† soumn.1
Scottish. Obsolete.
A pack or load carried by a horse; a quantity of goods carried by a pack animal.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance by carrying > [noun] > conveyance by pack-animals > load carried by animal
seamc950
horse-chargec1350
soum1397
saddlecharge?a1500
horseloadc1500
summagec1500
fare1599
1397 in J. Slater Early Scots Texts (Ph.D. thesis, Univ. of Edinb.) (1952) No. 32 Alswa thai sal hafe the sovme of petis & vthir fuel the qwhilk the saide Scir Jamys wes wont to haf.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) iv. l. 24 Wallace..Our-tuk the child schir Ranaldis sowme couth leid.
1497 in T. Dickson Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1877) I. 345 For ane hors to bere the Kingis sowme.
c1600 in Balfour's Practicks (1754) 87 Ane horse sowme of the said fish, or dry hering.
1603 Accts. Treasurer Scotl. f. 232v in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) Braid reid claith to be thrie sowme claithis to his maiestie.
Compounds
soum saddle n. a saddle adapted to support a pack or packs for transportation by a pack animal; a packsaddle.
ΚΠ
1505 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1901) III. 160 For floting of the pannell of the sowm sadill.
1598 in C. Innes Black Bk. Taymouth (1855) 330 A soum with a soum sadill.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2019; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
soumn.2
/suːm/, U.S. /sum/, Scottish English /sum/, Irish English /suːm/α. Scottish pre-1700 soume, pre-1700 sovm, pre-1700 sowme, pre-1700 sowmme, pre-1700 sowmn, pre-1700 1700s sowm, pre-1700 1700s–1900s soume, pre-1700 1700s– soum, 1700s–1800s soom; Irish English (northern) 1900s– soom, 1900s– soum.
β. Scottish pre-1700 som, pre-1700 sume, pre-1700 1800s sum; Irish English (chiefly northern) 1700s– sum Brit. /sʌm/, U.S. /səm/, Irish English /sʌm/, 1900s– summ.
γ. Scottish pre-1700 swime, pre-1700 swyme.
Scottish and Irish English.
1. The number of grazing animals, esp. cows or sheep, that can be sustained on an area of pasture. Also in a soum of sheep: a definite quantity of sheep, defined as the number that can be sustained on a certain amount of pasture (see sense 2), and varying in different places from four to ten. Now chiefly historical.Recorded earliest in soum's grass at Compounds.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > farm > farmland > grassland > [noun] > pasture > capacity of
soum1423
souming1461
levancy and couchancya1691
carrying capacity1857
α.
β. 1433 Ayr Burgh Court Bks. 4 May in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) It was ordanyt in plan court that ilka man sal haf ii sommis in the common & na mar & v schep til a som.1472 in C. Rogers Rental Bk. Cupar-Angus (1879) I. 162 The priuilege that pertenys to ws of the mure of Munthquhel to the vale of xxvj Summys of Catale.1657 in J. D. Marwick Rec. Convent. Royal Burghs Scotl. (1878) III. 453 [He] has also by his chartour right to the pastorage of sex sume of guidis wpon thair comoun pasturag.1780 A. Young Tour Ireland (Dublin ed.) I. 284 Keeping a cow is a sum; a horse a sum and an half;..a barrel of potatoe setting..all these are sums.1900 Spectator 15 Dec. 886/1 Generally one cow equals a sum or collop... A peasant will tell you, ‘That field can feed so many sum or so many collops.’1941 Irish Times 25 Sept. 4/7 I was told that virtually the same number of animals is allocated to a Derry ‘sum’ as to a Kerry ‘collop’.2000 B. Dornan Mayo's Lost Islands vi. 163 In 1863 the landlord John Walsh had increased the number of ‘sums’ from 40 to 48.γ. 1691 Corshill Baron-Court Bk. in Archæol. & Hist. Coll. Ayr & Wigton (1884) IV. 186 The Judge findeing the said comon moore not swimed..the saidis pairties ordaines John Brown..and Robert Faullis..to goe and try quhat swimes the said moore can hold.1423 Charter (Edinb. Reg. House) No. 37 in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) Myn infeftment..of twenty sowmys gyrs in the common pastor of the landis foirsaid.
1443 Ayr Burgh Court Bks. 28 Jan. in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) At ilk man hald twa soumys & a hors.
1508 in R. Pitcairn Criminal Trials Scotl. (1833) I. 58* Of shutting up her ‘gudis’—viz. sixty-five ‘soumes’ furth of her said third part.
1610 in J. M. Thomson Registrum Magni Sigilli Scotorum (1892) VII. 202/2 Togidder with the pasture of sax sowmes of nolt..uponn the ground of my landis of Grenelaw.
1700 in C. B. Gunn Rec. Baron Court Stitchill (1905) 146 Wher any possessed but one Soum in the Mayns that Soum shall absolutely be a Kow or Oxe and not a sheip.
1794 J. Sinclair Statist. Acct. Scotl. XII. 396 A privilege of pasturage for 72 soums of sheep upon the common, 5 sheep being reckoned to a soum.
1884 Rep. Crofters & Cottars Scotl. App. A. 468 in Parl. Papers (C. 3980) XXXII. 1 In Lews and Harris..a man is entitled to send so many soums to the grazings of his townland.
1962 H. A. Moisley et al. Uig iii. 70 The Island townships vary from having half their soum of sheep..to double..to well over twice as many.
