Scots Language Centre

Ma schame wis verra simple
- catastrophise
Gae tae the wurst case scenario
Def con wan
internally obviously
No sae onywan kid tell
like a deuk sweemin
leukin lown, but wi fast wee feet

fae The Mankit Deuk, by Keeks Mc

www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/the-man...

YouTube video by The Saltire Society Saltire Sessions: Gerda Stevenson

Saltire Sessions: Gerda Stevenson

The Saltire Society talks to Gerda Stevenson – actress, writer, director & musician – about storytelling, the Scots language, loss, & Gerda’s new #shortstory collection CAT WUMMIN, published by @luathpress.bsky.social
www.youtube.com/watch?v=l93G...

Scotslanguage.com - The Language of Weddings Down through the ages, getting married in Scotland has entailed a number of customs and traditions, and, of course, if a wedding was taking place in eastern or southern Scotland, or the Northern Isles...

Seein as Valentine's Day is comin up, how no hae a luik at oor guide tae the Scots leid as it's yaised in waddins?

Fun oot aboot folk gettin mairried oot o kirks, folk that hae a haunfastin, ir folk that dinnae bother wi a waddin - they jist hae a bidie-in.

Home The North Atlantic Song Convention (NASC) is an international, cross-cultural project promoting, celebrating and supporting our North Atlantic song traditions. NASC meets every spring in Edinburgh as ...

Thir a #Scots sang wirkshoap oan in Embra oan Setturday, 8th Mairch, at the @scotstorycentre.bsky.social, as pairt o the North Atlantic sang convention.

www.northatlanticsong.com/home

The haill clanjamfrie: What's so braw aboot Scots Enjoy live readings of poetry and prose with writers Len Pennie, Chris McQueer and Michael Pedersen, as they reflect on how Scots shapes their writing and stories.

The haill clanjamfrie: Whit’s sae braw aboot Scots

Friday 13 Mairch 2026
18:00 - 19:30

rse.org.uk/event/the-ha...

2026 ASL Annual Conference - Sabhal Mòr Ostaig ‘Our three-voiced country’: Twentieth-century cross-currents in Gaelic and other Scottish writing

CFP: “Our three-voiced country”: 20th-century cross-currents in Gaelic & other Scottish writing
26–28 Jun 2026 @sabhalmorostaig.bsky.social, Skye

Proposals invited exploring #C20th literary interactions between #Gaelic, Scots & English. Deadline 2 Feb
#litstudies
www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/co-labhairt-...

YouTube video by BBC Scotland Address to a Haggis | Burns Night 2024

Address to a Haggis

youtu.be/90XI__SI4rw?...

Robert Burns by Greg Moodie A page dedicated to Burns Night, Robert Burns's poems and contemporary responses to the life and work of Scotland's national poet.

Around #BurnsNight our website is the most popular poetry website in the world. 100,000+ hits on Address To A Haggis page alone. (Extra bandwidth required).

Our website has resources for anyone planning a haggis, whisky & poetry happening + much more.

www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/burns-night/

Who Speaks Scots Where: What Crowdsourcing Reveals In this paper, Jennifer Smith and Brian Aitken present findings from a new crowdsourced resource - Speak for Yersel

Who Speaks Scots Where: What Crowdsourcing Reveals
2 Feb @edfuturesinstitute.bsky.social – free

Jennifer Smith & Brian Aitken present findings from a new crowdsourced resource – Speak for Yersel – which sets out to map dialect use in Scots throughout Scotland
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/who-speaks...

A SAHA Conversation with Dr Paul Malgrati

Who was Robert Burns?

Join us on a SAHA Conversation with Dr Paul Malgrati ( @paulmalgrati.bsky.social | @thinkuhi.bsky.social @insuhi.bsky.social ) and learn more about Scotland’s National Bard and the celebration of his life and works that takes place on his birthday, January 25h.

2026 ASL Annual Conference - Sabhal Mòr Ostaig ‘Our three-voiced country’: Twentieth-century cross-currents in Gaelic and other Scottish writing

CFP: “Our three-voiced country”: 20th-century cross-currents in Gaelic & other Scottish writing
26–28 Jun 2026 @sabhalmorostaig.bsky.social, Skye

Proposals invited exploring #C20th literary interactions between #Gaelic, Scots & English. Deadline 2 Feb
#litstudies
www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/co-labhairt-...

Scotslanguage.com - Address to the Haggis Fair fa’ your honest, sonsie face,Great chieftain o the puddin’-race!Aboon them a’ ye tak your place,Painch, tripe or thairm:Weel are ye wordy of a graceAs lang’s my arm.The groaning trencher there ye...

Will ye be addressin a haggis oan Sunday?

www.scotslanguage.com/articles/nod...

bit.ly/BurnsSupperSLC

The truth about Burns Robert Burns fact or fiction

Whit is the truth aboot Burns? In 2023, Neil Mackay wrote a piece luikin at oor National Bard, originally publishit in The Herald.

Reproducit oan the Scottish Poetry Library website.

www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/the-truth-ab...

