English / Map Form: Cour Loop
Gaelic Form: Cuairt a' Chùrra
Location: Lochaber, Highland
Post Town: SPEAN BRIDGE
Postcode area: PH34
County: Inverness-shire
Local Authority: Highland
English / Map Form: Cour Loop
Gaelic Form: Cuairt a' Chùrra
Language Notes
G nom. sg. cuirt, 'circuit' + def. art. a' + gen. sg. cùrr, ‘corner, pit’ = ‘loop of the pit’Element Meaning
G cuairt ~ loop; cùrr ~ corner, pit
Sources
Cour related names:
| Avon Curr | 1654 Blaeu map (Breadalbane) |
| Leachghlean Cour | 1820 Thomson |
Additional Information
The primary name here is the watercourse now called the Cour in SSE. In the vicinity there are also Cour Bridge and Poll Cour. The Cour is both the name of the river and the name of a place on the river. It seems likely that the name of a place by the river has come to be known as the watercourse itself. The place could either be the place known as the Cour, (NN239790) by a bend in the river, in which case curr, `corner’ might be the derivation, or else the waterfall at NN243804 might have originally been called A’ Chaoir ‘the rapid torrent’ as mentioned in MacMillan. The former seems more likely given the existence of the locality of The Cour (although the bend is quite slight as it appears on maps).
The name Cour Loop is not really a place-name as such, but is the name of a circular path.
By way of a parrallel, on Invermoriston River there is:
| Avon Curr, Inner Cuir | 1654 Blaeu Map (Northern Scotland) |
| Inner Curr | 1654 Blaeu Map (Breadalbane) |
