What is the meaning and derivation of 'cowp'?

Question

I just received an email from Scotland with the word 'cowp' in it. I had a vague recollection from my own Scottish background of such a word but could not remember what it meant.

The OED has only this :

Origin: A borrowing from early Scandinavian. Etymon: Norse kaup-a. Etymology: < Old Norse kaup-a to buy, bargain, barter, exchange, = Gothic kaupôn ...
Scottish and northern dialect.

• †1. transitive. To buy; figurative to abye, pay for, suffer for. Obsolete.
• 2. to exchange, barter

Wiktionary has this :

cowp (plural cowps)

(Scotland, Ireland, slang) A filthy and disgusting place.
(dialect) A reversal of fortune; An unexpected misfortune.

Verb : cowp (third-person singular simple present cowps, present participle cowping, simple past and past participle cowped) To fall or tip over.

As used in the email, the writer is referring to the Council Refuse Dump (they 'went to the cowp' and they clearly had something to dispose of) so it seems to me that 'cowp' as a verb means to tip something, either an accidental tip (Wiktionary-dialect) or a purposeful disposal into a cowp (the noun) being a place of refuse (Wiktionary - Scoland Ireland slang).

But none of this appears to agree with the OED.

Has anyone more background to this ?

Answer 1

The verb and noun in the meaning of "to tip / a tip" seems to have developed from the French coup/ couper = to/a blow, to/a hit, etc. in the metaphorical sense:

"John's death came as a blow." > John's death was a blow > John's death was a great upset.

From this, the meaning "upset" took a further figurative step - "turning something (the current circumstances) over in an unpleasant way." Hence, to/a tip.

References from A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)

Cowp, Coup, n.1 [e.m.E. coupe, ME. caupe a stroke, blow. Cf. Cowp v.1]

An upset, overturning. — Stewart 4135. Sum gat ane coup gart all hir tymmaris crak;

Lynd. Sat. 2430. I man rin fast, in cace I get ane coup [B. cowp];

*Cowp, Coup, v.1 Also: cowpe. [Cf. ME. cowpe (rare) to strike.]

1. tr. and intr. To turn up; to upset, overset, overturn. Knox II. 15.

Melvil Mem. 404. What soeuer he be that reposes upon his gud seruice, is commonly cowped and wraked;

Adamson Muses Thr. 136. The whirling stream will make our boat to coup;

Which seems to have led to

2. To empty out by overturning.

1653 Sir J. Hope Journal 155. [I began] to inspect the earth about it & I thoght it lay all in little heapes as if it had been new coupped out of hurlebarrowes;

Answer 2

As an ulster scot, we would use coup as:
I couped a glass of water – I spilt a glass of water
I couped over – I fell over
I couped the rubbish in tae the bin – I tipped the rubbish into the bin
etc,

So maybe this is related to dumping rubbish?

Answer 3

Here in Glasgow the cowp is the rubbish dump where rubbish is taken. Can be used as a verb too - I’ll cowp it. Fairly common word albeit informal on the whole.

If your hoose is a clatty midden then tak yer guddle tae the cowp.

Ps I’m not a native but I’ve done my best!

Answer 4

If you cowp something you make it fall or tip it over, usually accidentally, eg if you are at the dinner table and you carelessly hit the teacup and make it fall over, you have cowped the cup. My parents would say, “Watch what you’re doing or else you’ll cowp that cup!” Sometimes you would say “you’ll cowp it over!” It just means tip it over. We are a Scottish family from Central Scotland.

Also, if you want rid of household rubbish you would send it to the cowp, ie the rubbish tip or council rubbish tip.

If you left some tea in your cup you would take it to the sink and “tim it out”, ie empty the contents. Then, if the cup wasn’t too dirty and you wanted a fresh cup of tea you would “syne” (or “sine”) the cup under the tap before re-use. “syne or sine means “rinse”.

Another Scots word, similar to cowp or coup, is skail, skale, or scale. If for instance you are not careful when carrying a jug of water and you skail it, it means you have spilt the water or some of it. “I’m sorry. I skailt the water on the floor”.

Skail is probably an anglicised version of the Gaelic word “sgaoil”, to spread or to spill. Also, “‘tim” probably comes from the Old Scots or Irish word meaning “to empty”. Scotland’s king John Baliol in the 1290’s was nicknamed “Toom Tabard”, ie empty coat. A tabard was a coat of arms.

Answer 5

I'm a Glaswegian though now resident in Bucks, England. At least one meaning of cowp was a rubbish dump. According to an Ayrshire man whom I knew well a Scots newspaper carried a council advertisement of a job vacancy at the local cowp - so, a semi-official source. As so used, it was not slang and there was no particular connotation of disgust. Obviously to call a town, village or area, or even someone's home, a dump, or a tip, as distinct from using these terms to denote a location designated, and used, as a dump or rubbish tip by the local council would be an unflattering use of those words, and the same would apply to using 'cowp' opprobriously.

Naturally I favour the term 'cowp' to denote a council dump out of affection for the usages of my country of origin.

Answer 6

I grew up in the Wigan area of Lancashire in the 1950s, when there were lots of broad dialect speakers, including my Grandad, a miner. I clearly remember 'cowp' being used to mean 'tip over'. In fact the definition fits the Northern Irish version I Googled, but not the Scottish one.

There is an Irish connection in the Wigan area, dating from the many Irish navvies who came in the 1700s when the Leeds -Liverpool Canal, which encircles Wigan, was constructed.

Check out many famous rugby players from Wigan: Byrne, Cassidy, O'Loughlin, Farrell and many more.

Answer 7

I believe it is related to German Kippe, a word that occurs in Müllkippe (some sort of rubbish dump) and Aschenkippe (an ash heap). As such, it is a filthy waste heap, pit or area.

Answer 8

I'm Scottish:
Cowpt means dump, as in the house was a cowpt.

It can be used in: a cowpet yew, e.g., the yew was on its back.
I went to the council cowpt = I went to the council dump.