The Centre fir Robert Burns Studies an its Director Professor Pauline Mackay ir wantin tae hear aboot how folk merk Burns Nicht.

Dae ye hae somethin special fir yer denner?

Maybe ye recite some poetry, sing ir lug-in tae sangs?

#scotslanguage

Scotslanguage.com - Scots-Yiddish: A Dialect Re-imagined The Jewish immigrants from Tsarist Russia and Eastern Europe brought to every city in which they settled a mother language, the mamaloshen, known as Yiddish, along with Hebrew, their language of relig...

“The late David Kaye recalled hearing a snatch of conversation on the street in the Gorbals … in the 1950s. In response to a neighbour’s question, Ach, are you weel?, came the response: Oy, vay’z mir, ich hob ayn gey sair heid”
—via @scotslanguage.bsky.social
www.scotslanguage.com/articles/nod...

The Pest W. R. Darling Oh ye, wha in your oors o ease, ‍‍ ‍‍Are fashed wi golochs, mauks, an flees, Fell stingin wasps an bumble bees, Tak tent o this: There’s ae sma pest that’s waur nor these To mar your bliss. They hing ower hedges, burns, an wuds, ‍‍ ‍‍An dance at een in dusky cluds; Wi aw your random skelps an scuds, They’re naeweys worrit: Gin there’s a hole in aw your duds, They’ll mak straucht for it. I’ve traivled wast, I’ve traivled east; ‍‍ ‍‍‍I’m weel aquaint wi mony a beast; Wi lions, teegers, bears – at least I’ve kent their claw: I’ve been the fell mosquito’s feast – But this cowes aw. Auld Scotland, on thy bonnie face, ‍‍ ‍‍Whan Mither Nature gied ye grace, Lown, birken glens an floery braes, Wild windy ridges, To save ye frae deleerit praise, She gied ye midges.

Oh ye, wha in your oors o ease, ‍‍
‍‍Are fashed wi golochs, mauks, an flees,
Fell stingin wasps an bumble bees,
Tak tent o this:
There’s ae sma pest that’s waur nor these
To mar your bliss…

—W.R. Darling, “The Pest”
Oor Mither Tongue: An Anthology of Scots Vernacular Verse (Alexander Gardner, 1937)

‘Bible Talk’ By James Robertson We were oot for oor usual dauner roond the toun, Tam and me, and had stopped for a pech at the tap o the hill, whaur they’re plannin tae build eichty new hooses if naebody objects, and probably even if they dae. We had got ontae the Bible, some wey or ither. “In anither thirty year,” Tam said, “maist folk willna ken the Bible. No like we dae. Naebody’ll ken the language, the stories, the allusions. I honestly dinna ken hoo they’ll mak sense o the warld. Literature, for instance. Hoo can ye read literature if ye dinna get aw thae allusions? No that I’m religious masel, ye ken that. I canna mind the last time I set fit in a kirk if it wisna for somebody deid or gettin mairrit. Why else wid ye thole a minister deavin ye wi his nonsense? “But the Bible, it’s second nature tae the likes o us. Ye say, ‘the prodigal son’, or ‘water into wine’, or ‘David and Goliath’, and we aw ken exackly whaur ye’re comin fae. Ye mention the road tae Damascus, or Daniel in the lions’ den, or turnin intae a pillar o salt, and we get the reference. ‘Consider the lilies’, ‘I shall lift up mine eyes to the hills’, ‘let this cup pass from me’. Ye hear whit I’m sayin? It’s in oor banes, man.” Below us the toun swithered in the heat. A scooter bizzed up the brae like a wasp. There wis claes hingin on lines, cooncil mowers cuttin the gress, folk gaun their messages. “Tam,” I said, “ye’re haiverin. Nane o them doon there’s considerin the lilies or liftin their eyes tae the hills. They hivna got the time.” He looked at me as if I wis an eejit. “Christ,” he said, “ye hivna heard a word I’ve said, hiv ye?”

We were oot for oor usual dauner roond the toun, Tam and me, and had stopped for a pech at the tap o the hill, whaur they’re plannin tae build eichty new hooses if naebody objects, and probably even if they dae …

—James Robertson, “Bible Talk”
#FlashFiction
www.thebottleimp.org.uk/2008/05/bibl...

The best Scots words that are on the decline according to Scottish people

These favourite words from the Scots language include everything from 'moger' to 'skelf'.

Afro-Scottish Poetry Event 2025 A vibrant evening of poetry and music celebrating African, Scottish and multicultural voices through powerful live performances.

Afro-Scottish Poetry Event 2025
25 July, Glasgow. Tickets £0–£10

A multicultural evening of poetry, music, & storytelling that celebrates African & Scottish identities through powerful performances. Created & curated by Chisom Okoronkwo with U Belong Glasgow
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/afro-scott...

'Whit a wonder it wud be, fur young Scots tae hae thir ain wey ae talkin (ae bein) validatit ootwae the confines ae the iver-ignored literary sphere.'

From Colin Bramwell's report, 'Oan Scots and Respair', published in PN Review 283: www.pnreview.co.uk/archive/oan-...

