1777 Map of Corstorphine (courtesy of The Corstorphine Trust)
The estate and lands of The Barony of Corstorphine lay west of Edinburgh in the county of Midlothian, in Scotland.
Corstorphine as a place-name has always been something of a mystery.
Of three derivations advanced, the one most generally accepted, and the one appealing most to one's common sense, is Cross of Torphin (the older rendering of the name Corstorphine being Crostorfyn), from Torfin grandson of Malcolm II., or from Torphin, an archdeacon of Lothian, said to have built a cross at this spot.
Another derivation that appeals to many is that of Croix d’or fin, and tradition has it that a cross of fine gold was presented to the church by a Norman baron.
Probably the earliest surviving version of the place name is Crostorfin which dates from around 1128. Torfinn sometimes appears in Scottish records as Turpin, for example Turpin, Bishop of Brechin, 1178-1198. In the medieval Liber Ecclesie de Scon it is written as Turphin and Turfin.
The spelling of Corstorphine has even changed over the years, here are some of the more common variations:-
