fid

v1.0
Published 01/10/24

fid m. [fid̥ʲ], gen. idem, ‘grassy land covered by the sea at high tide, tidal flat, salting’ and its variants are derived from ON fit f. ‘flat meadow by water’,

Some commentators (e.g. Henderson 1910, 170) include the senses ‘webbed foot; the web of a foot’ or similar; MacQuarrie (1983, 71) gives only ‘webbed foot’ – but ON fit f. in this case is a separate word.

cf. Henderson (1910, 170), MacBain (1911, s.v. fidean), Forbes (1923, 191), MacLennan (1925, s.v. fidean), Matheson (in CG VI, 72–73), Cox (1989, 6; 2002a, 60, 281–82), Stewart (2004, 410), McDonald (2009, 353), Taylor (2011; 2020, s.v. Fidden) and Holliday (2021, 472).

Cf. Scots (Shetland) †fid [fid] < ON fit (Jakobsen 1928).

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Maclean (1997, 26, 145 note 5) confuses SG fidean with SG feadan ‘(usually moorland) stream’.

The following forms are found:

A. SG fid m. [fid̥ʲ]
(i) fid: Dwelly 1911; AFB^˄ /fidʲ/ (Lewis, North Uist, Skye); Dwelly also lists fit (from the Rev. Dr Campbell of Broadford (from Argyll and Uist)), but this in error;
(ii) fide: CG VI 72–73;
(iii) fidean pl. [ˈfid̥ʲən], with the article na fidean (Faclan bhon t-Sluagh^˄: Lewis); in place-names: Camas nam Fidean NB217300 (Lewis; cf. OS 1843–82); Na Fidean (North Uist; Faclan bhon t-Sluagh^˄); Na Fidean (Skye; cf. Forbes 1923, 191: Fidean, Na Fidein; Robertson in King 2019, 196; Faclan bhon t-Sluagh^˄: ‘[fidʹəṉ] (usually na fidean)’, with the location given as ‘BBC’, but this might in fact be Skye); Cachaileith nam Fidean (Tiree, ?near Balephetrish NM013473; cf. Campbell 1900, 142: Cachla nam Fidean; Black 2008, 75, 344 fn 243; Holliday 2021, 472); Na Fidean NM302214 (Mull; cf. Henderson 1910, 170; MacQuarrie 1983, 71; Maclean 1997, 26: Fidean; Taylor 2011 and 2020, s.v. Fidden; Tobar an Dualchais^˄: 98047, Pàirt 1, at 23 min. 56 sec.: [nə ˈfid̥ʲən]); Na Fidean and Dùnan nam Fidean NR372908 (Colonsay; cf. Henderson 1910, 170; King with Scammell 2017, 34–35; Piggott and Piggott 1948, 85); and possibly in Islay: Henderson (1910, 170) indicates the word occurs in a farm name here: while such a name has not been verified, there are saltings at, for example, NR329627 and NR292674, and Faclan bhon t-Sluagh^˄ records [fidʹʒəṉ] and (without capitals, although they are possibly place-names) na fidean and tòn na fidean [sic] for Islay.

B. SG fidean m. [ˈfid̥ʲan]
CG VI, 72–73; MacBain 1911; Dwelly 1911: Isles; MacLennan 1925: [fijun] [sic]; AFB^˄: /fidʲan/, northern Argyll.

C. SG fideach m. [ˈfid̥ʲəx], ax], ɔx]
CG VI, 72–73; Dwelly App., cross-referenced to fid; MacLennan 1925, s.v. fidean: [fijuch]; MacDonald 1946, 23; AFB^˄: /fidʲəx/, Lewis, Harris; Faclan bhon t-Sluagh^˄: Strathglass, [fidʹɑx] for Lewis, [idem] for Harris; in place-names in Lewis, e.g. Fideach Eireastadh NB051334 (cf. OS 1843–82), Fideach a’ Bhac NB488415 (ibid.; cf. Tobar an Dualchais^˄: 50355, Pàirt 1, 0 min. 5 sec.), Loch Fideach NB380547 (ibid.) and An Fhideach [ə ˈɲid̥ʲɔx] NB201425 (cf. Cox 1989, 6; 2002a, 60, 281–82); in Uist: Fideach Thrùmaisgearraidh near NF867747, Fideach Chnoc Cuithein near NF845597, Fideach an Ìochdair near NF777463 (CG VI, 72–73); in Skye: Fideach a’ Mhuil Mhòir NG1141588259 (MacDonald/Comhairle na Gàidhealtachd, No. 120); Dwelly also lists fiteach (from the Rev. Dr Campbell of Broadford (from Argyll and Uist), but this in error.