Here lies our land Kathleen Jamie Here lies our land: every airt Beneath swift clouds, glad glints of sun, Belonging to none but itself. We are mere transients, who sing Its westlin’ winds and fernie braes, Northern lights and siller tides, Small folk playing our part. ‘Come all ye’, the country says, You win me, who take me most to heart.

Here lies our land: every airt
Beneath swift clouds, glad glints of sun,
Belonging to none but itself…

—Kathleen Jamie, “Here lies our land”

A poem commissioned in 2014 to mark the 700th anniversary of the battle of Bannockburn – fought #OTD, 24 June, 1314 – & inscribed on the Bannockburn monument

Merry Dancers The Bear’s noust was buskit bricht, as langships flichtered skinklin sails in seelent seas abune the easin. The ferlie fleet, skirin, flitted throu the pitmirk haugh o stervin hirsels, heizin …

Here's a link to the poem:

auldnorse.wordpress.com/2025/01/18/m...

Scots Language Society/Scots Leid Associe | Twa Sangschaw winners | Facebook Twa Sangschaw winners. Colin Mackenzie jynt winner o the Hugh MacDiarmid Tassie wi Merry Dancers, 1.1.25 an Robert M Duncan winner o the John MacPhail Tassie wi Ballant o Ladies o Bygane Days an...

Colin Mackenzie (@dgplacenames.bsky.social) recently was a joint winner of the Scots Language Society's "Hugh McDiarmid Tassie" for his #alliterative #poem, "Merry Dancers".

#alliteration #poetry #drottkvaett #poetrysky #poetrycommunity #alliterativeverse www.facebook.com/groups/82376...

"I’ll MAK YON SINGLE INCH O SCOATLAN SHINE": On 'Esther' by David Kinloch. - Glasgow Review of Books Esther Inglis, a Franco-Scottish calligrapher, was once celebrated for her exquisite manuscripts before fading from literary history due to male-centric narratives. Recent academic interest, particula...

NEW TODAY! - Ahead of tonight's launch event @byleaveswelive.bsky.social, @paulmalgrati.bsky.social reviews 'Esther', a new poetic play by David Kinloch and another milestone in the recent Esther Inglis Revival. Read the full review here - wp.me/p3nrhP-jwo

Haem Tochts T. A. Robertson (“Vagaland”) Der a ön o haet ida gairden here, Whaar da sun-flooer proodly staands, An dark-red roses trowe da green Laek da lowe fae fiery braands. Da fruit hings ower da aipple-trees And da riggs is white wi shaeves, Fir dis is a place at da Hairst comes til Or ever da Simmer laeves. Bit I come in mind o a far-nort Isle An shön A’ll be settin sail Til a laand whaar Simmer hoids her face Wi a silver, asky veil – Whaar da kokkilurie faas asleep As da dew at da hömin faas, An da sea is singin a lullaby Ida Simmer Dim in Waas. Whin da lift is black wi thunder-lumps An da vaanloop sokks da laand, I kroag inside da window-peen Wi a book ita my haand. Da trees is greetin wi da rain An I tink I wid redder be Whaar I can see da Sooth-aest wind Come tearin ower da sea, Wi da grey lift hingin ower his head An da flekkit sea below, An his haands at da reins o da froadin waves At he’s drivin in da voe; Whaar you hear da roar o da Sooth-aest gael An da soond o da brakkin baas, An da air is filt wi brimmastyooch Far in ower da riggs in Waas. You can waander below a röf o trees At shalters da English laand, An you can tramp da ceety-streets Or draa you in an staand Athin a kirk, an watch da licht Trowe da graet rose-window dere; An aa da past is afore your een – Da strife, da toil, an prayer. Bit da rose an gold o da sunset sky Is abön your head at haem, An da glimmerin mist seems ta say ta you At da wirld is jöst a draem, An naethin sall staand at Ragnarök, Whin da seevent whirlwind blaas, Bit da kindness an love in human herts In London – or in Waas.

Der a ön o haet ida gairden here,
Whaar da sun-flooer proodly staands,
An dark-red roses trowe da green
Laek da lowe fae fiery braands…

—T.A. Robertson (“Vagaland”), “Haem Tochts”
published in The Collected Poems of Vagaland (Shetland Times, 1975)
www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/haem-to...

Oxford English Dictionary is hoaching with new Scottish words Shoogly, skooshy, beamer and bummer are among 13 new entries added by editors at the OED.

Oxford English Dictionary is hoaching with new Scottish words

✨SCOTLANDSFEST 2025✨

👤Clive Young
📍St Columba's by the Castle, Edinburgh
📆 4 August
⏰ 3pm
🎟 buff.ly/1buT6pt

#EdinburghWhatsOn #ScotlandsFest25 #Fringe #EdinburghFringe

YouTube video by nationalgalleries The Art of Defiance: Queer Scotland

Queerness in Scotland has always existed, hidden in medieval manuscripts, coded in Jacobite poetry, or expressed through the arts. In the first of a 3-part series, @nationalgalleries.bsky.social explores queer artforms & artists from Scotland, past & present
#Pride 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKBC...