Wynd

Old Tolbooth Wynd in the Canongate, Edinburgh

Street sign leading to the harbour in the Scottish fishing village of Pittenweem

Street sign leading to the market place in the Scottish village of Kinrossie

A wynd (/waɪnd/) is typically a narrow lane between houses. The name is frequently encountered in towns and villages in Scotland and Northern England. The word derives from Old Norse venda ("to turn"), implying a turning off a main street, without implying that it is curved.^[1] In fact, most wynds are straight. In many places wynds link streets at different heights and thus are mostly thought of as being ways up or down hills.

There are many wynds in North Yorkshire and County Durham, such as "Bull Wynd" in Darlington and Lombards Wynd in Richmond, North Yorkshire.^[2]

The Old Town of Edinburgh had many wynds, such as St. Mary's Wynd, Blackfriars Wynd and Niddry Wynd, until Victorian street improvements in the 19th century led to their being widened and renamed "streets". ^[3]

In the East Neuk fishing village of Pittenweem in Fife, all walking connections between the shore and the raised beach—apart from the road down to the harbour—are wynds, namely: West Wynd, Calman's Wynd, Bruce's Wynd, School Wynd, Water Wynd and Cove Wynd. Whilst Cove Wynd does have a cave on it (St Fillan's Cave), Calman's Wynd is not, as assumed, derived from coal.

On North Carolina’s Bald Head Island the main roads are referred to as wynds, such as North, South and West, Bald Head Wynd and Stede Bonnet Wynd and Edward Teach Wynd.^[4]

References

1. Harris, S (1996). The Place Names of Edinburgh. London: Steve Savage. p. 28. ISBN 1 904246 06 0.
2. http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=wynd+richmond&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl
3. C McKean, Edinburgh, Portrait Of A City, Century Ltd, London 1991, p.192, ISBN 0 7126 3867 9
4. https://maps.google.com/maps?oe=&q=bald+head+island&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x8900abb02c4407bd:0x71613f6c07e96e0,Bald+Head+Island,+NC&gl=us&ei=t_NLUZyiNcXF4APfu4GwBg&ved=0CM4BELYD