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Kingussie ( ; ) is a small
town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
in the
Badenoch and Strathspey Badenoch and Strathspey was a Districts of Scotland, local government district, created in 1975 as one of eight districts within the Highland (region), Highland region in Scotland. The district was abolished in 1996 when Highland was made a s ...
ward of the
Highland council area Highland (, ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom. It was the 7th most populous council area in Scotland at the United Kingdo ...
of
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 ...
.
Historically History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...
in
Inverness-shire Inverness-shire () or the County of Inverness, is a Counties of Scotland, historic county in Scotland. It is named after Inverness, its largest settlement, which was also the county town. Covering much of the Scottish Highlands, Highlands and s ...
, it lies beside the
A9 road This is a list of roads designated A9. * A009 road (Argentina), a road in the northeast of Santa Fe Province * ''A9 highway (Australia)'' may refer to : ** A9 (Sydney), a road linking Windsor and Campbelltown ** Port River Expressway, a limi ...
, although the old route of the A9 serves as the town's main street which has been bypassed since 1979. Kingussie is south of
Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...
, south of
Aviemore Aviemore (; ) is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popular for skiing and ...
, and north of
Newtonmore Newtonmore ( ) is a village of approximately 1100 inhabitants in Badenoch, within the Highland (council area), Highland council area of Scotland. The village is only a few miles from a location that is claimed to be the exact geographical centre ...
.


History

The name "Kingussie" 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 ...
, "Ceann a' Ghiuthsaich" which means "Head of the Pine forest". The ruins of the early 18th-century
Ruthven Barracks Ruthven Barracks (), near Ruthven, Badenoch, Ruthven in Badenoch, Scotland, are the best preserved of the four barracks built in 1719 after the 1715 Jacobitism, Jacobite rising. Set on an old castle mound, the complex comprises two large three-st ...
(
Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) () is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the merger of government agency Historic Sc ...
; open to visitors at all times) lie near the original site of the village, which was moved to avoid the
flood plain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...
of the
River Spey The River Spey () is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom and the third longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is an important location for the traditions of salmon fishing an ...
. The Hanoverian Barracks were built on the site of Ruthven Castle, the seat of the Comyns,
Lords of Badenoch Lords may refer to: * The plural of Lord Places *Lords Creek, a stream in New Hanover County, North Carolina *Lord's, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone Cricket Club and Middlesex County Cricket Club People *Traci Lords (born 19 ...
in the Middle Ages. On 9 January 2025 two lynx were captured after being sighted near to Kingussie, Scotland. They were put in quarantine at Highland Wildlife Park with plans to transfer them to Edinburgh Zoo. It is thought that the animals were illegally released. On 10 January police reported that two more lynx were seen and captured in the same area.


Gaelic

Despite the more recent
language shift Language shift, also known as language transfer, language replacement or language assimilation, is the process whereby a speech community shifts to a different language, usually over an extended period of time. Often, languages that are perceived ...
to
Highland English Highland English is the variety of Scottish English spoken by many in Gaelic-speaking areas and the Hebrides. It is more strongly influenced by Gaelic than are other forms of Scottish English. Phonology *The epenthesis ("helping vowel"), whi ...
, the community is important to both the history of
Scottish Gaelic literature Scottish Gaelic literature refers to literary works composed in the Scottish Gaelic language, which is, like Irish and Manx, a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic languages. Gaelic literature was also composed in Gàidhealtachd communities ...
and to that of
Scottish traditional music Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
. Firstly, the Gaelic
Bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is an oral repository and professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's a ...
(c.1730-1825) lived out his old age in Kingussie. Fr. Ranald Rankin (c.1785-1863), formerly an outlawed "heather priest" for the
Catholic Church in Scotland The Catholic Church in Scotland, overseen by the Scottish Bishops' Conference, is part of the worldwide Catholic Church headed by the Pope. Christianity first arrived in Roman Britain and was strengthened by the conversion of the Picts thr ...
and the lyricist of the famous Scottish Gaelic
Christmas carol A Christmas carol is a Carol (music), carol on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas and holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French or ...
'' Tàladh Chrìosda'', was assigned to Kingussie. It was during the aftermath of Catholic Emancipation in 1829 and Fr. Rankin worked very hard to raise money to build the first post-Reformation Catholic parish church in
Badenoch Badenoch (; ) is a district of the Scottish Highlands centred on the upper reaches of the River Spey, above Strathspey. The name Badenoch means the drowned land, with most of the population living close to the River Spey or its tributaries ...
, but was transferred to
Moidart Moidart ( ; ) is part of the remote and isolated area of Scotland, west of Fort William, Highland, Fort William, known as the Rough Bounds. Moidart itself is almost surrounded by bodies of water. Loch Shiel cuts off the eastern boundary of the ...
in 1838, well before it was completed. According to census data, 53.9% of the residents of Kingussie spoke Gaelic in 1891. This number fell sharply at the turn of the century, and now only about 1.8% of the population report any proficiency in the language in 2001. As a result, scholar Kent C. Duwe terms it a part of the "Gaelic diaspora, showing only slightly higher language incidence than the national mean."


