LL-L "Literature" 2004.08.30 (03) [E/S]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 30.AUG.2004 (03) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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From: Sandy Fleming <sandy at scotstext.org>
Subject: "Literature" [E]

> From: Troy Sagrillo <meshwesh at bigfoot.com>
> Subject: LL-L "Literature" 2004.08.18 (11) [S]
>
> on 18.08.2004 11.07 PM, Sandy Fleming wrote:
>
> > Virtually all writing in Scots up until the late 20th Century is
> literature,
> > and most of that is poetry, though there are also novels and short
> stories.
> > In the past anyone wanting to write factually would write in English.
>
> While this is certainly true for the 19th and 20th centuries, was there
any
> "non-literature" in Scots before that, when Scots was functioning more
> widely and at all levels of society? Or was English (perhaps with some
Scots
> lexical borrowings) used even then for, say, court cases or newspapers?

Sorry about the delayed reply - I was having scanner problems.

I'd be surprised if there were any newspapers with factual pieces written in
Scots. Newspapers came along too late.

There's an anomaly between the older Scots of the law courts (and of the
"Makars") and the spoken Scots of the time. Poems such as "The Wife of
Auchtermuhty" are written in a Scots which is pretty much like modern Scots,
while contemporary court cases are written in a Scots which, while clearly
Scots, has a lot of legalese and is affected enough to be somewhat removed
(in the direction of English, possibly) from the spoken variety of the time.
Here's a sample from "The Court Book of the Barony and Regality of Falkirk
and Callendar, Volume I 1638-1656" (ed. Doreen M Hunter MA, The Stair
Society, 1991, ISBN 1 872517 02 1):

"And in the actioune persewit be Rot Russall in Haiglen againes Marion Watt
in Smalburne relict of umquhill John Kincaid for resetting of Saltbutter
scheittis and uther things from Thomas Kincaid hir sone and David Grindley
sone to Patrick Grindley The quhilk they tuik from his hous in Halgien and
was resett be hir quhairupone scho was fyllit be ane assyse as the rolment
of court beiris Thairfoir the judges decerneis the said Marion Watt to be
banyschit furthe of the parioche of Falkirk and never to be fund or
apprehendit thairintill efter pasche nixtocum quhilk gif scho be fund within
the samen efter the forsaid day ordanes hir to be scurgeit through the burgh
of Falkirk and brunt upone the cheik quhairupone the dome was given be the
mouthe of Robert Aikeine dempster Rescherving aiwayes Libertie to the said
Marion To cum to the sessioune of Falkirk quhen scho salbe seitit thairto
for making of hir repentance for the fornycatioune committit be hir with Wm
Grindley in Reddoche
  And with Libertie aiwayes to hir to compeir befoir the said kirk sessioune
of Falkirk or any uther judicatorie quhatsoever to persew the said Wm
Grindley for quhatsoever caus scho hes to ley to his chairge"

There is plenty of this sort of stuff about. It does show, though, that
whether the lawyers were trying to write English or Scots, spoken Scots must
have been normal in the courts at the time.

Sandy
http://scotstext.org/

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