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Learning in Literature

Two hundred years of Scots dictionaries

Categorised in: Writing 19th Century
Dictionary of Scots

It is now two hundred years since the Rev John Jamieson (1759-1838) published the first dictionary given over entirely to the Scots language, in 1808. Jamieson was born and brought up in Glasgow and was also a student in Glasgow and Edinburgh before being appointed pastor at Forfar in Angus in 1789. He later also became a member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. The year 2009 will mark the 250th anniversary of Jamieson’s birth in March 1759. Scots language word lists had existed since the 16th century, but Jamieson was the first to write an entire dictionary, in two books, published at Edinburgh in 1808. A supplement was added in 1825 and the dictionary was published again during the years 1879-1887. His work, entitled ‘An Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language’, gave the origins of words, their meanings, and the relationship with other languages. He had a particular interest in the relationship between Scots and other Germanic languages. To celebrate this anniversary, Scots Language Dictionaries are offering members special purchase prices on hard and paperback versions of that most worthy of works ‘Compact Scottish National Dictionary’. To learn more about this special offer – or how to purchase other works from the SLD – please follow this link:

www.scotsdictionaries.org.uk/P