Articles categorised as Medieval

Anniversary of oldest surviving document in Scots

The month of March marks the anniversary of the oldest entire text in Scots, strictly speaking. On 12 March 1380 (1379 old calendar) Alexander Lindsay of Glenesk put his seal to a letter (see text...

Oldest act of government in Scots

In the year 1397 – apparently during the month of April – a General Council of the Kingdom was held at Stirling. The significance of this Council for Scots was the statute that it passed in the...

Ballads, Ridings and Truces

Summer time in Scotland marks the celebration of the Common Ridings during which some towns – particularly in the Borders – organise ceremonies to confirm the boundaries of the town and other...

A braw nicht, thanks tae the SLC

Hello aw, howp ye hae been makkin the maist o wit braw simmer...or the twa-thrie braw hours we hae been gettin. Michael wis sayin this wad be the year fer a bonnie simmer - but sae faur it's...

Oldest Diplomatic Act in Scots

The background to the Common Ridings was the lawless nature of the borderlands which persisted between the 13th and 17th centuries. There were often feuds between kindreds and frequent raiding by...

Border Ballads

The publication of Sir Walter Scott’s ‘Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border’ in 1802 was the foundation for the belief that the ballads of the Scottish Borders constituted the greatest ballad...

Twa Corbies

Search on the internet for the Twa Corbies and you’ll see how much of an impact this Scots ballad has had on the worlds of poetry and traditional music. Here is a Danish version of the song by...

Saint Andrew - what's in a name?

Saint Andrew was the younger brother of Saint Peter, both fishermen from Galilee in the Holy Land, and followers of Jesus. The orginal form of his name – Andreas – is Greek, but we do not know...

Download 'The Brus' free

John Barbour's epic Scots poem, The Brus, is available as a free download on the web site of Aberdeen based cultural magazine, Leopard. The free download is accompanied by a short article on the...

John Barbour Anniversary

The 614 year anniversary of the death of John Barbour - recognised as the father of literature in Scots - will occur on 13 March 2009. John Barbour was born about 1316 and obtained the archdeanary...

Origins of Orkney Scots

Three languages are known to have been spoken in Orkney’s history. Pictish (a P-Celtic language related to Welsh) is presumed to have been spoken until about AD 900 and then Norwegian until the...

Norwegian and Scots

The Norwegian language – then Old Norse – was brought to the Orkney islands by the Vikings during the 9th century. Later studies suggest that the form of Old Norse brought to Orkney originated in...

How Scots became a royal language

Read here how Scots became a royal language, how it developed, and how, ultimately, it was abandoned by the ruling family. In this feature we look at the early period down to 1437. On the menu at...

Courtly Conversation

JAMES II 1430-1460, ruled 1437-1460 James became king at the age of seven and took power in his own right during 1449. James II is not noted for literary or linguistic interests but rather for...

The Gaberlunzie Man

This month's song from the TMSA archive is 'The Gaberlunzie Man' sung by Kay Thomson. Allegedly composed by King James V, this ballad is said to describe the Kings amorous adventures while...

Glasgow Beginnings

The place name ‘Glasgow’ derives from a Gaelic description of a ‘green place’ on the banks of the river Clyde. In Older Scots this was variously written as Glasgu, Glasgow and even Glaskow. In the...

Colour in the first Scots books

Printing in the Scots Language didn't start in Scotland – it started in Paris in 1503, with two incredibly beautiful books. Densely illustrated with finely drawn woodcuts, the books were produced...

Ruthwell Cross

The Ruthwell Cross, with its Christian images, intertwined little animals, many fancy spirals and patterns, is very important for the history of Scots-speaking Scotland. Sited in the church of the...

The Dream of the Rood

Derrick McClure reads the Anglo-Saxon text of the poem.

A Conversation

Dauvit Horsbroch and Derrick McClure discuss the Ruthwell Cross, the Anglo-Saxon poem 'The Dream of the Rood' and its importance to Scots language academics.