Spinningdale (Scottish Gaelic: Spainiadail [1]) is a hamlet in the Parish of Creich, on the north shore of the Dornoch Firth in eastern Sutherland, in the Highlands of Scotland. It lies 5 miles (8 kilometres) northeast of Bonar Bridge and is in the Scottish council area of Highland.
As “dale” occurs at the end of the name, Spinningdale was probably originally a Norse name with dalr meaning ‘valley’ (unlike places beginning with “Dal-” which usually come from Gaelic Dail meaning ‘meadow’). It may have come from Norse Spenja-dalr meaning attractive valley. [1] It was referred to as “Spanigidill” in 1464, the pronunciation of which bears a close resemblance to modern Gaelic.[2][3]
The A949 road, the old A9 before the 1991 opening of the Dornoch Firth Bridge, passes through Spinningdale.
On 1 February 2008 a fishing trawler named Spinningdale was wrecked on rocks near St Kilda.[4]
Notable residents
- James Robertson Justice, actor, lived in a cottage in Spinningdale from 1954 to 1970.[5]
References
- ^ a b “Spinningdale – Spainiadail”. Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
- ^ Mac an Tàilleir, Iain (2003) Goireasan Cànain / Language Resources – Tadhail is Ionnsaich : Pàrlamaid na h-Alba. (pdf) Pàrlamaid na h-Alba. Retrieved 26 October 2025.
- ^ “Archived copy” (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ “Crew rescued from stricken boat”. BBC News online. Retrieved 1 February 2008.
- ^ “Against The Wind: The Bluster Of James Robertson Justice | A Sketch Of The Past”. Archived from the original on 3 April 2015.