East Kilbride

Coordinates: 55°45′52″N 4°10′38″W / 55.764529°N 4.17711°W / 55.764529; -4.17711

East Kilbride (Scottish Gaelic: Cille Bhrìghde an Ear) is the largest town in South Lanarkshire in Scotland. It is also designated as Scotland's first new town on 6 May 1947. The area lies on high ground on the south side of the Cathkin Braes, about 8 miles (13 km) southeast of Glasgow and close to the boundary with East Renfrewshire.

The town is enclosed by the White Cart River to the west and the Rotten Calder to the east, the latter flowing northwards to join the River Clyde near Cambuslang. This area was previously the site of the small village of East Kilbride, prior to its post-war development.

History

The earliest evidence of habitation in the area dates back to ancient graves found near the Kype Water to the south of the district. Roman coins and footwear have also been found in the area.

East Kilbride takes its name from an Irish saint named St Bride (or Brigit), who founded a monastery for nuns and monks in Kildare, Ireland in the 6th century. Dál Riatan monks introduced her order to Scotland. The anglicisation Kil, takes its root from the early Celtic monastics that St. Brigit is representative of: the Culdees or Céli Dé. The Céile Dé were 'the clients or companions of God'. In modern Gaelic, Cille Bhrìghde translates similarly as 'the clients or companions of Brigit.

East Kilbride (Scottish Parliament constituency)

East Kilbride is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the plurality (first past the post) method of election. Also, however, it is one of nine constituencies in the Central Scotland electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to nine constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Electoral region

The other eight constituencies of the Central Scotland region are Airdrie and Shotts, Coatbridge and Chryston, Cumbernauld and Kilsyth, Falkirk East, Falkirk West, Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, Motherwell and Wishaw and Uddingston and Bellshill.

The region covers all of the Falkirk council area, all of the North Lanarkshire council area and part of the South Lanarkshire council area.

Constituency boundaries and council area

The constituency was created at the same time as the Scottish Parliament, in 1999, with the name and boundaries of an existing Westminster constituency. In 2005, however, Scottish Westminster (House of Commons) constituencies were mostly replaced with new constituencies.

East Kilbride (disambiguation)

East Kilbride may refer to:

East Kilbride (UK Parliament constituency)

East Kilbride was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (at Westminster) from 1974 until 2005. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP), elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.

At the 2005 general election it was merged with part of Clydesdale to form the new constituency of East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow.

The East Kilbride Holyrood constituency, created to be coterminous in 1999, continues in use for elections to the Scottish Parliament.

Boundaries

As abolished in 2005, the constituency included the town of East Kilbride and was one of five constituencies covering the South Lanarkshire council area, the others being Hamilton North and Bellshill, Hamilton South, Glasgow Rutherglen and Clydesdale.

Members of Parliament

Elections of the 1970s

Elections of the 1980s

Elections of the 1990s

Elections of the 2000s

References