County Dossier
Selkirkshire
A small Borders county of forests and legends.
Selkirkshire is an inland county nestled in the Southern Uplands, characterised by gentle hills, lush greenery, and a landscape well wooded and grazed on the open slopes and valleys.
At a glance
Selkirkshire at a glance
A small Borders county of forests and legends.
- Ballads and border reivers
- Sheriffdom by 12th century
- Named from Selkirk town
- Area: 267 sq miles / 692 sq km
- Population: 16,010
- County Top: Dun Rig (2,441ft / 840m)
County Geography
Selkirkshire meets Peeblesshire, Midlothian, Roxburghshire, and Dumfriesshire. Its boundaries are shaped by the upland ridges of the Southern Uplands, with the Tweed, Ettrick, and Yarrow waters giving the county its internal and outer lines.
The Ettrick and Yarrow valleys give Selkirkshire a strong internal pattern, while the surrounding uplands keep the county compact and legible. That structure explains its towns, river confluences, and pastoral hill country.
Map Reference
View Selkirkshire on the map
Selkirkshire is the county. The map also shows lieutenancies and council areas that use the county name.
The county.
The lieutenancy.
Council areas.
Places and routes
Selkirk, Galashiels, Ashkirk, Ettrickbridge, and Yarrow show the county from royal burgh and Tweedside textile town to valley settlement and upland-side village. Together they explain Selkirkshire through its central places and river country.
Connections
Selkirkshire’s movement follows the Ettrick and Yarrow valleys and the routes that descend to the Tweed. Those routes tie hill pasture, valley settlement, and burgh life into one county pattern.
Names
- Selkirkshire
- County of Selkirk
- Siorrachd Shailcirc
Siorrachd Shailcirc is the Gaelic form of Selkirkshire. Selkirkshire is the settled county name, while County of Selkirk is the formal historical style and Selks is only a shortened form.
The shire was established by the twelfth century and took its name from Selkirk, the old royal burgh that gave the county its enduring title. The Ettrick and Yarrow country still forms a recognisable county.