1991 M. McLean People of Glengarry (1993) v. 73 This new level of rent in Lochiel roughly equalled £1 for each four soums of cattle.
2. The amount of grazing land which will sustain one cow (and sometimes also her most recent calf or calves), or a proportional number of sheep or other grazing animals. Now chiefly historical.The meaning in quot. 1472 is unclear, and may show sense 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > farm > farmland > grassland > [noun] > pasture > amount for specific animals
grasseOE
soum1472
1472 Extracts Rec. in W. Chambers Charters Burgh Peebles (1872) 168 Ilke burges and ilk wedo that induellis sal haf four somes, and that nane sal occupy na put ma somes than four.
1500 in J. B. Paul Registrum Magni Sigilli Scotorum (1882) II. 542/1 Concessit..pratum vulgariter nuncupatum le Grymys Medow, cum communi pastura unius equi et 4 de le sowmoys[sic] in dicta villa.
1524 in J. B. Paul & J. M. Thomson Registrum Magni Sigilli Scotorum (1883) III. 222/2 Vendiderunt 2 acras terrarum cum tofta et crofta,..cum 6 le sowmys in pastura.
1605 in Rec. Parl. Scotl. to 1707 (2007) 1605/6/35 Extending in the haill to sextene sowmes for the said four akeris.
1655 in R. Renwick Extracts Rec. Burgh Peebles (1910) 28 Reservand furth hereof the sowmes, gras and tillage alreadie sett to Alexander Lauder and Alexander Horsbruik, and the herdis sowmes dureing their takis alanerlie.
1754 E. Burt Lett. N. Scotl. II. xxi. 155 If the Tenant is to hire his Grazing in the Hills, he takes it by Soumes. A Soume is as much Grass as will maintain four Sheep.
1799 J. Robertson Gen. View Agric. Perth 72 Moors and sheep-walks are more frequently rented by the soum, than by the acre.
1826 Cases Court of Session 4 146 They ought to have calculated the soum as pasture for a cow only, and not for a cow and calf.
1870 Sc. Jurist 42 59/2 The actual possession of the soums by the sheep of the minister could not very well be maintained.
1947 J. M. Mogey Rural Life 234 A soum is the grass of a cow for one season.
1996 C. I. Macafee Conc. Ulster Dict. 342/1 Soum, the amount of pasture allowed to a certain number of grazing animals.
Compounds
ΚΠ
1423 Charter (Edinb. Reg. House) No. 37 in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) Myn infeftment..of twenty sowmys gyrs in the common pastor of the landis foirsaid.
1582 in J. Anderson Cal. Laing Charters (1899) 259 The saidis millaris multraris hes ane certaine land of ws for his soumis girse.
1621 in Rec. Parl. Scotl. to 1707 (2007) 1621/6/22 Act declairing summes grasse gevin to the ministeris for thar gleibis to be teyndfrie.
1793 J. Sinclair Statist. Acct. Scotl. VIII. 104 The glebe..is supposed to be legal as to extent, with 4 soums grass, in common with the cattle of the farm.
1867 H. Scott Fasti Ecclesiæ Scoticanæ I. 246 The pasturage of twelve soums grass.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2019; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
soumv.
/suːm/, U.S. /sum/, Scottish English /sum/ Scottish. Now rare and historical.
transitive. To examine (an area of pasture) in order to determine how many grazing animals it can sustain (frequently used with room v.2 1b). In later use also: to include (an animal) in a calculation to determine how much livestock an area of pasture can sustain.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > farm > farmland > grassland > provide pasture [verb (transitive)] > capacity of
soum1472
1472 Extracts Rec. in W. Chambers Charters Burgh Peebles (1872) 168 The nychburis gaf thair lection and decretyt to kep Kadmowr to kow and kapyll, and the sayd hyll to be somyt.
1579–80 in J. Fullarton Rec. Burgh Prestwick (1834) 78 The wtinland to be sowmit be gersing.
1647 in R. Renwick Gleanings from Rec. Royal Burgh Peebles (1912) 294 The haill counsell ordanes Kaidmure and the tounes guidis thairupone to be sowmeit and rowmeit.
1679 Visct. Stair Decis. Lords 23 Jan. (1687) II. 679 Where divers Heretors have a common Pasturage in one Commontie, no part whereof is ever Plowed, the said common Pasturage may be Soumed and Roumed.
1755 J. Forbes Rep. 30 July in V. Wills Rep. Annexed Estates (1973) 48 Proper persons should be appointed to soam & roam the different possessions and common glenns.
1793 J. Sinclair Statist. Acct. Scotl. VI. 93 Where there are several small tenants upon one farm, the farm is (what they call) soumed.
1838 W. Bell Dict. Law Scotl. 932 Strictly speaking, to sowm the common, is to ascertain the several sowms it may hold; and to rowm it, is to portion it out amongst the dominant proprietors.
1964 P. T. Wheeler Island of Unst, Shetland vii. 69 Holdings, many of which..have hill land in severalty which probably has never been soumed.
1993 Econ. Hist. Rev. 46 692 On Islay,..soums specifically excluded horses whereas elsewhere, they were soumed.
2006 Agric. Hist. Rev. 54 219 Each soum may have been unique both in terms of the different proportions of animals being soumed, the density of animals allowed per soum.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2019; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.21423v.1472