Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
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First published 1941 (SND Vol. II).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
BOOLD, BEULD, n. The celebration or festivities with which the people of Ork. occupied their nights during the big markets, when there was no proper sleeping accommodation for them in the town. [buld, bøld]Ork.(D) 1908 J. T. S. Leask in Old-Lore Misc., Ork., Sh., etc. I. vi. 222:
Dan dey hed bony ongans wi' whit they caa'd Lammas brithers an' Lammas sisters, an' Lammas boolds.Ork. 1920 J. Firth Reminisc. Ork. Par. (1922) 123:
The only resource was to hire a fiddler . . . or lie down promiscuously on a heap of straw in a corner and snatch a few hours' sleep. This was called a Lammas “beuld,” and on these occasions a young gallant paying attention to any particular lady was called her “Lammas brither.”
