A Fucking History Of Fuck

We've all heard that hoary old saw when we were kids about how the word "fuck" originally came from from an the term "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" or maybe "Fornication Under Command Of The King", usually with some sort of elaborate explanation having to do with Henry VIII or Richard The Lionheart. Of course it's utter nonsense and I'm constantly surprised that anyone actually takes that in any way seriously.




But then most people have the idea that swearing is a relatively recent thing. We get that Victorians swore but earlier than that we somehow assume that everybody spoke like John Milton, William Shakespeare, Francis Bacon or Geoffrey Chaucer. Actually we know that people in Tudor and Stuart times swore quite a lot, including Henry VIII and Elizabeth who were quite enthusiastic cursers. OK we might kind of expect that of those two but even Henry's son Edward VI, otherwise seen as a rather humorless Protestant prig (which he was) liked to swear up a storm. So much so that he was frequently punished by his tutors for being too profane even by the standards of Henry VIII, which must have quite a trick. So swearing was thoroughly commonplace in the 1500's.
In fact it was so commonplace that in the 1551's Mary Queen Of Scots passed a law banning the foul habit. Punishments included the use of "swearboxes" (in case you were wondering who came up with the idea of the home or office "swearjar") or a right good paddling. When her son James VI became king James I of England as well in 1603 he took those laws with him to his new kingdom. The success of these laws can be seen in the fact that to this day hardly anybody in the English speaking world swears anymore. Problem solved.
While the Scots may have been the first killjoys to try and ban profanity that does not mean they were shy about using it themselves. Fuck no. In fact it's from them we have the oldest known usage of the word "fuck" in literature.
William Dunbar (1465 - 1525) is widely seen as Scotland's first great poet in the Scots language, Robbie Burns was a huge fan. Ironically Dunbar was a former friar but that didn't stop him from from writing a fair amount of bawdy and sacrilegious poetry including this stanza;

"Ane Brash Of Wowing" by William Dunbar
"He clappit fast, he kist, and chukkit,
As with the glaikis he wer ouirgane;
Yit be his feirris he wald have fukkit;
Ye brek my hart, my bony ane!"

Translation;
"One Bout Of Wooing"
"He held fast, he kissed, and fondling,
As with the feeling he was overcome;
It be his manner he would have fucked;
You break my heart, my lovely one!"


image host
COPY OF DUNBAR'S "GOLDEN TARGE"
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Dunbar may have been the first and most honored dirty Scottish poet (or more accurately Scottish dirty poet) he was hardly the last. Some contemporaries were;

"The Answer Quhilk" by Schir Dauid Lindesay" (1555)
"For, lyke ane boisterous Bull, he rin and ryde
Royatouslie lyke and rude Rubeatour,
Ay fukkand lyke and furious Fornicatour."

Translation;
"The Answer Quick" by Sir David Lindsey (a knight no less)

"For, like one boisterous Bull, he run and ride
Riotously like and rude Libertine.
He fucked like a furious Fornicator."



SIR DAVID LINDSEY
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"Ane Ballat Maid To The Derisioun And Scorne Of Wantoun Women" by Alexander Scott (1550)
"Fairweill with chestetie
Fra wenchis fall to chucking.
Their fellowis thingis three
To gar thame ga in gucking
Brasing, graping, and plucking;
Thir foure the suth to sane?
Enforsis thame to fucking."

Translation;
"One Ballad Made To The Derision And Scorn Of Wanton Women"

"Farewell with chastity
When wenches fall to fondling.
Their fellows think there
To cause them go in fooling
Embracing, feeling and pulling; These for the truth to say?
Enforces them to fucking."

