Dairsie, or Osnaburgh, is a village and parish in north-east Fife, Scotland. It is 3 miles (4.8 km) south-southwest of Leuchars Junction, and 3 miles (4.8 km) east-northeast of Cupar on the A91Stirling to St Andrews road. The village grew out of two smaller settlements (called Dairsiemuir and Osnaburgh), and developed principally around the industry of weaving. Since the late twentieth century it has become a dormitory settlement for nearby towns.
The village may have derived its name of Osnaburgh from weaving osnaburg, a coarse linen or cotton, originally imported from Osnabrück in Germany.
The civil parish has a population of 387 (in 2011).[1]
St Mary's Church was built by Archbishop Spottiswoode in 1621.[4] The church is some distance from the village and ceased to be used for worship in 1966.[5] It is now in private hands, and the parish worshippers use the former St Leonard's Church in the village. The congregation is united with St John's Church in Cupar.
Local businesses include a small Village Shop and Post Office, a Petrol Station and Garage (also selling second hand vehicles) and The Dairise Inn, recently trading as Rumbledethumps Restaurant but currently closed.
It has a small locals bar, a conservatory restaurant and a small function room / additional restaurant.
History
In 2014 a hoard of Roman hacksilver was found in a field at Dairsie. It is thought that the hacksilver was used by Roman soldiers to pay off the local Pictish tribes when they travelled through the area.[6]
^Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, publ. by National Records of Scotland. Web site http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ retrieved March 2016. See “Standard Outputs”, Table KS101SC, Area type: Civil Parish 1930
