A Thrummy-cap is a character in Scottish folklore, that appears in many tales. It may have been invented by John Burness in his 1796 ''Thrummy Cap, A Legend of the Castle of Fiddes''. The poetic tale, ''Thrummy Cap, A Legend of the Castle of Fiddes'' (1796), written by John Burness (cousin of

Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the List of national poets, national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the be ...

), was popular during the 19th century in the northeast of Scotland - it may be that Burness invented the legend. The name of the tale "Thrummy Cap" holds the name of one of its protagonists. Thrummy Cap encounters a ghost identical to himself (see also Doppelganger). This ghost shows Thrummy where the castle

deed A deed is a legal document that is signed and delivered, especially concerning the ownership of property or legal rights. Specifically, in common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right ...

s are, which he had stolen from the

Laird Laird () is a Scottish word for minor lord (or landlord) and is a designation that applies to an owner of a large, long-established Scotland, Scottish estate. In the traditional Scottish order of precedence, a laird ranked below a Baronage of ...

. This tale employs the

restless ghost In mythology and folklore, a vengeful ghost or vengeful spirit is said to be the spirit of a dead person who returns from the afterlife to seek revenge for a cruel, unnatural or unjust death. In certain cultures where funeral and burial or crem ...

motif. "Thrummy cap" was the name of a ghost in another legend in

Methil Methil () is a coastal town in Fife, Scotland. Methil has ancient origins: two Bronze Age cemeteries have been discovered which date the settlement as over 8,000 years old. The town was first recorded as "Methkil" in 1207, and belonged to ...

. In the Methil tale, Thrummy Cap haunts a building at the harbor head - this was said to be the ghost of a wood merchant or carpenter, who was not paid for his work, and consequently drowned himself in Methil harbor, and took to haunting the building. Additionally "thrummy cap" was a nickname for the devil. In his 1848 '' Dictionary of Archaic & Provincial Words,'' James Halliwell-Philipps claimed the term was from Northumbrian fairy tales, and referred to a "queer-looking little auld man" with exploits taking place in vaults or cellars of old castles. "Thrummy Caps" also appear in

Michael Aislabie Denham Michael Aislabie Denham (1801''1841 England Census'', ''1851 England Census'' – 10 September 1859) was an English merchant and collector of folklore. Life A native of Gainford, County Durham, Denham was in business at Kingston-upon-Hull in the ...

's 1850s list of spirits and fairies - in which Denham makes an unclear reference to the "Thrummy Hills" near Catterick, and also repeats the claim of it appearing in Northumbrian folktales.

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thrummy-Cap Scottish folklore

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