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Since the Scots were using the word in poems in the early 1500's it's safe to assume the Brits were using it too. It's also safe to assume that they had been doing so for quite some time in common usage otherwise there'd be no point in using them in print. Printing by the way was introduced to Britain by William Caxton in 1473 with his publication of "Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye" (actually printed in English in Bruges and imported into England) followed by Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales" actually printed in England in 1476. So "Fuck" couldn't have been in print prior to that date anyway. Certainly before William Caxton made it possible to deliver dirty limericks to the masses, at least those who could read.
As for the word itself; "Fuck" is sometimes also referred to euphemistically as an "Anglo-Saxon word", and this is actually pretty accurate.
The original Anglo-Saxons came from Saxony in Northern Germany, Jutland in Denmark and Frisia in Northern Holland, and they spoke an old Germanic language most closely related to Frisian, a language still spoken in parts of Holland. It's been pointed out that German has a word "ficken"; meaning to hit, strike or pound. It's not hard to see how that could have been used as a sexual metaphor as in "I'd like to nail/bang/tap that".
Then came came 1066 and the Norman conquest. The Normans spoke Norman-French which had "foutre", a word in turn taken from the Latin "futuo" meaning, well, to fuck. Once again it's not hard to see how "ficken" and "futuo" could eventually be combined into one word "fuck". That word (and a host of others) made their way north into Scotland as the "Scots" dialect where they were clearly put to good use.




And as for the legendary Richard The Lionhearted? He was a Franco-Norman who spoke little or no English at all. But since he spent literally all his time at war he probably knew how to swear like a soldier. He may have even said "Fuck this shit!". I mean even before Sean Connery started playing him.

Muckles of words in the Scots lied;

Muckles of words in the Scots lied;

Auld Lang Syne ~ "Old Long Since"

Aye ~ Yes

Ba-Heids ~ A pompous ass (pronounced "baw-heed")

Bairns ~ Young children of either gender

Bampot ~ A crazy person

Bannock ~ A flat cake made of oats, barley or pease meal.

Bauchle ~ Originally a scuffed old shoe, later a slovenly person (pronounced "bawkhle")

Bawbee ~ Originally a Scottish coin worth six pence, now used to refer to any small change

Bidie-in ~ An unmarried live-in boy or girlfriend

Bing ~ A large mound formed by the slag waste from a nine or quarry

Blather-skate ~ Someone who rambles on at great length without saying anything of meaning

Bothy ~ A small hut

Brownie ~ In Scottish mythology a fairy, usually of a helpful nature to good hardworking people, especially farmers

Burn ~ A river or stream (from the gealic)

Canna ~ Can not or can't Champit ~ Something that has been mashed, usually food, ie; Potatoes or yams

Cludgie ~ A washroom

Corrie-Fisted ~ A left handed person (from the gealic "cearr")

Coup ~ As a verb; to topple, or turn over. As a noun a mess or a rubbish heap (pronounced "kowp")

Dinna ~ Did not or Didn't

Dreekit ~ Drenched or soaked

Dreeth ~ Parched, thirsty

Dumfoonert ~ Stunned speechless

Eeksie-Peeksie ~ Equal or level, also used to describe a tied game

Feesty ~ Damp or mouldy, usually for food

Fouter ~ To dither, stall or procrastinate (pronounced "footer")

Gaishon ~ An extreamly thin person

Gies ~ A contraction for "Give us" which can be both singular or plural

Gill ~ A liquid measure equal to a quarter pint, usually used for liquor

Girdle ~ A cooking griddle

Guttered ~ Falling down, passed out drunk, ie: In the gutter

Haiver ~ To talk nonsense

High heid yin ~ A boss or supervisor, or someone with a bossy high-handed manner

Hive ~ Hunger

Howff ~ A low class bar or dive

Howtowdie ~ A chick, can be used to refer to a bird or a young girl

Huckle ~ To shove, tackle or manhandle

Jaggy ~ Originally a stinging nettle, later anything prickly or jagged, can also be a person with a prickly temper

Jock Tamsen's bairns ~ A phrase used to mean "We are all related", as in "We are all Jock Tamsen's bairns"

Kelpie ~ In Scottish mythology a magical horse-like creature who lives in running streams

Ken ~ Knowledge or understanding

Law ~ A round, man-made hill or mound

Leid ~ Language

Loch ~ Lake

Lum ~ A chimney

Muckle ~ Used to describe any large amount, number or size

Nae ~ No (pronounced "Nay")

Neuk ~ A strip of land jutting into the sea

Peely-Wally ~ Pale looking

Pibroch ~ A mournful air played on a bagpipe (pronunced "pibrokh")

