
River Spey
The River Spey is a river in the northeast of Scotland, the second longest and the fastest-flowing river in Scotland...
. It drains the north-eastern area of the Cairngorm Mountains
Cairngorms
The Cairngorms are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain of the same name - Cairn Gorm.-Name:...
and is largely contained within the Cairngorms National Park
Cairngorms National Park
The Cairngorms National Park is a national park in north east Scotland, established in 2003. It was the second of two national parks established by the Scottish Parliament, after Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, set up in 2002. The park covers the Cairngorms range of mountains, and...
The source of the River Avon is not on Ben Avon
Ben Avon
Ben Avon is a mountain in the Cairngorm mountains of Scotland. The highest point of the massif, known as Leabaidh an Dàimh Bhuide is classified as both a Munro and a Marilyn....
but some 10 miles further west on the slopes of Ben MacDui
Ben Macdhui (Scotland)
Ben Macdui is the second highest mountain in the United Kingdom after Ben Nevis, and the highest in the Cairngorms. After the defeat of Domnall mac Uilliam in 1187, Donnchad II, Earl of Fife, acquired Strathavon, territory stretching from Ballindalloch to Ben Macdui; because the mountain marked...
, (Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
: Beinn MacDhuibh). From Ben MacDui, the headwaters flow down to Loch Avon. The river then continues east down Glen Avon for another 10 miles before turning north towards the village of Tomintoul
Tomintoul
Tomintoul is a village in the Moray council area of Scotland; until 1975 it was located in the county of Banffshire.It is said to be the highest village in the Scottish Highlands, but at is still significantly lower than the highest village in Scotland .The village was laid out on a grid pattern...
and Strath Avon.
Tributaries
Over the first few miles flowing east through the Forest of GlenavonDeer forest
The deer forest is an institution and phenomenon peculiar to the Highlands of Scotland. It denotes a sporting estate which is kept and managed largely or solely for the purposes of maintaining a resident population of red deer for sporting purposes.Typically, deer forests are in hilly and...
the Avon gathers to itself numerous small burns, the most notable of which are the Burn of Loin and the Builg Burn originating at Loch Builg.
A mile to the southwest of Tomintoul, the Water of Ailnack enters from the confines of a precipitous gorge - the higher reaches of this watercourse are known as the Water of Caiplich. Downstream of Tomintoul, the Conglass Water originating at the Lecht, enters from the east and the Burn of Lochy enters from Glen Lochy to the west. Above Bridge of Brown, the Lochy is fed in turn by the Burn of Brown. The lowermost tributary of the Avon is the River Livet which enters from Glenlivet
Glenlivet
Glenlivet is the glen in the Scottish Highlands through which the River Livet flows.The river rises high in the Ladder Hills. It flows gently down through the village of Tomnavoulin and onto the Bridgend of Glenlivet, flowing under the ancient packhorse bridge before emptying into the River Avon,...
on the right bank at Drumin just as the Avon leaves the national park.
Etymology
In common with the various other examples of Avon, the river takes its name from the GaelicScottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
abhainn meaning 'river' or 'stream'. The word, in common with the Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
afon, is thought to originate from an early Indo-European
Proto-Indo-European language
The Proto-Indo-European language is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European languages, spoken by the Proto-Indo-Europeans...
root ab or aub. The implications of this (and other) waterways being called simply '[The] River' may be an indicator of ancient beliefs or superstitions. It is known that the ancient inhabitants of north-western Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
venerated wet or watery places, including rivers (as attested by both literary and archaeological evidence, eg. ritual deposition in rivers or bogs). It is possible that particularly sacred rivers became commonly known simply as '[the] river' or '[the] water', because their 'real' names were sacred and pronouncing them was 'dangerous', or ritually unacceptable (cf. 'taking the name of the Lord in vain' in the Judaeo-Christian tradition).