Place Names of West Dunbartonshire - 'K'

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Kilbowie

Now an area of Clydebank, Kilbowie was once a farm. In the old seventeenth century Blaeu/Pont map, it is spelt Coulbuy. This suggests that in this case it would be wrong to think that 'Kil' had its usual meaning of 'church'. It seems to be a corruption of Gaelic cul, meaning 'back slope of hill'. Buidhe (pronounced boo-eh) is the Gaelic for 'yellow'/'yellow-ish', and so 'Kilbowie' means 'yellowish hill back slope'. The pronunciation kill bough [as in tree]-eh is a comparatively modern development.

Kilbowie Road, in Clydebank, is a main thoroughfare running north/south through the town on a route that includes the slope that is signified in the name.

Kilpatrick

Kilpatrick was one of the original medieval parishes, and a fairly large one, with its parish kirk situated more or less where the present building with attached burial ground stands today in the village of Old Kilpatrick. The place name suggests that there was some strong connection with St Patrick (as had a number of places in Scotland), commemorated in the dedication of the church. The name is made up of Gaelic cill (="church" or "monk's cell"), and the name of the saint, Patrick.

In 1649, the large parish was divided into West Kilpatrick, later called Old Kilpatrick, and East Kilpatrick, later called New Kilpatrick.

Information on the name 'Old Kilpatrick'.

Information on the name 'New Kilpatrick'.

• Kilpatrick Court (Old Kilpatrick) takes its name from its closeness to Old Kilpatrick Parish Church.
• Kilpatrick Hills - this varied sprawl of craggy hills and moorland stretches from The Long Crags at Dumbarton in a south-westerly direction towards Milngavie. The hills take their name from the old Parish of Kilpatrick to which they belong.
• Kilpatrick View in Dumbarton is self-explanatory, though the "view" is confined at best to the western fringes of the hills - weather permitting!