The Ythan is a river in the north-east of 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...

 rising at Wells of Ythan near the village of Ythanwells

Ythanwells

Ythanwells is a village in the Marr area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, lying east of Huntly. The village is sometimes known as Wells of Ythan, although this name strictly refers to the nearby source of the River Ythan....

 and flowing south-eastwards through the towns of Fyvie

Fyvie

Fyvie is a village in the Formartine area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland.-Fyvie Castle:Fyvie Castle is reputed to have been built by King William the Lyon in the early thirteenth century...

, Methlick

Methlick

Methlick 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...

 and Ellon

Ellon, Aberdeenshire

Ellon is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, approximately north of Aberdeen, lying on the River Ythan which has one of the few undeveloped river estuaries on the Eastern coast of Scotland. It is in the ancient region of Formartine...

 before flowing into the North Sea

North Sea

In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...

 near Newburgh

Newburgh, Aberdeenshire

Newburgh is a coastal village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The village dates to 1261 AD, when Lord Sinclair wanted to establish a chapel in the area. Originally built as a school, somewhat later the chapel of Holy Rood was established.-Geography:...

, in Formartine

Formartine

Formartine is a committee area in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. This district has a long history and extends north from the River Don. It has a population of 36,478 ....

. The name is believed to have originated from an old Pictish

Pictish language

Pictish is a term used for the extinct language or languages thought to have been spoken by the Picts, the people of northern and central Scotland in the Early Middle Ages...

 word of Brythonic origin meaning gorse

Gorse

Gorse, furze, furse or whin is a genus of about 20 plant species of thorny evergreen shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae, native to western Europe and northwest Africa, with the majority of species in Iberia.Gorse is closely related to the brooms, and like them, has green...

.

The lower reach of the river is known as the Ythan Estuary

Ythan Estuary

The Ythan Estuary is the tidal component of the Ythan River, emptying into the North Sea approximately north of Aberdeen, Scotland. The estuary’s tidal action extends a full inland and has characteristic widths of between and . Besides the tidal channel there are several types of interfaces to...

, a Special Protection Area

Special Protection Area

A Special Protection Area or SPA is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certain particularly threatened birds.Together with Special...

 for conservation, particularly the breeding ground of three tern species (Common Tern

Common Tern

The Common Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, breeding in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America. It is strongly migratory, wintering in coastal tropical and subtropical regions. It is sometimes...

, Little Tern

Little Tern

The Little Tern, Sternula albifrons or Sterna albifrons, is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. It was formerly placed into the genus Sterna, which now is restricted to the large white terns . The former North American and Red Sea S. a...

 and Sandwich Tern) (Lumina, 2004).

Line notes

• Lumina Technologies, Ythan Estuary, Aberdeenshire,Aberdeen Library archives, June, 2004