Aberdeen, the chief city and seaport in the north of Scotland, lies in the SE. angle of the county, at the mouth and on the north side of the river Dee, 111 miles N. of Edinburgh. William the Lion confirmed its privileges in 1179; the English burned it in 1336, but it was soon rebuilt, and called New Aberdeen. Old Aberdeen, within the same parliamentary boundary, is a small town a mile to the N., near the mouth of the Don, and is the seat of St Machar's Cathedral (1357-1527), now represented by the granite nave, which, as restored since 1869, is used as a parish church. King's College and University, founded by Bishop Elphinstone in Old Aberdeen in 1494, and Marischal College and University, founded by the Earl Marischal in New Aberdeen in 1593, were in 1860 united into one institution, the University of Aberdeen. It has 30 professors and about 800 students; with Glasgow University it sends one member to parliament. Marischal College was rebuilt in 1841, and greatly enlarged, with tower, hall, and students' union, in 1895; whilst King's College is a stately fabric, dating from 1500, its chapel adorned with exquisite wood carvings. In the 17th century, Aberdeen had become an important place, but it suffered much from both parties in the civil wars. It has a flourishing trade and thriving manufactures; and having been largely rebuilt and extended since the formation of Union Street in 1800, the 'Granite City' now offers a handsome and regular aspect. Among the chief public edifices are the County Buildings (1867-73), the Post-office (1876), the Market-hall (1842; rebuilt after the fire of 1882), the Trades-hall (1847), the Royal Infirmary (1740; rebuilt 1840), the Lunatic Asylum (1819), the Grammar-school (1863), the Art Gallery and Art School (1882-83), and Gordon's College (1739-1834). The last has been much extended as a technical school, the foundationers being no longer resident; whilst the Infirmary was reconstructed and modernised to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee (1887). Of more than 60 places of worship, the only one of much interest is the ancient church of St Nicholas, now divided into the East and West churches, and having a fine new spire (1880), 190 feet in height. A carillon of 37 bells was placed here in 1887. One may also notice the market-cross (1686); the Wallace, Gordon Pasha, and three other statues; and the Duthie Public Park of 47 acres (1883). Since 1810, when the debt upon the harbour was £29,614, the harbour revenue collected up to 1887 was £1,893,806; and the expenditure on harbour improvements was £1,063,475, the works having included the formation of the Victoria Dock (1848), a breakwater, the southward diversion of the Dee (1872), and a graving-dock (1886). The trade of the port has largely increased since 1850; and the aggregate tonnage of vessels entering in good years exceeds 600,000 tons. Railway communication has also been fully established since 1848-54. The chief exports are woollens, linens, cotton-yarns, paper, combs, granite (hewn and polished), cattle, grain, preserved provisions, and fish. Aberdeen has the largest comb and granite- polishing works in the kingdom. There are also several large paper-works within a short distance of the town. Wooden shipbuilding was formerly a prosperous industry, the Aberdeen clipper-bow ships being celebrated as fast sailers; but since 1860 they have been gradually superseded by iron or steel steamships; and, owing to Aberdeen's remoteness from coal and iron, its shipbuilding now is greatly contracted. Connected with Aberdeen, which has always been a celebrated seat of learning, have been the names of Barbour, Boece, Jameson, Gregory, Reid, Beattie, Campbell, Byron, Skinner, Hill Burton, W. Dyce, J. Phillip, and Sir A. Anderson, to whose provostship (1859-66) belongs the introduction of the water-supply. Pop. of the parliamentary burgh, which since 1885 has returned two members, (1801) 26,992; (1841) 63,288; (1881) 105,003; (1891) 121,623.
See works on Aberdeen by Joseph Robertson (1839), J. Cooper (1893); Ella Roger (1893); W. Robbie (1894), and on the University, by Rev. S. Rait (1895).