Head of a local kin-group in medieval Scotland
A toísech or toísech clainne was the head of a local kin-group in medieval Scotland. The word, meaning "first" or "leader" in Scottish Gaelic, is first attested in the property records written into the "Book of Deer" some time between the 1130s and the 1150s.
The "toísech" held and extracted tribute from specific settlements within the kindred's territory, while other settlements provided tribute to the "mormaer" or king. The "Book of Deer" property records describe multiple lands whose tribute was granted to Deer Abbey by the "mormaer" and the "toísech", each granting their respective renders, while one land was given by a lord "who was "mormaer" and was "toiseach"". showing that "mormaers" could themselves also be "toiseachs".
The position of the "toísech" in the "Book of Deer" closely matches that of the thane given in the Leges inter Brettos et Scottos, a law code from the reign of David I that includes descriptions of the kingdom's social hierarchy, suggesting that the two roles were equivalent.
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