Shinty

According to the Guinness Book of Records 2005,
Kingussie Kingussie ( ; ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, although the old route of ...
is the world sport's most successful sporting team of all time, winning 20 consecutive leagues and going 4 years unbeaten at one stage in the early 1990s.


Tourism

The main railway line to
Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...
passes through from
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
,
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
and points south. Kingussie railway station is about southeast of the
High Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...
. In the early 2000s, the TV series '' Monarch of the Glen'' was filmed in and around the area of Kingussie. Ardverikie Estate, where ''Monarch of the Glen'' was filmed, is about from Kingussie. The
Highland Wildlife Park The Highland Wildlife Park is a safari park and zoo in Kingussie, Highland (council area), Highland, Scotland. The park is located within the Cairngorms National Park. The park is run by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland and is a member o ...
is close by. The
Highland Folk Museum The Highland Folk Museum is a museum and an open-air visitor attraction in Newtonmore in Badenoch and Strathspey in the Scottish Highlands, United Kingdom. It is owned by the Highland Council and administered by High Life Highland. It was fou ...
is in
Newtonmore Newtonmore ( ) is a village of approximately 1100 inhabitants in Badenoch, within the Highland (council area), Highland council area of Scotland. The village is only a few miles from a location that is claimed to be the exact geographical centre ...
, from Kingussie. Kingussie is at the centre of a network of well maintained and waymarked footpaths; one of the most popular walks in the area is the ascent to
Creag Bheag Creag Bheag is a prominent hill in Scotland. Etymology The word ''Creag'' is a variation of ''crag'' (''rock''), while the Scottish gaelic, gaelic term ''Bheag'' can be translated as ''small''. Features The hill overlooks from NW the centre ...
, a prominent hill overlooking its centre.


Education

There are two schools located in Kingussie. There is Kingussie Primary School, situated just off the High Street at the southern end of the village, which caters for children in Nursery and P1-P7 (around age 3 to age 12). After P7, most children will normally then transfer to the local Kingussie High School. The school building dates from 1876. The current school roll is 16 children in Nursery and 84 primary school pupils. Kingussie High School is the secondary school in Kingussie. It serves pupils from S1-S7 (which is usually around age 11 or 12, depending on when the child was born, to age 18). There are six associated primary schools, Aviemore, Alvie (Kincraig), Dalwhinnie, Gergask (Laggan), Kingussie and Newtonmore. Primary 7 pupils from these associated schools will automatically transfer to Kingussie High School after summer, unless the pupil moves to another catchment area, or gets a placement request accepted at another school. There are records to suggest that there has been a secondary school in Kingussie since the time of the Columban missionaries, but the current building dates from 1970. A new extension was built and originally was supposed to be finished in February 2013, and, after another delay in August, officially opened on 20 September 2013. The extension added 9 more classrooms, a new entrance, a new social area, more car parking space, as well as a new Pupil Support Unit, which caters for pupils with additional support needs or pupils who need more support with their learning or attendance in school. Before the new Pupil Support Unit extension was built, many pupils with complex needs had to go outside the Badenoch and Strathspey area for their education. The current school roll is estimated at over 400 pupils, although this figure is expected to rise to over 500 in the coming years. The school motto is "Du Dichiollach", which is
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 ...
for "with diligence".


Speyside Way

The Speyside Way is a long-distance route which currently has its southern terminus at Aviemore, north of Kingussie. There is, however, a proposed extension to the route to Newtonmore, going through Kingussie on the way. See the link below for more information:


Culture


Film

Kingussie featured in the 8-time Oscar-winning Danny Boyle film ''
Slumdog Millionaire ''Slumdog Millionaire'' is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel '' Q & A'' (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It narrates the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. Starring Dev Patel ...
''.


Literature

Kingussie is mentioned in
Compton Mackenzie Sir Edward Montague Compton Mackenzie, (17 January 1883 – 30 November 1972) was a Scottish writer of fiction, biography, histories and a memoir, as well as a cultural commentator, raconteur and lifelong Scottish nationalist. He was one of t ...
's book '' The Monarch of the Glen'', on which the BBC TV series was loosely based. In chapter 8 Kingussie Sanatorium, now St Vincent's Hospital, is mentioned. In
Ali Smith Ali Smith CBE FRSL (born 24 August 1962) is a Scottish author, playwright, academic and journalist. Sebastian Barry described her in 2016 as "Scotland's Nobel laureate-in-waiting". Early life and education Smith was born in Inverness on 24 A ...
's 2019 novel '' Spring'', four protagonists meet at Kingussie station.


Football

Although the village is more famous for its Shinty club, it also has a successful football side which plays its games in the local Strathspey & Badenoch Welfare FA.


References


External links

{{Authority control Populated places in Badenoch and Strathspey Towns in Highland (council area) Parishes in Inverness-shire