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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1971 (SND Vol. VIII). Includes material from the 2005 supplement.
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

SAUMON, n. Also samon (s.Sc. 1793 T. Scott Poems 329; Abd. 1828 D. Anderson Poems 26), sawmon (Abd. 1851 W. Anderson Rhymes 141), -min (Abd. 1925 Scots Mag. (Jan.) 301), saulmon (Slg. 1932 W. D. Cocker Poems 142); sa(u)mont (Ayr. 1790 A. Tait Poems 131; Bwk. 1863 A. Steel Poems 64; Fif., Lth. 1926 Wilson Cent. Scot. 263), sawmont (Sc. 1818 S. Ferrier Marriage xxxiv.), -mint (Ags. 1894 J. B. Salmond B. Bowden (1922) 99), salmond (Abd. 1720 S.C. Misc. (1842) 100, Sc. 1754 Records Conv. Burghs (1915) 474). Sc. forms and usages of Eng. salmon. [′sǫmən, ′sɑ-]

Sc. form of Eng. salmon.Fif. 1987 Tom Hubbard in Joy Hendry Chapman 47-8 62:
I am the saumon, slippy ti be won.
I am thon lochan i the haar-fou howe,
I am thon saicret word in ilka leid,
I am thon bairn that sall forever growe,Sc. 1991 Roderick Watson in Tom Hubbard The New Makars 108:
They tak their gin in barrels broached,
Sauces, broths, an muckle saumon,Dundee 2000 Matthew Fitt But n Ben A-Go-Go 72:
They lived weel. They ate beluga caviar an fresh watter American saumon. They went their holidays tae bools-in-the-mooth volcano resorts an were aye leal an true tae ane anither.

Sc. usages:

1. As in Eng. Combs. (1) salmon cellar, a store house or hut where caught salmon are kept fresh. Cf. Eng. dial. fish-cellar; (2) saumon(t) co(b)ble, a flat-bottomed boat used in salmon-fishing (Cai., ne.Sc., em.Sc. (a), Gall. 1969). See Coble, n.²; (3) salmon cran, a measure of fish (see quot. and Cran, n.²); (4) salmon cruive, a trap in a river to catch salmon (Cai., ne.Sc., Ags., sm.Sc. 1969). See Cruive, n., 3.; (5) salmon fishers, a children's ring-dance game played to a song beginning “Come ye by the salmon fishers?” (ne.Sc. 1898 A. B. Gomme Games II. 181); (6) salmon fleuk, the flounder, Platichthys flesus (Abd. 1815 J. Arbuthnot Fishes 60); (7) sa'mon-kettle, see Kettle, 3.; (8) saumon lowp, (i) a cascade in a river up which salmon have to leap in their ascent. See Lowp, n., 3.; (ii) also saumon's —, a variety of leapfrog (Per. 1915 Wilson L. Strathearn 265; Per. 1969); (9) sawmon-rae, salmon-roe (Kcb. 1969); (10) saumon-raun, id. (Cai., Abd. 1969). See Rawn.(1) Abd. 1781 Caled. Mercury (23 April):
The feu-duty payable by the heritors of Nether Don for their salmon cellars.(2) Ayr. 1786 Burns Auld Farmer's Salut. vii.:
Tho' now ye dow but hoyte and hoble, An' wintle like a saumont-coble.ne.Sc. 1881 W. Gregor Folk-Lore 146:
In going past a salmon cobble in the harbour, a fisherman would not have allowed his boat to touch it.(3) Bnff. 1794 Stat. Acc.¹ XIII. 404, note:
Some of the boats caught in a night 27 salmon crans, i.e. 27,000 herrings.(4) Per. 1764 Caled. Mercury (11 Jan.) 20:
The water of Earn, on which there is a salmon cruive belonging to the lands.(8) (ii) Mry., Lnk. 1909 J. Colville Lowland Sc. 125:
In Lanark and in Moray the boys know the game as the sawmon-loup.Bnff. 1923 Banffshire Jnl. (18 Sept.) 8:
He gi'es them shouds an' salmon loups.(9) Sc. 1831 Wilson Noctes Amb. (1855) III. 226:
Fishin sometimes wi' the baggy-mennon — and sometimes wi' the sawmon-rae.(10) Sc. 1824 Scott Redgauntlet Let. vi.:
The water being in such a rare trim for the saumon raun, he couldna help taking a cast.

2. A cloud formation (see quot.).Bwk. 1863 Edb. New Philosoph. Jnl. XVIII. 222:
The farmers in Berwickshire say that a long stripe of cloud sometimes called by them a salmon, sometimes called Noah's ark, when it stretches through the atmosphere in an east and west direction is a sign of stormy weather, but when it stretches in a north and south direction, is a sign of dry weather.