Marr ( Scottish Gaelic: ''Màrr'') is one of six committee areas in

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...

, Scotland. It has a population of 34,038 (2001 Census). Someone from Marr is called a ''Màrnach'' in Scottish Gaelic.

Etymology

The genesis of the name ''Marr'' is uncertain. ''Mar'', a Brittonic personal name, may be involved. Further possibilities include a connection with the ethnic names ''Marsi'' and ''Marsigni'' of Italy and Bohemia, or a derivation from Old Norse ''marr'' meaning "sea, marsh, fen". American academic Thomas Clancy has noted cautiously the similarity between the territory names '' Buchan'' and ''Marr'' to those of the Welsh commotes '' Cantref Bychan'' and '' Cantref Mawr'', meaning "large-" and "small-commote", respectively. Linguist Guto Rhys adjudged the proposal "appealing" but "questionable", on the basis that the form ''Marr'' conflicts with the expected development of ''mawr''.

Features

To the west, the mountain environment of the Cairngorms

National Park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

sustains a well-developed tourist industry based on heritage and outdoor pursuits. Forestry and livestock farming are key industries, particularly in remoter areas. Part of the area has qualified for EU financial assistance. To the east, Marr has experienced population growth due to its strong commuter links with the city of Aberdeen. The committee area consists of three

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...

of Aberdeenshire council: *Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside *Banchory and Mid-Deeside *Huntly, Strathbogie and Howe of Alford Between them the three wards elect 10 councillors to the sixty-eight member council.

Historic province

Marr is named after Mar, one of the historic provinces of Scotland, extending from north of the Don southward to the Mounth. Like other such areas, it was under the rule of a mormaer in the Middle Ages. In the 12th century an earl (the Earl of Mar) took his place, but no definite succession of earls appears until the 13th century, nor has any genealogical connection been established between them and the mormaers. In the eleventh century

Malcolm III Malcolm III ( mga, Máel Coluim mac Donnchada, label=Medieval Gaelic; gd, Maol Chaluim mac Dhonnchaidh; died 13 November 1093) was King of Scotland from 1058 to 1093. He was later nicknamed "Canmore" ("ceann mòr", Gaelic, literally "big head" ...

introduced the office of sheriff to Scotland. He and his successors

Edgar Edgar is a commonly used English given name, from an Anglo-Saxon name ''Eadgar'' (composed of '' ead'' "rich, prosperous" and ''gar'' "spear"). Like most Anglo-Saxon names, it fell out of use by the later medieval period; it was, however, rev ...

, Alexander I and in particular David I established

sheriffdom A sheriffdom is a judicial district in Scotland, led by a sheriff principal. Since 1 January 1975, there have been six sheriffdoms. Each sheriffdom is divided into a series of sheriff court districts, and each sheriff court is presided over by a ...

s throughout the country. In the mid 19th century, local government reforms replaced the ancient provinces with new counties (''shires''), aligned to sheriffdom boundaries; hence, Marr became the southern portion of the shire of Aberdeen.

References

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