For those of you who read my previous blog on Hamish MacDonald, here is another offering in the Scots tongue. This one is especially interesting as here we are exposed to Scottish folklore as well as the Scots Language.

Scots, held by some to be a separate language and others to be a dialect of English, has different origins from English.  It evolved out of the early northern form of "Middle English" spoken by the people of southeastern Scotland and northern England. It, in turn, evolved out of Anglic, a Germanic tongue spoken by the Angles who settled in the area. Southern versions of "Anglo-Saxon" were principally of Frisian origin. Scots has been heavily influenced by English and, to a lesser degree, by Gaelic. Likewise, English has been influenced by Scots. The two languages share many words in common, albeit with different pronunciations. There are also a number of words unique to Scots. Here are a few examples which may be heard in the reading below (note, spelling varies).

ken = to know or understand (past tense = kent)
necht = night
heed = head
greet = cry
frae = from
oucht = anything (ought)
taelt = told
bairn = small child, infant
licht = light
Kelpie = a supernatural shape-shifting water horse

Listen to "Old Wives' Tales by Alison Reid"