WHAT'S IN A NAME: 29 DECEMBER 2018

Cumnock

The village of Cumnock, on the Obley Road between Molong and Dubbo, takes its name from a Scottish town in Ayrshire.

The origins of the name of the Scottish town have long been debated. The following explanations have been suggested:

— Com-cnoc, (hollow of the hills)

— Com-oich, (meeting of the waters)

— Cam-cnoc, (crooked hill)

— Cumanag, (little shrine)

It lies at the meeting of the Glaisnock Water and the Lugar Water, and the town has a strong socialist heritage due to its role as a mining centre. The father of the British Labour Party, James Keir Hardie, lived in the town for a large part of his life, and a statue to him sits outside the town hall.

Counting a couple of adjacent industrial estates, the Scottish town of Cumnock has a population of about 16,000.

NEXT WEEK: Betts St, Molong.