Kirkcaldy

Kirkcaldy Scottish Gaelic: Cair Chaladain[1] Scots: Kirkcaldy[2] The Lang Toun[3]
Town and former royal burgh
Waterfront and bay (top), Townhouse clock (middle left), Old Kirk (top right), Merchants House/ High Street (top centre) Maggie's Fife (bottom centre), Beveridge Park pond (bottom)
Kirkcaldy Location within Fife
Area	6.9 sq mi (18 km2)
Population	50,370 (mid-2020 est.)[4]
• Density	7,300/sq mi (2,800/km2)
OS grid reference	NT275915
• Edinburgh	11 miles (18 kilometres) S
• London	341 miles (549 kilometres) SSE
Civil parish	Kirkcaldy and Dysart
Council area	Fife
Lieutenancy area	Fife
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	KIRKCALDY
Postcode district	KY1, KY2
Dialling code	01592
Police	Scotland
Fire	Scottish
Ambulance	Scottish
UK Parliament	Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath
Scottish Parliament	Kirkcaldy
List of places UK Scotland 56°06′39″N 3°10′03″W / 56.11073°N 3.16737°W / 56.11073; -3.16737

Kirkcaldy (/kɜːrˈkɔːdi/ ^ⓘ kur-KAW-dee; Scots: Kirkcaldy; Scottish Gaelic: Cair Chaladain) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about 11.6 miles (19 km) north of Edinburgh and 27.6 miles (44 km) south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, making it Fife's second-largest settlement and the 11th most populous settlement in Scotland.

Kirkcaldy has long been nicknamed the Lang Toun (pronunciation^ⓘ; Scots for "long town") in reference to the early town's 0.9-mile (1.4 km) main street, as indicated on maps from the 16th and 17th centuries. The street would finally reach a length of nearly 4 miles (6.4 km), connecting the burgh to the neighbouring settlements of Linktown, Pathhead, Sinclairtown and Gallatown, which became part of the town in 1876. The formerly separate burgh of Dysart was also later absorbed into Kirkcaldy in 1930 under an act of Parliament.

The area around Kirkcaldy has been inhabited since the Bronze Age. The first document to refer to the town is from 1075, when Malcolm III granted the settlement to the church of Dunfermline. David I later gave the burgh to Dunfermline Abbey, which had succeeded the church: a status which was officially recognised by Robert I in 1327. The town only gained its independence from Abbey rule when it was created a royal burgh by Charles I in 1644.

From the early 16th century, the establishment of a harbour at the East Burn confirmed the town's early role as an important trading port. The town also began to develop around the salt, coal mining and nail making industries. The production of linen which followed in 1672 was later instrumental in the introduction of floorcloth in 1847 by linen manufacturer, Michael Nairn. In 1877 this in turn contributed to linoleum, which became the town's most successful industry: Kirkcaldy was a world producer until well into the mid-1960s. The town expanded considerably in the 1950s and 1960s, though the decline of the linoleum industry and other manufacturing restricted its growth thereafter.

Today, the town is a major service centre for the central Fife area. Public facilities include a main leisure centre, theatre, museum and art gallery, three public parks and an ice rink. Kirkcaldy is also known as the birthplace of social philosopher and economist Adam Smith who wrote his magnum opus The Wealth of Nations in the town. In the early 21st century, employment is dominated by the service sector: the biggest employer in the town is PayWizard, formerly known as MGT plc (call centre). Other main employers include NHS Fife, Forbo (linoleum and vinyl floor coverings), Fife College, Whitworths (flour millers) and Smith Anderson (paper making).