Douglas Water Downstream of Douglasmouth Bridge - geograph

The Douglas Water () is a river in

South Lanarkshire South Lanarkshire (; ) is one of 32 unitary authorities of Scotland. It borders the south-east of the Glasgow City council area and contains some of Greater Glasgow's suburban towns, as well as many rural towns and villages. It also shares bor ...

of south-central

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. It is a tributary of the

River Clyde The River Clyde (, ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde, in the west of Scotland. It is the eighth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the second longest in Scotland after the River Tay. It runs through the city of Glasgow. Th ...

Etymology

The river's name comes from the

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

''dubh-ghlas'' or Brittonic ''dūβ-*glẹiss'', both meaning either "black water" or "black stream".

Course

The course of the Douglas Water is entirely within the South Lanarkshire council area. The river rises in the hills which separate

Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark (; ), is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and registration county in the Central Lowlands and Southern Uplands of Scotland. The county is no l ...

from

Ayrshire Ayrshire (, ) is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county, in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. The lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Ayrshire and Arran covers the entirety ...

, to the south west of

Muirkirk Muirkirk () is a small village in East Ayrshire, southwest Scotland. It is located on the north bank of the River Ayr, between Cumnock and Glenbuck on the A70. Conservation The Muirkirk & North Lowther Uplands Special Protection Area was s ...

. The source is close to that of the

River Ayr The River Ayr (pronounced like ''air'', ''Uisge Àir'' in Gaelic) is a river in Ayrshire, Scotland. At it is the longest river in the county. The river was held as sacred by pre-Christian cultures. The remains of several prehistoric sacrificial ...

, which flows west to the sea, but the Douglas Water runs north-east then east, past Glespin and into Douglasdale. Here the river flows through the village of

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking * Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil ...

, and past the scant remains of

Douglas Castle Douglas Castle was a stronghold of the Douglas (later Douglas-Home) family from medieval times to the 20th century. The first castle, erected in the 13th century, was destroyed and replaced several times until the 18th century when a large man ...

. The castle was a stronghold of the

House of Douglas Clan Douglas (Gaelic: ''Dùbhghlas'') is an ancient clan or noble house from the Scottish Lowlands. Taking their name from Douglas in Lanarkshire, their leaders gained vast territories throughout the Borders, Angus, Lothian, Moray, and also i ...

, a powerful medieval family who took their surname from the river. The

A70 road The A70 road is a major road in Scotland, United Kingdom. It runs a total of from Edinburgh to Ayr. It begins as Dalry Road at the Haymarket, Edinburgh junction with the A8 road (Scotland), A8, passing near but not through Lanark and ending as ...

follows the river through Douglasdale, and on to the Clyde. East of Douglas, the river passes under the

M74 motorway The A74(M) and M74 form a major motorway in Scotland, connecting it to England. The routes connect the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway in central Glasgow to the Scottish-English Anglo-Scottish border, border at Gretna, Scotland, Gretna. T ...

, just south of the Happendon services, and turns toward the north-east again. Below the village of

Rigside Rigside is a small village in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, about from the town of Lanark, and less than from Douglas Water. It lies on the A70 road to Ayr, and has approximately 800 inhabitants. Rigside is a former mining village. The villa ...

, the smaller Poniel Burn flows into the Douglas Water. Beyond this confluence is the small village of

Douglas Water The Douglas Water () is a river in South Lanarkshire of south-central Scotland. It is a tributary of the River Clyde. Etymology The river's name comes from the Gaelic ''dubh-ghlas'' or Brittonic ''dūβ-*glẹiss'', both meaning either "black ...

. A dismantled railway line runs between the river and the A70 for the remaining of its course. The Douglas Water flows into the Clyde around south of

Lanark Lanark ( ; ; ) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, located 20 kilometres to the south-east of Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton. The town lies on the River Clyde, at its confluence with Mouse Water. In 2016, the town had a populatio ...

References

{{authority control Rivers of South Lanarkshire River Clyde

Water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...