D 1. SG fighdean, fighdeach, with short stressed vowels
(i) fighdean: M^cAlpine (1832) lists fighdean (so also MacLennan 1925, s.v. fidean) along with fighdeach (see (ii), below) as ‘n. c. “links” ’ (probably for ‘n[oun] c[ollective] “links” ’), perhaps pointing to a suffixed derivative in -an -[an], although the pronunciation [fėjj´-un] suggests a plural form in -an -[ən]; he goes on to cite the place-name fighdean Lìte [sic] (Eng. Leith Links), while Robertson (in King 2019, 422) gives Feighdean Lìte, so also Taylor (2020, s.v. Leith);
(ii) fighdeach: M^cAlpine 1832: [fejj´-ach].

D 2. SG fìghde, fìghdeach, with long stressed vowels
(i) fìghde, pl. fìghdean: Dwelly 1911 cross-references fìghde to fìghdeach, under which he cites the plural fìghdean in Fìghdean Lìte (Eng. Leith Links);
(ii) fìghdeach: Dwelly 1911.

ON fit yields SG fid [fid̥ʲ] regularly and, with the addition of the Gaelic suffixes -an and -ach, fidean and fideach.

Henderson (1910, 170 fn 2) notes Professor Mackinnon’s assertion (The Scotsman 12/7/1887) that the ending of SG Na Fidean (Eng. Fidden) is for the Old Norse definite article (cf. Holliday 2021, 472). ON fitin (nom.) might indeed yield SG fidean [ˈfid̥ʲən], but given that SG (sing.) fid occurs and that -(e)an -[ən] is a common plural ending in Gaelic (so Taylor 2011, s.v. Fidden), there seems no reason to invoke the Old Norse suffixed article here. (For instances of the Old Norse suffixed article in Scottish Gaelic loan-names, see Cox 2007c, 20–22; 2009, 22; 2022, 33–34, 79–80, 83–84 fn 4, 105–08, 153–56, 247–48, 509–10, 523–24, 533–34, 535–36 fn 131, 579–80 fn 207, 621–24, 669–70 fn 342, 689–90, 701–02 fn 399; for the loan-word SG cràigean ‘sea-serpent’, perhaps (via MNorw. *krāken, Norw. kraken ‘the sea monster’) ultimately from ON krakinn, see Cox 2022, 79–80, 247–48, 849–52 fn 647.)

The final -[ə] of SG fide appears to be inorganic, cf. SG còta [ˈkʰɔːʰt̪ə] < Eng. coat. The forms fighdean and fighdeach go back to M^cAlpine 1832; they may be folk etymologically driven, perhaps on the analogy of SG figh ‘to weave etc.’ (and descriptive of the broken land of salt marshes), but M^cAlpine’s transcriptions indicate short stressed vowels.

The transcriptions [fėjj´-un] and [fejj´-ach] should read [fėj´-an] and [fėj´-ach], respectively, with final -[an] in the first and stressed [ėj] (= [id̥ʲ]) in both, cf. (M^cAlpine) SG bidean ‘point etc.’ [bėj´-an’], although [ėjj] appears for [ėj] elsewhere, e.g. (M^cAlpine) SG fidir ‘to sympathise etc.’ [fėjj´-ėr]. The transcription error -[un] for -[an] was taken over by MacLennan (1925).

The motivation for Robertson’s change from fighdean to feighdean in the name Feighdean Lìte is unknown, but may be due to reading M^cAlpine’s [fėjj´-un] as indicating *[ˈfed̥ʲən] or *[ˈfeid̥ʲən], rather than [ˈfid̥ʲən]. The reason for Dwelly’s (1911) forms fìghde, fìghdeach and Fìghdean Lìte (so also AFB^˄: Fìghdean Lìte) with their long stressed vowels is also obscure: they may simply be typographical errors, or they may have been deemed to be long on the assumption that the following gh before a consonant was historical, cf. the woman’s name SG Brìghde, a normalised genitive form of EG Briġit, with compensatory lengthening following syncope and loss of the original medial fricative.