List of parish churches in the Diocese of Aberdeen
The development of parish churches in the Diocese of Aberdeen began, as in the rest of Scotland and Europe, in the earlier Middle Ages.
The expression parochia changed over time from its original meaning in the 12th century of being the territory over which a bishop had authority [nb 1]to its later definition of being a locality that was subject to the ecclesiastic charge of a baptismal church.
[2] The development of the parochial system in Scotland has been attributed to the reforming zeal of King David I and his introduction of Anglo-Norman lords yet it is also true that the process had begun under David's predecessors and the native Scottish aristocracy.
Some of the early parochial-type entities that had formed remained unaltered under David's reshaping of the ecclesiastical landscape.
[3][4] Importantly, David played a significant role in formalising the role of the parish church and securing its sustainability.
parish churches marked in red indicate former chapels of a mother church that achieved parochial status, e.g. Mar, 1 & 2 or, parish churches with their retained pendicle chapels e.g. Garioch, 14 & 14a