The Water of Leith is the main river flowing through Edinburgh, Scotland, to the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth.
It is 35 km (22 mi) long and rises in the Colzium Springs at Millstone Rig of the Pentland Hills. It travels through Harperrig Reservoir, past the ruins of Cairns Castle, through Balerno, Currie, Juniper Green, Colinton, Slateford, Longstone, Saughton, Balgreen, Roseburn and on to the nearest it gets to the Edinburgh city centre at the Dean Village, on the site of old watermills in a deep gorge. This ravine is dramatically spanned by the Dean Bridge, designed by Thomas Telford, which was built in 1832 for the road to Queensferry, and lies next to the New Town.
The river flows on past Stockbridge, Inverleith, Canonmills and Warriston where it passes through shallows at a place known as Puddocky which is commonly thought to refer to "puddocks", the Scots language term for frogs, but actually took its name from the former Paddock Hall which was sited nearby. The river continues past Bonnington, the site of another watermill, to Leith where it widens into the old harbour and port at the Shore. Leith Docks have been extended considerably out into the firth from the old shoreline, and there are now plans to discontinue their use as a port and use the area for housing redevelopment.
The Water of Leith (also known as Ōwheo, the River Leith or Leith Stream), is a small river in the South Island of New Zealand.
It rises to the north of the city of Dunedin, flowing for 14 kilometres (9 mi) southeast through the northern part of the city and the campus of the University of Otago before reaching the Otago Harbour. The name of the city of Dunedin is the anglicised form of Dùn Èideann which is the Scottish Gaelic form of the name Edinburgh, and thus the river is also named for the Water of Leith which runs through the Scottish capital. The original Māori name for the stream was Ōwheo ("The place of Wheo"), Wheo being the name of a local chief whose village stood close to its mouth. This name is now rarely used.
The Leith's source is close to the Dunedin Northern Motorway, part of State Highway 1, 100 metres (330 ft) south of Leith Saddle, at an elevation of some 380 metres (1,250 ft) above sea level. The motorway passes over the Leith Saddle, which lies between the sources of the Leith and the Waitati River, approximately half way between the northern suburb of Pine Hill and the outlying settlement of Waitati.
Coordinates: 55°58′48″N 3°10′12″W / 55.980089°N 3.170049°W / 55.980089; -3.170049
Leith /ˈliːθ/; Scottish Gaelic: Lìte; is a district to the north of the city of Edinburgh at the mouth of the Water of Leith.
The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of Holyrood Abbey in 1128. The medieval settlements of Leith had grown into a burgh by 1833, and the burgh was merged into Edinburgh in 1920.
Leith is sited on the coast of the Firth of Forth and lies within the council area of the City of Edinburgh.
The port remains one of its most valuable enterprises, handling over 1.5 million tonnes of cargo a year in 2003.
Previous to the bridge being built in the late 15th century, Leith had settlements on either side of the river, lacking an easy crossing.
South Leith was larger and was controlled by the lairds of Restalrig: the Logan family. It was based on trade and had many merchants' houses and warehouses. This was where ships offloaded their cargoes at The Shore where they were collected by Edinburgh merchants. Leithers were explicitly forbidden by statute to participate directly in the trade at the port, to ensure that landed goods were not sold elsewhere.
Leith is a port and district of Edinburgh, Scotland
Leith may also refer to
Leith was a burgh constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1950. The constituency elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
There was also an earlier Leith Burghs constituency, 1832 to 1918, and a later Edinburgh Leith constituency, 1950 to 1997.
The Leith constituency was created under the Representation of the People Act 1918, and first used in the 1918 general election, to cover the burgh of Leith, in the county of Midlothian. The burgh was previously within the Leith Burghs constituency.
1918 boundaries were used also in the general elections of 1922, 1923, 1924, 1929, 1931, 1935 and 1945.
The burgh was merged into the city of Edinburgh in 1920, and for the 1950 general election, under the House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Act 1949, the Edinburgh Leith constituency was created as one of seven constituencies covering the city and the Midlothian burgh of Musselburgh.