Now go back and read the title again, but this time pronounce the name Cullane. That's the correct way, believe it or not. During the 1600s the spelling was changed from Cullean to Culzean but that's not the entire explanation. The 'z' is a 'yogh' or 'ʒ' in the same way as it is in Dalziel (pronounced Dee-yell) and in Menzies (pronounced (Ming-iss). It was used in Middle English and Middle Scots, and because of its shape like a figure 3 it was confused with the letter 'z'.
Now you may carry on reading, safe in the knowledge that you are pronouncing the name correctly. :)
Culzean Castle is on the west coast of Scotland, south of Glasgow. It was built in 1777 to replace a stately home that had been there earlier. It now belongs to the National Trust for Scotland but when it was handed over, one of the conditions was that an apartment was to be reserved for Eisenhower in recognition of the part he played during World War II. There is now an Eisenhower exhibition in one of the rooms.
This card was posted in Ayr on 7 July 1977, a time of wonderful weather, by all accounts:
"Childhood haunts revisited after a long absence can be very nostalgic but I realise much more so on a balmy summer evening than in a drizzle".
Visit Marie Reed's The French Factrice to find more people this Postcard Friday.
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I think they should change the spelling.
ReplyDeleteThe aerial view gives a sense of this magnificent spread. Lovely.
ReplyDeleteI remember the hot summer in the late 70s! We'd just moved back to Liverpool from Nigeria and my Mum used to fill up our trunks with water so that I could have a "paddling pool".
ReplyDeleteThat castle looks amazing - I would definitely like to visit there one day.
Oooh, we're possibly visiting the Lake District later in the year - perhaps we can take a day trip out to the castle!
Now that's a CASTLE!!! Who cares how it's spelled?!!!!! ;D ;D Happy PFF!
ReplyDeleteHow cool! My grandmother was from Scotland, and if there's anything I've learned about my heritage, it that the spelling of a word has very little to do with the reality of pronunciation over there!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post, thanks for taking the time to help us pronounce correctly. this is important. Is this castle open to the public?
ReplyDeleteAh, I can identify with the difference between the drizzle and sunshine! It is sunny today--after weeks and weeks of grey dripping skies.
ReplyDeleteLovely postcard. Fascinating blog. Happy PFF!
I've always wondered how some words have such different sounds from the way they look. This just proves that there is an explanation for these things if we just knew the history.
ReplyDeleteSo - is that why cursive zed's look like 3's? I always wondered... Happy PFF!
ReplyDeleteWow. Nice castle. Bet Marie's loved this one.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely place- Looks like a fabulous vacation spot!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE castles... what a wonderful one.... thanks for the history!!! PPF Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDeleteI like the pronounciation lesson - I would never have guessed. And particularly fun for the Scottish - my grandfather was a McClarty, and I hope to get there someday so visit one of my homelands!
ReplyDeleteThe castle looks like a fantastic place to explore. I wonder if anyone ever found the secret passage.
ReplyDeleteDoes the card mention the 200th anniversary on the reverse?
Thank you all for your visits.
ReplyDelete@Emm, I remember the long, hot summer too. I wish you the same for your trip to the Lake District! It depends on how long you're there of course, but I think you'll find plenty to keep you occupied. Then you can have a separate trip to Scotland. :)
@John, no, there was no mention of 200 years. Not so very long before 250 years arrives!
Now THAT's a castle!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fabulous castle! I would love to visit a landmark such as this because there is so much history.
ReplyDeleteThe aerial view gives a sense of this magnificent spread
ReplyDeleteWe were just talking about Culzean today! You'll need to do one on Glamis and Scone too now (pronunciation day ;) )
ReplyDelete