Folk etymology
Folk etymology, repeated by Hector Boece in 1527, claims that the town's name was originally Allectum, and it was renamed "Dei Donum" 'Gift from God', following David, 8th Earl of Huntingdon's arrival there on his return from the Holy Land. The city was referred to by some Gaelic speakers, particularly in Highland Perthshire and Braemar as "An Athaileag".