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Happy Valentine's Day
We're continuing our Burns theme by celebrating Valentine's Day with one of his most famous poems, My Luve is like a Red Red Rose. We hope you'll enjoy Isla St Clair's bitter sweet version of the well known song. Isla was once famous for being on a Saturday night TV show called the Generation Gam... more
Names in Scots - Personal
As one might expect, Scots speakers have traditionally had their own forms of first and family names, just like every language community. For example, though the name David was often written the same as in England, it was pronounced with a different sound on the ‘a’, while –d endings were c... more
Names in Scots - Places in Scotland
This section of the website is intended to provide a guide to Scots forms of personal and place names. There are few areas where the process of smothering Scots is more apparent than in its names for people and places. Around the year 1800 – though the process varied from place to place – it ... more
Sally on Sunday discuss Scots New Testament
Sally Magnusson discusses the Scots New Testament with Priscilla Lorimer
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod more
Tartan Army Football Battalion
Once again Scotland's football future hangs in the balance with it's place in Euro 2008 decided by the forthcoming crucial match against Italy.
100 Favourite Scottish Football Poems edited by acclaimed football poet and ex-football player Alistair Findlay brings together Scotland's favourite p... more
Four Gospels now on CD
This week sees the publication in CD format of recordings of the four Scots gospels. Tom Fleming’s readings from the Scots New Testament bring to life the great stories of Lorimer’s translation. Until the end of June the full set of CDs is available at special reduced price of £59.99 (usual ... more
Names in Scots - countries abroad
As with personal and place names, the use of names in Scots for countries has been smothered in modern times because officialdom in Scotland has preferred the English forms. A particular trait of Scots country names is that many end in –ae or –y rather than the convention in English which oft... more
Names for the Scots Language
The Scots language has been known by several alternative names during its history. The variety of names reflects both changing fashions, and local dialect loyalties. For the unwary, such a variety of names can often be a cause for confusion, leading to misunderstandings about the identity and nat... more
A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle
Listen to Hugh MacDiarmid read, A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle
http://writing.upenn.edu/penns
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The Hugh MacDiarmid memorial Langholm
Ellie an da sail needle
Written and read by Iris Sandison from the album Hansel o Stories published by Hansel Cooperative Press http://www.hanselcooperativepr
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American accents for Scottish Rappers
Two Scottish rappers had to speak in American accents in order to get a music deal, the Sunday Mail reported this week. Dundee guys Billy Boyd and Gavin Bain – known as Silibil’n’Brains – discovered that whenever they phoned up companies and told them they were Scottish rappers, everyone ... more
Audio gospels in Scots
The four gospels in Scots are now available as audio versions. Today Wild Goose Publications, in conjunction with the Lorimer Trust and Scots Language Centre, has put on sale a newly-produced audio version of the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) from W.L. Lorimer’s New Testament in S... more
Scots isn't alone
In April 2008, four students in Iceland paid a visit to the Education Ministry in Reykjavik in order to inform the government that they had founded an Association for Icelandic-speaking Youth, reported by Iceland Review Online. The students in question wish to support the Icelandic language for f... more
Ulster Scots set up speakers group
Scots speakers in Ballymoney, Northern Ireland have set up a group for people interested in speaking Scots. Charlie Reynolds from the group is reported to have said, "Some yins taak aboot it (Ulster Scots) - whereas we taak it!"
The full report can be read in the Ballymoney Times
http://www... more
Joyce Falconer is Centre's Scots voice
In the next few weeks visitors to the Scots Language Centre will be able to listen to, as well as read, the Scots words which are described in the Scots Word of the Week feature on the Centre's home page.
People imagining they recognise the voice won't all be wrong as it belongs to Joyce Falc... more
First Doric feature film on youtube
Mark Stirton, the Aberdeen based producer of "One Day Removals", the first full length feature film in Doric, the North east dialect of Scots, has posted a trailer for the film on youtube.
The film and the trailer contain some strong language. more
Scots Corpus web site goes live
A new web site from the Scots Corpus, the organisation which collects information about written and spoken Scots and Scottish English, is now live online.
http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.u more
Songs and Rhymes from Childhood
Ewan McVicar has written the first comprehensive book regarding the lore, songs and rhymes of Scottish children, collected form the street and playground during the last 150 years. People are sure to remember many songs and other material collected here, and a good deal is in Scots. Mr McVicar is... more
Plays in Scots for Schools
Roy McGregor and Liz Niven have edited a new book entitled 'Scottish Plays for Schools' through the Association for Scottish Literary Studies and published by Hodder Gibson. This work includes six short plays in Scots which may be read or performed and have been written by the following: 'Hierogl... more
Supper Wi Burns
The Scots Centre for Storytelling is haudin a Supper Wi Burns on Wadensday 23 an Thursday 24 Januar. Linda Bandelier, David Campbell an Donald Smith is tae interteen fowk wi stories, poyems an sangs taen fae the life o the maker, ower a tradeetional supper. Tickets costs £15 an shuid be buikit a... more
Doric Cabaret Evening
As pairt o the city o Aiberdeen’s St Andra’s Weekend, the Associe o Grampian Storytellers is haein a Doric Cabaret Eening on Seturday 1 December at Union Terrace Gairdens, Aiberdeen, fae 7.30pm til 10.15pm. The nicht sterts oot wi a walcome tae the guests an pipers o the Buchan Pipe Baund. Th... more
waith n. a piece of property which is found ownerless
Waith is related to the word waif, which started out as a legal term with the same meaning, but is now more often used to conjure images of Dickensian orphans. In medieval Scotland, waith referred to lost or stranded goods or animals which became the property of the local overlord or the king, if... more
yerk v. bind tightly; beat, whip, strike; snatch, wrench, etc.
Yerk (or yark) is recorded in medieval English, and although it has generally fallen out of use south of the border, it is still known and used in Scots and in some regional dialects of English. Used in the sense "bind tightly", often in relation to garments or their production, yerk was often us... more
