Rhynie (⫽ˈraɪni⫽) (Scottish Gaelic: Roinnidh) is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is on the A97 road, 14 miles (23 km) northwest of Alford.

The Rhynie Chert is named after the village, as is the fossil plant genus Rhynia. The Rhynie Chert is a sediment deposited in the Devonian period, contained important fossils that shows land ecosystem of the Devonian.

The missionary, teacher and chocolatier Alexander Murdoch Mackay was born in Rhynie on 13 October 1849.

Etymology

The name Rhynie may involve an early Pictish rīg meaning "a king" (c.f. Gaelic ríg/rí; c.f. Welsh rhi).

History

Eight Pictish symbol stones have been found at Rhynie, including the "Rhynie Man", a 6-foot (1.8 m) tall boulder carved with a bearded man carrying an axe, possibly a representation of the Celtic god Esus, that was discovered in 1978. The "Rhynie Man" now stands inside Woodhill House (the headquarters of Aberdeenshire Council) in Aberdeen.

In 2011 archaeological excavations at Rhynie, near the site of the "Rhynie Man", by archaeologists from Aberdeen University and Chester University uncovered a substantial fortified settlement dating to the early medieval period. Among the finds at the site were fragments of a late 5th- or 6th-century Roman amphora that must have been imported from the Mediterranean region. This is the only known example of a Roman amphora from Eastern Britain dating to the post-Roman period, and indicates that the inhabitants of the settlement would have been of high status.

Archaeologists working at the excavation have speculated that the settlement may have been a royal site occupied by Pictish kings. It has been suggested that Rhynie may have been a centre for royal assemblies between the sixth and eighth centuries.

Transport

The village is served once a day on weekdays by the 231 service between Alford and Huntly. It was previously served by the 416 to Inverurie, but this route was withdrawn in 2021.

Notable people

• Alexander Murdoch Mackay (1849-1890) "Mackay of Uganda"

Trivia

A bothy ballad alludes to Rhynie thus: "at Rhynie I shure my first hairst." The Station Hotel at Rhynie is mentioned in the sketch "The Will" by Scotland the What, the joke being that there is no railway station at Rhynie, "...but they were aye hopin' for one."