Dalziel, Dalzell or Dalyell is a Scottish Lowland surname. It is pronounced i/diːˈɛl/ dee-el, though pronunciation with a /z/ may be heard outside Scotland.
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The unintuitive spelling of the name is due to it being an anglicisation of Gaelic Dail-gheal, meaning bright dale. The sound now spelled with a <y> or <z> is historically a lenited slender /ɡ/, which in Gaelic is pronounced [j] (like English <y>). The English form of the name was originally spelled with a <ȝ> (yogh); this was later replaced with either a <z>, the letter of the modern alphabet which most looks like yogh, or a <y>, which more closely represents the sound.
The name originates from the former barony of Dalzell in Lanarkshire, in the area now occupied by Motherwell. The name Dalzell is first recorded in 1259, and Thomas de Dalzell fought at Bannockburn. The Dalzell lands were forfeited later in the 14th century, but regained through marriage in the 15th. Sir Robert Dalzell was created Lord Dalzell in 1628, and his son was further elevated as Earl of Carnwath, a peerage which became extinct in 1941. In 1645 the Dalzell estates were sold to the Hamiltons of Orbiston, who held them until the 20th century.
The Dalziel coat of arms is sable, a man's body proper, i.e. the flesh-coloured silhouette of a man against a black background. Scottish emigration has dispersed the Dalziel family across the English-speaking world.
People with this surname include:
Dalyell
Dalzell
Dalziel
Fictional people
Motherwell still contains Dalziel Parish, as well as the Dalzell Steelworks, now owned by Corus. The estate of Dalzell House, the former home of the Baron Hamilton of Dalzell, is now a country park on the south side of the town. Dalziel Rugby Club play in Dalziel Park in nearby Carfin. The name is also used by several Motherwell-based institutions, including Dalziel High School and the former Co-operative Society. Dalziel Park Stadium was a nineteenth-century football stadium that was the home of the town's football team Motherwell.
| This page or section lists people with the surname Dalzell. If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link. |
| This page or section lists people with the surname Dalziel. If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link. |