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

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First published 2001 (DOST Vol. X).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

Thretten(e, -ein(e, Thert(t)ene, num. Also: thretteene, -ean(e, -eyn, -in(e, -yne, -inth, threten(e, -een, -ein(e, -eyne, -enie, threiteen, threit(t)ein, threittȝene, threetein, -tean, -yne, thritten(e, -ein, -in(e, thritine, thratten(e, -ein, thratin(e, throttene, -eine, tretene, trettein, thirtin. Pl. thratenys. [ME and e.m.E. þrittene (Orm), þreottene (Layamon), þreattene (Ancr. R.), þret(t)ene, þrottene, thryttene (all 1297), thrittene (a1400), threttene, þirttene (both c1430), thretene (1503), thyrtene (1538), thirtene (1551), OE þréotíene, -éne, ON þrettán.]

A. adj. 1. The cardinal number, thirteen, qualifying a following noun.(a) 1453 Sc. Eccles. Soc. 219.
A new chalys gylt weyand thretten owns and thre quarteris 1472 Lennox Mun. II 85.
Threteine markis 1478 Exch. R. VIII 603 n.
Ane yerely pensioun of threttene pundis of usuale money 1491 Treas. Acc. I 196.
Diuers sowmis … extending to aucht hundreth foure score ellevin pundis threttene schillingis foure pennyis 1544 Reg. Cupar A. II 31.
Payand ȝerelie … for thair teind … threttene fidder of petis leding 1549 Compl. 80/6.
He tint threttyne battellis contrar Inglismen 1549 Reg. Episc. Aberd. I 447.
Threteyne 1568 St. A. Kirk S. 300.
Robert Alexander yownger confessit hymself to be bot of threttein yeris of aige at Sanct Laurence day last bipast 1586 Treas. Acc. MS 109.
Threittȝene 1593 Edinb. B. Rec. V 106.
To … furneis threttein cuscheons … twelf to the lords of sessioun and ane to my lord provest 1595 Edinb. B. Rec. V 146.
William Younger, cordiner, ane of the threttein beidmen of the awld hospitall of the Trinity College 1598 Aberd. Eccl. Rec. 165.
The presbyterie ordenit him to sitt threttein Sondayes in saikclaith 1601 Pont Cunningham App. 180.
Threttine 1655 Stitchill Baron Ct. 6.
Threttean 1655 Wemyss Chart. 242.
Thretteine 1657 Fraser P. 135.
Thretteane 1661 Soc. Ant. XXII 247.
Threteen 1662 Crim. Trials III 606.
Ther is threttein persones in ilk coeven 1668 Orkney Antiq. Soc. V 39.
Threittein 1671 Kirkcudbr. Test. (Kirkcudbr. Sheriff Ct.) 25 July.
Threttinth punds Scotts money for hir fies 1672 Sc. Hist. Rev. XXV 265.
[That the beadle] brak no ground in the church yeard to any stranger without he gives for the poor for each man and woman threiteen shillings four pennies Scots 1675 Kirkcaldy B. Rec. MS 28 June.
Thretenie a1686 Turner Mem. 44.
The Scotch armie … is modelled in seven regiments of foot, thretteene troops of horse, and three companies of dragooners(b) 1677 Rothesay B. Rec. 349.
Kathrin Lamont spouss to the said Gilbert now be the space of threetyne years 1680-1 Blackness Customs 5b.
Eight hundretht pund weycht of whyt roopes in threetein coolls & tua bundls 1699 Dunbar Social Life I 31.
The best bearmeall at threitein merks four shillings, six penies per boll 16… Culross II 169.
Thrittein half fatts, sextean pleatts, threetean salt-fatts(c) 1612 Prot. Bk. W. Leslie 6.
Ane croft … Extending in the haill to thrattein bollis ane firlott beir sawing 1673 Kirkcudbr. Test. (Reg. H.) 25 Dec.
More to Thomas Brown smith thratin peeks of cornpl. 1513 Colquhoun Chart. II 324.
In the ȝeir of God M^o V^c and thratenys ȝeris(d) 1553 Banff Ann. I 31.
Four poundis and tretene schillingis … deliueret to the sklaitter for the pwyntting [? = pointing] of the haill kirk(e) 1648–9 Aberd. Shore Wk. Acc. 308.
For his anckerage thritten s. four d. 1652 Antiq. Aberd. & B. III 280.
Thritine 1652 Antiq. Aberd. & B. III 280.
Thrittine 1653 Aberd. B. Rec. IV 136.
The tuo shilling whyt loaf suld be fourtene unces, and the twelff d. ait loaff betwixt thritten unces and 13 and ane halff 16… Culross II 169 (see (b) above).
Thrittein(f) 1551 Antiq. Aberd. & B. III 182.
Quhilk … fyschyng … his said father had of us abefoir … for the space of sevynteine yeiris of the quhilk thair is yit therttene yeirs to rene

