Gellet
Gellet DFL S NT080841 1 394
schyram de Gellald 1128 David I Chrs. no. 33 [‘the shire of Gellald’ granted to the church of Dunfermline by King Edgar 1097–1107]
schiram de Gella’d 1150 David I Chrs. no. 172
schyram de Gelland 1154 x 1159 RRS i no. 118
scyram de Gillald 1163 Dunf. Reg. no. 237
schyram de Gellald 1165 x 1168 RRS ii no. 30
schyram de Gellald’ 1227 Dunf. Reg. no. 74
sciram de Gelland 1277 Dunf. Reg. no. 81
Gelalyd 1304 CDS ii no. 1514 [draft of an order by King Edward dated at Gelalyd]
de portu de Gellald 1363 RRS vi no. 311 [rubric]
portum apud grangiam de Gellald 1363 RRS vi no. 311 [‘port or harbour at the grange of Gellet’]
Gellalde 1450 Dunf. Reg. no. 434
the Gullettis 1561 Dunf. Reg. p. 432 [‘within the parrochin of Dunfermling’]
the tua Gullattis 1561 Dunf. Reg. p. 432 [i.e. Easter and Wester q.v.]
Eeister Gullett 1561 Dunf. Reg. p. 435
Wester Gullett 1561 Dunf. Reg. p. 435
Eister et Wester Gellettis c.1570 Dunf. Reg. p. 480
E Gellett 1642 Gordon MS Fife
W Gellett 1642 Gordon MS Fife [refers to OS Pathf. Gellet]
Gallets 1654 Blaeu (Pont) West Fife
E. Gellet 1654 Blaeu (Gordon) Fife
W. Gellet 1654 Blaeu (Gordon) Fife [refers to OS Pathf. Gellet]
Gallots 1753 Roy sheet 17, 5
West Gallots 1753 Roy sheet 17, 5
E Gillot 1775 Ainslie/Fife [This refers to OS Pathf. Wester Gellet, which is Middle Gellet on SGF (1828)]
W Gillot 1775 Ainslie/Fife [This is actually applied to OS Pathf. Gellet, and not to OS Pathf. Wester Gellet, which lies over 1 km to the north-east of Gellet]
E. Gellet 1828 SGF
Middle Gellet 1828 SGF
West Gellet 1856 OS 6 inch 1st edn.
W. Gellet 1654 Blaeu (Gordon) Fife [refers to OS Pathf. Gellet NT080841]
Gallots 1753 Roy sheet 17, 5
West Gallots 1753 Roy sheet 17, 5
E Gillot 1775 Ainslie/Fife [= OS Pathf. Wester Gellet NT093849, which is Middle Gellet on SGF (1828)]
W Gillot 1775 Ainslie/Fife [= OS Pathf. Gellet NT080841, not to OS Pathf. Wester Gellet, which lies over 1 km to the north-east]
E. Gellet 1828 SGF [= OS Pathf. Easter Gellet; not marked on Ainslie/Fife (1775)]
Middle Gellet 1828 SGF [= OS Pathf. Wester Gellet]
Gellet 1856 OS 6 inch 1st edn [= OS Pathf. Wester Gellet]
East Gellet OS 6 inch 1st edn [= OS Pathf. Easter Gellet]
West Gellet 1856 OS 6 inch 1st edn [applied to OS Pathf. Gellet]
Gellet 1898 OS 1 inch 2nd edn [= OS Pathf. Wester Gellet]]
G geal + G allt
‘White shore or cliff’. This is the older meaning of allt, which in modern G means ‘burn’, cf Old Irish alt ‘shore, cliff’. It refers to the steeply rising land at the coast between Charlestown and Limekilns, where in fact OS Pathf. shows The Gellet Rock. The shire of Gellet stretched from the coast up to the southern edge of Dunfermline, between the two parts of RHX, and included the main port of Dunfermline, now Limekilns. It was therefore much more extensive than the farms containing the name ‘Gellet’ today.
Two farms with the name Gellet emerge from the record in the mid-sixteenth century, with the affixes Easter and Wester. However, while a certain amount of instability and variation in affixes is common following the division of lands, Gellet is especially confusing in that earlier Easter Gellet has now become Wester Gellet by way of Middle Gellet and Gellet!
The complexity is best dealt with by assigning a number to each place with a Gellet-name, and following the changes map by map. The numbers themselves are marked on the map Dunfermline Parish (South).
1 OS Pathf. Gellet (NT080841)
W Gillot 1775 Ainslie/Fife
Marked ‘Dog Kennel’ but not named SGF 1828
West Gellet 1856 OS 6 inch 1st edn.
West Gellet 1898 OS 1 inch 2nd edn.
Gellet OS Explorer 367
2 OS Pathf. Wester Gellet (NT092849)
E Gillot 1775 Ainslie/Fife
Middle Gellet 1828 SGF
Gellet 1856 OS 6 inch 1st edn.
Gellet 1898 OS 1 inch 2nd edn.
Wester Gellet OS Explorer 367
3 OS Pathf. Easter Gellet (NT097852)
Not shown on 1775 Ainslie/Fife
E. Gellet 1828 SGF
East Gellet 1856 OS 6 inch 1st edn.
East Gellet 1898 OS 1 inch 2nd edn.
Easter Gellet OS Explorer 367
4 OS Pathf. The Gellet Rock (NT070835)
Not shown on Ainslie/Fife (1775) or SGF (1828)
The Gellet Rock 1856 OS 6 inch 1st edn.
The Gellet Rock OS Explorer 367
The main thing to grasp is that the local inhabitants will have known where they were at all times.
/ˈgɛlət/
This place-name appeared in printed volume 1