- Vennel
A vennel is a passageway between the gables of two buildings which could in effect be a minor street in
Scotland , particularly inRoyal Burghs created in the twelfth century, . The word "vennel" probablyFact|date=August 2008|'Probably' according to who? comes from Norman French - the French word "venelle" means "alley" or "lane" and "venella" is the Latin form.The Scottish burghs set up initially by David 1, (see
Scotland in the High Middle Ages - Economy) drew upon the burgh model used inNewcastle-upon-Tyne and used a number of French or Germanic words for town scape items. InDurham , like Newcastle, part of the oldNorthumbria , lanes are also colloquially known as vennels.There are vennels in
Cromarty ,Dumfries ,Edinburgh [ [http://www.romero.co.uk/BPRA/photos.html Photos and history of The Vennel in Edinburgh] ] ,Eyemouth ,Forfar , Irvine,Lanark ,Linlithgow ,North Berwick ,Peebles , Perth,South Queensferry ,Stirling andWigtown .Historical records suggest there may have been a Vennel in
Arbroath . There are records of several vennels in Perth with names such as Meal Vennel, Horners Vennel, Cutlog Vennel, and Guard Vennel. Aberdeen City Council also refers to vennels as part of the old town.References
* [http://www.trp.dundee.ac.uk/research/glossary/glossary.html The Conservation Glossary] : produced in conjunction with Town & Regional Planning, University of Dundee's postgraduate course on European Urban Conservation
* [http://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/ACCI/web/site/xcp_Plaque.asp Aberdeen City Council]
* "Townlife in Fourteenth-Century Scotland" by Elizabeth Ewan; Edinburgh University Press, 1990
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