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A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)

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First published 1971 (DOST Vol. IV).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

March, Merch(e, v.¹ Also: marche, marsh, mairch, meyrche. [ME. (c 1330) and e.m.E. march(e, OF. marchier, -ir, intr. to border, be adjacent (to), also 16th c. F. marcher tr. (Rabelais) to bound.]

1. intr. To border, be adjacent to (till), also nere (to or till); to have a common boundary with, also nere with, to be situated alongside the boundary of; to be bounded or bordered by (be).Said of countries, pieces of land, etc., and also of their rulers, owners, occupants, etc.(1) 1375 Barb. i. 99.
[Edward] Trawayllyt … till occupy Landis that war till him marcheand As Walis was and als Ireland c1400 Troy-bk. ii. 1491. c1420 Wynt. ii. 1164.
Off this manere kyngys fyve That marchyd nere thame herde belyve Ib. 1668.
Pannony That marchys nere tyll Wngary Ib. iv. 2418. Ib. 618.
Danoy, that gret rywere That marchand is to Sythy nere 1484 Perth Guildry 16 Nov.
[That] Duncan … haid done … that he aucht to do as he that wes merchand to thaim 1609 Skene Reg. Maj. ii. 12. 1615 Aberd. B. Rec. II. 322.
Outlandis lordis landis lyand and merchand contigue thairvnto Ib. III. 7.
The remanent proprietares of the yardis mercheand to Sanct Catharines hill(2) c1420 Wynt. v. 499.
Of all the landys that marchyd than Nere wyth the kynryk off Brettan 1431 Liber Melros 524.
Four akiris of land … marchand on the est side with the lordis husbandis landis 1500 Reg. Episc. Brechin I. 218. 1533 Boece i. viii. 52 b.
The cuntre marching with the wattir of Spey 1549 Compl. 166/35. 1662 Lamont Diary 155.
The Earle of Craford, in Fyffe, bought the lands of Carskirdo, that marshes with him(b) 1527 Dumfr. & Galloway Soc. 3 Ser. XXXIX. 68 (12 Aug.).
Sax rude of common land merchand with the kyrkyard dyke 1531 Bell. Boece I. xxxii. 1544 Antiq. Aberd. & B. II. 431.
Ane land … merchand and boundand with Sanct Katerinis Hill 1583–4 Edinb. B. Rec. IV. 315.
The waist lands of thair commoun mwre hes … bene … brokin … be the nichtbouris merchant thairwith 1599 Reg. Great S. 328/1. 1630-1651 Gordon Geneal. Hist. 9.(c) 1596 Dalr. I. 57/27.
Mairchis with Eusta the ile callit Leuis(3) 1604-31 Craig i. 22.
Be blithe Tued march'd thy kingdoms once, & now must march thy cairs

2. pass. (To be) bounded or bordered by (be, with) (lands, a boundary wall, a neighbouring landowner, etc.), within (a wall, etc.).(1) 1420 Liber Calchou 447.
The est ende of the Bowtyr Law marchit with a dyk of the west syde c1420 Wynt. i. 946.
Egipt lyis all marchyde thus Wytht syndry natyownys twenty and foure 1537 Dunferm. Reg. Ct. 146.
Fray ane part of the samyn lyand at the northt syd thairof marcheit with the myll land of Toucht 1617 Antiq. Aberd. & B. IV. 686. 16.. Abercrummie in Macfarlane's Geog. Coll. II. 2.
Eastward this countrey is all alongst marched with the countrey of … Galloway 16.. Symson's Descr. Galloway 119.
The southern semicircle … (from Dumfrise … round about to Minigoff) is marched with the sea(2) 1567–8 Reg. Privy S. VI. 39.
All and haill the thrid pece of kirkland foirsaid quhilk is merchit about the outfeild of Lochend … be the thre pairtis foirsaidis(3) 1570 Inverness Rec. I. 191.
Till haue the haill freyouris yeardis and croftis boundit and merchit within the auld wallis thairof

b. p.p. Bounded, having its boundary (? officially settled, ? marked) (as follows, etc.).Passing into March v.² 1586 Melville Chart. 126.
The saidis sex akeris … boundit and merchit as said is 1627 Banff Ann. II. 212.
That pairt of the schoir … contigue to the sea, merchet as followis 1633 Acts V. (1817) 103/1.
And that pairt and portioun of the lordshipe of Dumbar boundit, meithit and merchit as eftirfollowes

3. tr. To border, adjoin; to be bordered by. 1550 Reg. Cupar A. II. 94.
Our town and landis … boundand and marcheand at the north west pairt the landis pertenand the abbay of Scone 1590 Reg. Great S. 811/2.
Quhilk drawdyke merchis the myre … on the west. and the arrabill landis … on the eist

b. fig. To bound, limit, confine. 1609 Craig iii. 28.
Alas, that th'earth should march a noble name

4. absol. or intr. ? To constitute a boundary or border. 1509 Rec. Earld. Orkney 82.
The dyk-steith … sall be meyrche one the ane part … and fre the said dyk … to the lawest of the se … that to meyrche one the vder part ?1549 Monro W. Isles (1961) 47.
Ellsay being marchand midsea betwixt the said marches [sc. Carrick, Ireland and Kintyre]