West Linton is a town as well as civil parish in southern Scotland, on the A702. It was formerly in the county of Peeblesshire, however given that local government re-organisation in the mid-1990s it is now part of Scottish Borders. Most of its citizens are commuters, owing to the village's closeness to Edinburgh, which is 16 miles (26 kilometres) to the north east. West Linton has a long history, and also holds an annual traditional festival called the Whipman Play. The village of Linton is of old beginning. Its name originates from a Celtic aspect (cognate with the modern-day Irish Gaelic linn, Scottish Gaelic linne, and also modern Welsh "Llyn") implying a lake or pool, a pool in a river, or a channel (as in Loch Linnhe, part of which is called An Linne Dhubh, the black pool, or Dublin, an Anglicisation of dubh as well as linn, indicating black pool) and also the Gaelic "dun" Welsh "racket"), for a fortress, strengthened area, or armed forces camp (pertaining to the contemporary English community, by way of the Saxon "tun", a ranch or collection of dwellings), and also is obviously suitable, as the village appears to have actually been bordered by lakes, pools and also marshes. At once it was referred to as Lyntoun Roderyck, identified possibly with Roderyck or Riderch, King of Strathclyde, whose region included this location, or with a local chieftain of that name. The Scottish Gaelic variation of the name is a partial translation, Ruairidh being a Gaelic type of Roderick. The prefix "West" was acquired several centuries later to make clear the difference from East Linton in East Lothian.