Dunblane

Coordinates: 56°11′02″N 3°58′03″W / 56.183827°N 3.967410°W / 56.183827; -3.967410

Dunblane (Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Bhlàthain) is a small cathedral town and former Royal burgh north of Stirling in the Stirling council area of Scotland. The town is situated off the A9 road which has been bypassed since 1991, on the way north to Perth. Its main landmark is Dunblane Cathedral and the Allan Water runs through the town centre, with the Cathedral and the High Street on the east side. Dunblane had a population of 8,114 at the 2001 census which grew to 8,811 at the 2011 census, both figures computed according to the 2010 definition of the locality.

The town is served by Dunblane railway station.

History

The name Dunblane is sometimes said to mean "fort of Blane", commemorating an early saint (Old Irish Bláán) who flourished probably in the late 6th century. His main seat was originally Kingarth on the Isle of Bute. He or his followers may have founded a church at Dunblane - it is likely that the cult of Bláán came there with settlers from what is now Argyll in later centuries. The earliest spellings of the name Dunblane are of the form Dul Blaan, the first element being a Pictish word for 'water meadow, haugh' which was borrowed into Gaelic. This is more likely a name than 'fort of Blane', given that saints do not usually have forts, while we have parallels to Dul Blaan in such Scottish place-names such as Dalserf, Dalmarnock and Dalpatrick, all of which commemorate saints.