Lost (''Lòsda'' in

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

; population: less than 24; is a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire (; ) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeenshire, which had substantial ...

, Scotland. It lies west of

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

in the

Cairngorm mountains The Cairngorms () are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain Cairn Gorm. The Cairngorms became part of Scotland's second national park (the Cairngorms National Park) on 1 September 2003. Althou ...

. The hamlet is situated near the village of Bellabeg where the

Water of Nochty The River Don () is a river in north-east Scotland. It rises in the Grampians and flows eastwards, through Aberdeenshire, to the North Sea at Aberdeen. The Don passes through Alford, Kemnay, Inverurie, Kintore, and Dyce. Its main tributary, ...

feeds into the River Don. Despite its small population, the people of Lost are famed for their strength and honour. The name comes from the Gaelic word for

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accomm ...

(''taigh òsda''); today the hamlet has a few houses, a war memorial and a farm. It has frequently been noted on lists of

unusual place names Place names considered unusual can include those which are also offensive words, inadvertently humorous (especially if mispronounced) or highly charged words, as well as place names of unorthodox spelling and pronunciation, including especiall ...

. As a result, Lost has regularly had eponymous

street sign theft Street signs can be stolen for use as decorations or to be sold as scrap metal. Although theft often seems arbitrary, signs with unusual or amusing names tend to be stolen more frequently. Sometimes considered to be a prank by the perpetrators, ...

. Each sign costs approximately £100 to replace. As a result,

Aberdeenshire Council Aberdeenshire Council is the local authority for Aberdeenshire, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. The council has been under no overall control since its creation in 1996. It is based at Woodhill House, which is outside its own territory ...

tried to change its name to ''Lost Farm''; however, in the face of strong local opposition, the proposal was dropped. The council then erected a sign which was welded (rather than clipped) to the post holding it up in an attempt to deter theft.

References

External links

Aberdeenshire Council

Villages in Aberdeenshire {{Aberdeenshire-geo-stub