b. As part of a larger number. 1498 Montgomery Mem. 53.
To pay … the sowm of thratten hunder markis 1504 Treas. Acc. II 276.
For ane hundreth four score thretene rachteris 1549 Reg. Episc. Aberd. I 447.
Payand … threten dowsoun pultre ane berrall salmond for the fisching 1561 Q. Kennedy Compendious Ressonyng (ed.) 150/15.
Obet Mes was obserwit and vsit in the kirk of God thretteyn hundreth ȝeir syne and mair 1632 Edinb. Test. LVI 24.
Threttene hundreth courting ringis

c. As part of a sum indicating the rental value or extent of a piece of land. 1528 Glasgow Dioc. Reg. I 89.
The sammyn day is rentalit James Wode in thrattene s. land of Conflattis 1553 Glasgow Dioc. Reg. I 142.
Archbald Horne is rentallit in trettein s. iiij penny land of Lomlocht 1600 Grant Chart. 196.
All and haill the castell, … and maneir place … and the thrattene merk landis

2. Put for the ordinal number. Also absol. = Thrette(i)nt num. a1400 Leg. S. ii 72.
[St. Paul] prechit thare in landis sere, Till of Nero the thratten ȝere c1420 Wynt. v 94.
Be-efft hys byrth the thretten day 1492 Reg. Episc. Morav. 244.
At Narn the threteine day of August 1513 Doug. xiii Prol. 101.
Mapheus Vegius … That onto Virgillis lusty bukis sweit The thretteyn [Sm., Ruddim. threttene] buke ekit Eneadan 1549 Lamb Resonyng 95/18.
This [sc. contradiction] nedis na vther pruife than Polidor in his tuelf and threttein buik 1572-5 Diurn. Occurr. 221.
The thrittene day of Junij 1573 Sempill in Sat. P. xxxix 265.
Haif thay not thre tymes in this threttene ȝeir, … send thair forces hedder 1592 Reg. Great S. 729/2.
Cum decimotertio grano the throtteine curne 1604 Misc. Spald. C. II 283.
Thrattein 1609 Skene Reg. Maj. i 143b.
Giff any man grindes at hand mylnes he sall giue the threttein measure as multer 1629 Hossack Kirkwall 259.
Confest the threttin point anent Johne Turkes aill 1667 Kirkcudbr. Sheriff Ct. Deeds I 145.
The thratine mounth localatie payed be use the abovewryten tenents to Capten Insish 1685 Stirling B. Rec. II 47.
The thrittin act of his majesties currant parliament 1689 Curiosities Charta Chest 57.
Thirtin

B. absol. and ellipt., passing into noun. a. In sense 1 above. b. In sense 2 above.a. 1388 Slater Early Sc. Texts No. 14.
The qhuylk toftis haldis of lenthe achttene fal lang and thertene of brede c1400 Troy-bk. ii 3060.
Vlixes liffed als but wene A hundreth ȝere hole and threttene c1515 Asl. MS I 246/25.
This Fergus chesit the red rampand lioun till his armes thre hundreth ȝere and threttene befor the birth of Crist 1531 Vaus in Grant Burgh Schools 55.
How mony [pronownes] ar demonstratiuis? Thretene 1597 Skene Verb. S. s.v. Breve.
Certaine lauchfull menne … to the number of thretteene … ar chosen 1611 M. Works Acc. (ed.) I 338.
[For] twa wondokes … mended with ane leven feit of new glas and throttene of auld glas sett into new leid 1638 Baillie I 132.
Amongst all the commissions none was controverted but threttein 1677 Kirkcaldy B. Rec. MS 22 Oct.
The persones following were electit stentmaisters … whairoff thretein to be ane quorumb. 1689 Acts XII 61/2.
The reasones of the resolve brought in … for settleing the government … To the threttein by subverteing the rycht of the royall burrowes