Dornoch
Dornoch
| |
|---|---|
 Dornoch Sheriff Court (left) and Dornoch Castle (right) | |
  Dornoch Location within Scotland | |
| Population | 1,430 (2020)[3] |
| OS grid reference | NH798896 |
| • Edinburgh | 195 miles (314 km) |
| Council area |
|
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | DORNOCH |
| Postcode district | IV25 |
| Dialling code | 01862 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
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Dornoch (/ˈdɔːrnɒx/; Scottish Gaelic: Dòrnach [ˈt̪ɔːrˠn̪ˠəx]; Scots: Dornach) is a town, seaside resort, parish and former royal burgh in the county of Sutherland in the Highlands of Scotland. It lies on the north shore of the Dornoch Firth, near to where it opens into the Moray Firth to the east.
Etymology
The name 'Dornoch' is derived from the Gaelic for 'pebbly place', suggesting that the area contained pebbles the size of a fist (dorn) which could therefore be used as weapons.[4]
History
Archaeological excavations during the development of a new business park in 1997 revealed a building, evidence for ironworking and part of a whale, dating from the 8th to the 11th centuries AD. The archaeologists surmised that the findings were of an industrial area on the edge of a settlement and that a settlement existed at Dornoch from at least the 8th century.[5]
The first direct reference to a settlement in Dornoch is not until the early 12th century when David I, as recorded in the Dunfermline Abbey register, orders Rognvald, the Earl of Orkney, to respect the monks at Dornoch.[6]
Dornoch has the thirteenth-century Dornoch Cathedral, the Old Town Jail, Dornoch Sheriff Court and Dornoch Castle, which is now a hotel.[7]
It is also notable as the last place a witch was burnt in Scotland. Her name was reported as Janet Horne; she was tried and condemned to death in 1727. There is a stone, the Witch's Stone, commemorating her death, inscribed with the year 1722.[8]
On 13 January 2005, Dornoch was granted Fairtrade Town status.[9]
Economy
Royal Dornoch Golf Club was founded in 1877. It was named No. 2 on the 2024 Golf Digest list of Top 100 International (outside U.S.) courses.[10]
Dornoch distillery has been operating at the former 19th century fire station house since 2016.[11]
Education
The town is home to Dornoch Primary School and Dornoch Academy secondary school.
The Burghfield House Campus of the University of the Highlands and Islands in Dornoch is the home for the Centre for History, teaching undergraduate and postgraduate history degrees to students around the UHI network and worldwide.[12]
Governance
Local Government
The town is part of the East Sutherland and Edderton ward of Highland Council which elects three Councillors.
A community council called Dornoch Area Community Council is also active in the town.
Scottish Parliament
In the Scottish Parliament, since 2011 Dornoch has been part of the Caithness, Sutherland and Ross constituency. Since 2021, the constituency MSP has been Maree Todd of the Scottish National Party.
It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands Scottish Parliament electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.
UK Parliament
Dornoch has been part of the Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency from 1997. Since 2017, the MP has been Jamie Stone of the Liberal Democrats.
Transport
The town is near the A9 road, to which it is linked by the A949 and the B9168. The town also has a grass air strip suitable for small aircraft and helicopters.
Dornoch used to be connected to the railway network at The Mound by the Dornoch Light Railway. The railway was opened on 2 June 1902. Stations on the line were Dornoch, Embo, Skelbo, Cambusavie Platform and The Mound Junction. The line was closed on 13 June 1960.[13]
Dornoch in popular culture
Rosamunde Pilcher's last novel Winter Solstice is largely set in and around Dornoch, fictionalised under the name of Creagan.[14][15]
Notable people
- Margaret C. Davidson led the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies
- Donald Ross a professional golfer and golf course designer.
References
- ^ "Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba (AÀA) – Gaelic Place-names of Scotland". www.ainmean-aite.scot. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
- ^ "Scotslanguage.com – Names in Scots – Places in Scotland". www.scotslanguage.com. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
- ^ "Population estimates for settlements and localities in Scotland: mid-2020". National Records of Scotland. 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
- ^ Field, John (1984). Discovering Place Names. Shire Publications. ISBN 978-0852637029.
- ^ Coleman, Russel; Photos-Jones, Effie (2008). "Early medieval settlement and ironworking in Dornoch, Sutherland excavations at The Meadows Business Park". Scottish Archaeological Internet Reports. 28. doi:10.9750/issn.1773-3803.2008.28. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
- ^ Easson, David Edward (1957). Medieval religious houses, Scotland; with an appendix on the houses in the Isle of Man. London: Longmans, Green. ISBN 0-582-12069-1. OCLC 3054355.
{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help) - ^ "7 Castle Hotels in Scotland That You Can Stay in". Culture Trip. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
- ^ "The Witch's Stone, Dornoch, Am Baile, EN4946". www.ambaile.org.uk. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
- ^ "Fairtrade Towns by Date". Fairtrade Foundation. 5 November 2010. Archived from the original on 13 January 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
- ^ "World's 100 Greatest Golf Courses". Golf Digest. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
- ^ https://www.hie.co.uk/news-and-blogs/news/2026/march/24/157m-award-for-dornoch-distillery-towards-new-net-zero-whisky-distillery/
- ^ "Centre for History". University of the Highlands and Islands. Retrieved 17 February 2019.
- ^ Vallance, H.A.; Clinker, C.R.; Lambert, Anthony J. (1985) [1938]. The Highland Railway (extended ed.). Newton Abbot: David and Charles. ISBN 0-946537-24-0.
- ^ "Rosamunde Pilcher Winter Solstice Tour – visit Kingsferry and Corrydale in the footsteps of Oscar and Elfrida". Inverness Tours. 2021. Archived from the original on 4 March 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Harry Potter, Rosamunde Pilcher, Diana Gabaldon ..." Macnab.de. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
