Re: dialectal diversity in English

----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark J. Reed" <markjreed@...>
To: <CONLANG@...>
Sent: Wednesday, May 07, 2003 10:05 PM
Subject: Re: dialectal diversity in English


> On Wed, May 07, 2003 at 03:21:01PM -0400, Robert B Wilson wrote:
> > On Thu, 8 May 2003 10:18:50 +0700 Daniel Ryan Prohaska
> > > I consider Scots to be a separate language.
> >
> > i consider scots to be about as far from my dialect as most west
> > virginian dialects are (actually, i sometimes think scots is closer...),
> > so if scots is a separate language...
> What is your dialect closest to, Robert?  I speak fairly "standard"
> American English, and I can understand West Virginny pretty well,
> but genuine Scots-accented English (as opposed to the Hollywood
> "Scots accent") is almost completely opaque to me.
>
"Scots" is a standardised language/dialect.  It's more conservative than
English, and has a lot of norse borrowing.  From what I can tell, Scots is
to English as Dutch is to German, maybe a bit closer.

This is a poem by Robert Burns is scots, but modernised slightly...


The Kintra Lass

In simmer, whan the hay wis mawn
An corn waved green in ilka field,
While claver bluims white ower the lea
An roses blaw in ilka bield!
Blythe Bessie in the milkin shiel,
Says - A'll be wad, come o't whit will:
Oot spake a dame in wrinkelt eild -
O guid advisement comes nae ill.

It's ye hae wooers ane,
An lassie, ye're but young, ye ken,
Than wait a wee, an cannie wale
A routhie but, a routhie ben;
Thare's Johnie o the Buskie-glen,
Fou is his barn, fou is his byre;
Tak this frae me, ma bonnie hen,
It's plenty beets the lover's fire.

For Johnie o the Buskie-glen,
I didna care a single flee;
He lous sae weel his craps an kye,
He haes nae love tae spare for me;
But blythe's the blink o Robie's ee,
An weel A wat he lous me dear:
Ae blink o him wadna gie
For Buskie-glen an aw his gear.

O thochtless lassie, life's a faucht;
The canniest gate, the strife is sair;
But aye fou-haundit is fechtin best,
A hungry care's an unco care:
But some will spend an some will spare,
An willfu fowk maun hae thair will;
Syne as ye brew, ma maiden fair,
Keep mynd that ye maun drink the yill

O gear will buy me rigs o laund,
An gear will buy me sheep an kye;
But the tender hert o leesome love,
The gowd an siller canna buy;
We mey be puir - Robie an A-
Licht is the burden love lays on;
Content an love brings pace an joy
Whit mair hae Queens upon a throne?

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