© 2012 : Revised 4 Feb 2020
Loretta Lynn Layman, Author of "The Barony of Lynn",
The Scottish Genealogist,
Vol. LVII No. 1, The Scottish Genealogy Society, Edinburgh (March 2010)
Lynneage @ comcast . net

For extensive collections of documented history
of the Lynns, Linns, Linds, etc. in Scotland and Ulster,
see Book Excerpts on CD.

Published here are four Scottish ballads, tales, or poems about persons who bore one variation or another of the name Lynn.  Lyn, Lyne and Lynn are the most common ancient forms of the name, but Lin or Linn was sometimes used.  The spelling Linn became popular in the 18th century as a "modern" adaptation.  In the 19th century and before, the same person or family can be found sometimes with one spelling and other times with another.  Sometimes, multiple spellings are found in the same document.  Such was the nature of spelling in centuries gone by.

The first of the four stories recorded here is an ancient morality tale that was first told in or before 1600, being mentioned that year by Timothy Pont in his "Topographical Account of the District of Cunningham, Ayrshire".

The second is a ballad about a young man, a maiden, and the fairy queen.  The earliest reference to it is found in a writing dated 1549, and the earliest print version of the ballad itself is dated 1769.  It is not a children's fairy tale.

The third story is a tragic folk tale about the very real family of minor land barons in 13th- through 17th-century Dalry who bore the title "Lynn of that Ilk" and sometimes "Lord of Lynn".  It was described at its printing in 1889 as having its origin "hundreds of years ago or more".

The fourth is a new poem about the Dalry family and the beautiful falls and glen that were the heart of their barony.  Decades of research into this fascinating family, who bore her name, inspired the author to compose this poem in 2010.

Each ballad, folk tale, or poem begins with an introductory page providing historical and geographical background and sometimes a new understanding of its context.

The Lore

About Surnames

Lynn History

House of Lynn

Contact

All four stories are included in the book Lynneage - the Lynns, Linns, and Linds of Scotland and Ulster, the remainder of which consists of more than 500 pages containing the documented history of persons and families of the name from the 12th through 19th centuries

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