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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1952 (SND Vol. III). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

EDDERIN, n. Also ‡etherin; †eitheren; eddrin; aitheran (Bnff. 1866 Gregor D. Bnff. 187); edderan, etheran (Abd.⁷ 1925); adderin (Abd. 1923 I. D. Mutch in H. Beaton Back o' Benachie 128); aiderin (Abd.¹⁵ 1928). A straw rope or shuttle-shaped ball of straw rope used in thatching (n.Sc. 1808 Jam., etherin; Abd. 1825 Jam.², etherin, Bnff. 1869 J. Morton Cycl. Agric. II. 722, etherin; Ork.¹, Bnff.⁵ (etherin), Abd.² (edderin) 1948). Freq. in pl. Cf. Brath. [′ɛdərən, ′edərən, ′eð-, ′ɛð-]Nai. 1794 J. Donaldson Agric. Nai., MS. Gl. (Jam.²):
Eitheren, the straw rope which catches, or loups round the vertical ropes in the thatch of a house or corn-stack, forming the meshes of the netting.Abd. 1915 H. Beaton Back o' Benachie 122:
I think we hae as mony clues twined as gang ower them a'. Hiv ye ony edderins th' year?Bnff. 1930 E. S. Rae Waff o' Win, 80:
Haphazard and untidy stackyards will make the bag rape, the eddrin and the clew, things of the past.Ags. 1931 Abd. Press & Jnl. (15 Jan.):
“Eddrin” is known here, but I do not think it is at all common. Its use is as follows: — When a load is placed on a cart and bound to the sides or ends by ropes passed over it, another rope is led round the load at right angles to the first, and this is known as an eddrin.

Comb.: ‡etherin-bucks, = ether-bucks s.v. Edder, n.¹, (2); cf. Boucht, n.¹, v.¹Abd.⁸ 1917:
I have heard a Cluny man speak of etherin-bucks, which he said were thumbraip for winding round the ankles in time of snow.