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Driùchcainn

Driùchcainn

Posted by Shelagh on Thursday 23 July 2015

Many of you will be taking the opportunity to enjoy some sunshine this summer, whether in Scotland or further afield. If you’re lucky enough to be at the seaside this year, you might need to know the this week’s featured word, driùchcainn.

The word was collected in South Uist and means ‘chaffing between the toes caused by walking barefoot in warm sand.’ Apparently, it could be cured by putting pieces of wool between the toes.

A similar word was collected in North Uist, driuchgainn, for ‘blisters between your toes as a result of walking on crop stubble,’ and another variation, driùcan, came from Lewis, meaning ‘hacks under the joints of the toes caused by going barefoot.’ In Dwelly’s dictionary, driùcan is given with the meaning ‘incision under one of the toes.’

Clearly, problems with the toes caused by walking barefoot are quite common as a couple of other words appear in the Fieldwork Archive. Bruichealachd was collected in North Uist, meaning ‘chaffing between the toes caused by sweating,’ and the word buille-thuig came from Lewis, meaning ‘small injury to the toes when going barefoot.’

We hope that you won’t suffer any injuries to your toes if you’re on the beach this summer, but if you do, remember to keep a piece of wool handy to put in between them!

If you know of any other remedies for driùchcainn, let us know through Facebook or Twitter.

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