Elgin

E1L1G2I1N1
/ˈɛlɡɪn//ˈɛldʒɪn/

proper noun

A surname.

OriginScottish Gaelic Eilginn →
Less commonScrabble 6
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Meanings

proper nounElgin (countable and uncountable, plural Elgins)

plural Elgins

  1. countableuncountableA surname.
  2. A placename:
    1. countableuncountableA town in Moray council area, Scotland, United Kingdom, the original place from which the others were named.
    2. countableuncountableA large valley southeast of Cape Town, South Africa.
    3. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in the Rural Municipality of Grassland, Manitoba.
    4. countableuncountableA rural community and parish in Albert County, New Brunswick.
    5. countableuncountableA community in Pictou County, Nova Scotia.
    6. countableuncountableA hamlet in Rideau Lakes, Ontario.
    7. countableuncountableA county in Ontario; see Elgin County.
    8. countableuncountableA rural municipality in Quebec.
    9. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Lauderdale County, Alabama.
    10. countableuncountableA census-designated place in Santa Cruz County, Arizona.
    11. countableuncountableA ghost town in Merced County, California.
    12. countableuncountableA city in Cook County and Kane County, Illinois.
    13. countableuncountableA township in Kane County, Illinois.
    14. countableuncountableA tiny city in Fayette County, Iowa.
    15. countableuncountableA tiny city in Chautauqua County, Kansas.
    16. countableuncountableA small city and township in Wabasha County, Minnesota.
    17. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Shelby County, Missouri.
    18. countableuncountableA minor city and township in Antelope County, Nebraska.
    19. countableuncountableA ghost town in Nevada.
    20. countableuncountableA tiny city in Grant County, North Dakota.
    21. countableuncountableA village in Van Wert County, Ohio.
    22. countableuncountableA small city in Comanche County, Oklahoma.
    23. countableuncountableA small city in Union County, Oregon.
    24. countableuncountableA borough in Erie County, Pennsylvania.
    25. countableuncountableAn incorporated town in Kershaw County, South Carolina.
    26. countableuncountableA census-designated place in Lancaster County, South Carolina.
    27. countableuncountableA census-designated place and unincorporated community in Scott County, Tennessee.
    28. countableuncountableA city in Bastrop County and Travis County, Texas.
    29. countableuncountableA neighborhood of Green River, Emery County, Utah.
    30. countableuncountableA rural locality in the Shire of Capel, Western Australia.
  3. countableuncountableA Scottish earldom.

Origin

  1. Scottish GaelicEilginn
  2. EnglishElgin

* As a Scottish surname, derived from the place in Morayshire, from Scottish Gaelic Eilginn, possibly meaning little Ireland, from Èirinn. * As a Turkish surname, from the obsolete noun elgin (“stranger”); see el. * The village in New Brunswick is probably named in honour of colonial administrator James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin (1811-1863). The civil parish is named after the village.

More words from Scottish Gaelic

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

NigelligneingleElinglinge
Cite this entry
APA

Elgin. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Elgin

MLA

“Elgin.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Elgin. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Elgin,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Elgin.

Source: Elgin on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.