Scots english I want to learn how to speak it

[guarda3]

if you want to speak and teach scots english and want to talk to me please respond Im learning scots gaelic im a member of the House of Scotland cultural cottage in Balboa Park,San Diego,California,U.S.A

[Tim_Macdonald]

I suggest you read Robert Burns and/or move to Scotland. People don't generally teach dialects of someone's first language.

There is Scots, which is a language related to but distinct from English. Both modern Scots and modern English have common roots if you go back some 1000 years or more, but both languages developed separately and distinctly.

Scots has two main dialects which are Lallans and Doric. If you use a search engine and look for the terms "Lallans", "Doric", "Scots leid" and "Moray claik" you will find many resources. There are also links in several of the threads on this forum, so start digging and you'll find them.

Take a look at the thread in this forum called Neil can you help me?

[Tim_Macdonald]

Neil,

Can we just define what exactly we are talking about when we say "the Scots Language"? Do you mean the language of Burns, any variety spoken nowadays, or what? I am quite keen to discuss this but I cannot do so until we have established exactly what we are talking about.

Thanks, Tim.
P.S. Is the Gaelic in my signature right?

No language is static, except when it dies. Just as "English" can be used to describe the language spoken in England today, or the language of Shakespeare with equal validity, so one can describe the language of Burns, or the language spoken by modern Scots as "Scots".

For the purposes of discussion, I would describe "Scots" as a Germanic language descended from the language spoken by the Anglo-Saxon inhabitants of southern Scotland around the Tenth Century A.D. Over time this language has supplanted the Gaelic spoken by most earlier inhabitants of Scotland, and has evolved into the various dialects of Scots we know today. I'm sure if you check some of the links referred to earlier in this thread you will find a more academic definition of the language.

I don't have any Gaelic so I cannot proof-read you signature, but if it helps, the French part is correct (and very amusing).

[gille_a_ghearmailt]

Ciamar a tha sibh, a h-uile daoine?

As I am very interested in celtic heritage and the social and cultural situation in Scotland
right now, I started to learn Scottish Gaelic 3 weeks ago. Up to now I claim little abilities in reading and writing and am also able to catch the gist of a conversation if someone speaks quite slowly.
As far as I can see, the gaelic in the signature is correct.

Regarding the initial question about 'Scots English', I can
recommend the website of the Tannahill Weavers http://www.tannahillweavers.com.
They have collected all of their lyrics there and also provided a small dictionary of Scots used in their songs.

This dialect is very interesting, especially for me as a German, as some of the terms seem to be more related to German than to English. (This is also true for Gàidhlig. i.e. "Eilun" means "island" in a northern german dialect, called "Friesisch". That would be "eilan" in Scots Gaelic.)

So,

Nollaig chridheil agus bliadhna mhath ùr! - Merry christmas and a happy new year!

--
Rüdiger Reinhardt -- webmaster@sallygardens.de
http://www.sallygardens.de -- Traditional Irish and Scottish Folk