A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 2000 (DOST Vol. VIII).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
(Scail,) Scaill, n.2 Also: skaill. (? ME (north.) and e.m.E. scale a maniple, squadron, battalion (c1400, rendering OF eschele), med. L. scala (whence OF eschiel(l)e, eskiele), or ? an early instance of Scailn.1, here = ‘a dispersed company, a scattered party’ (OED). But perh. merely due to misreading of Stale n.1) — 1375 Barb. xv 337* (C).
Schir Adam … Saw bot the fleand scaill [or staill; 1571 scaill, H. skaill] perfay And thame that sesyt in the pray Ib. (1571) xv 353*.
Bot than baith forray, and the scaill, War knit in till ane sop all haill
You may wish to vary the format shown below depending on the citation style used.
"Scail n.2". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 2 May 2024 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/scail_n_2>