They are the successors of the historic parliamentary burghs of the Parliament of Scotland.
In the Parliament of the United Kingdom, from 1801 onwards, this district system continued until it was gradually abolished during the first half of the 20th century.
Modern burgh constituencies are much like county constituencies in the way that their boundaries are drawn, but election candidates are allowed lower expenses, as they do not need to travel as much.
For British House of Commons elections, the allowance is £7,150 and 5p per elector.
House of Commons constituencies were formerly used for elections to the Scottish Parliament, created in 1999, but they have been de-linked since 2005, by reducing the number of Commons constituencies in Scotland without a corresponding change in the Scottish Parliament.