Quaich ~ A shallow two handed drinking cup

Red-Cap ~ In Scottish mythology an evil goblin who's cap is died in the blood of it's victims

Scunnered ~ To be fed up of something

Shieling ~ A temporary hut or lean-to, used in remote areas

Skean-dhu ~ A samall dagger worn in the top of a stocking with a kilt (from the gealic)

Skew-whiff ~ To be lopsided or askew

Sonsie ~ A plump healthy child

Tam ~ AKA Tam O' Shanter; a flat round cap somewhat resembling a beret, sometimes with a pompom and/or a tassel

Tatties ~ Potatoes

Trews ~ Originally any trousers, now specifically those of a tartan design

Wabbit ~ To be tired or rundown

Wean ~ A baby

The last native speaker of Comarty dialect dies

Last native speaker of Scots dialect dies
By Jamie Hamilton, for CNN
updated 6:59 PM EDT, Fri October 5, 2012
The dialect spoken in the in the northern Scotland fishing village of Cromarty appears to be the only Germaic descendant in which no "wh" pronunciation existed.
(CNN) -- Bobby Hogg, the last native speaker of a dialect originating from a remote fishing village in northern Scotland, has died -- and so has the dialect he spoke.
The death of the 92-year-old retired engineer means that the Scots dialect known as Cromarty fisherfolk is now consigned to a collection of brief, distorted audio clips.
It is the first unique dialect to be lost in Scotland, according to Robert Millar, a reader in linguistics at the School of Language and Literature at Aberdeen University.
"Usually minority dialects end up blending in with standard English to form a hybrid. However, this is a completely distinct dialect which has become extinct," he said.
Cromarty fisherfolk appears to be the only descendant from the Germanic linguistic world in which no "wh" pronunciation existed, Millar said.
"'What' would become 'at' and 'where' would just be 'ere'," he said.
It was also the Scots language's only dialect that dropped the "H" aspiration.
"The loss of Cromarty is symptomatic of a greater, general decline in the use of the Scots language," according to Director of Scottish Language Dictionaries Chris Robinson. "This should be a wake-up call to save other struggling dialects."
Ten miles down the coast from Cromarty is Avoch, another sleepy fishing village with the closest surviving dialect to Cromarty fisherfolk, one that may also be endangered, according to Robinson. "It looks more than likely that this will go the same way as the Cromarty dialect," he said.
The dialect of the peoples who originally resided on the shores of Cromarty -- which lies on the tip of Black Isle peninsula, a four-hour drive north of Edinburgh -- was directly linked to their traditional fishing methods.
However, during the industrialization of fishing in the 1950s, established working methods were lost and the connection between the way of life and the dialect eroded. In fewer than 30 years, much of the dialect became obsolete.
Millar argues that the decline in Scots language represents a wider global trend.
"Generally, in the literate world, local dialects are suffering. The highly mobile and technologically advanced areas of the world are worst affected," he said.
There are some 6,000 to 7,000 languages in the world and it is estimated that they are disappearing at a rate of one every two weeks, according to Millar.
Some 96% of the world's population speak just 4% of the world's languages, he said. "Most languages are only spoken by a few hundred people," he added.
Why mourn the loss of a language? "At a banal level, it's a little bit of color in our lives is gone," he said. "Any time something dies, it's lost. Whether it be languages or species, we lose something. Everyone in the world loses something. Diversity surely is a good thing, and we've just lost a bit of it."
Greater communication and interdependence among communities is resulting in "dialect homogenization," Millar said.
And people tend to abandon their own languages for one of the larger languages for good reasons, according to Anthony Aristar, professor of linguistics at Eastern Michigan University and director of the school's Institute for Language Information and Technology.
"They want modern conveniences; they want their children to have decent jobs," he told CNN in a telephone interview. "All this requires being able to speak in the dominant language. So they see little use in preserving their languages."
But the loss of a language often results in the loss of the stories that were told in that language, and in the cultural knowledge they contained. "Even medical know-how," he said.
Robinson, of the Scottish Language Dictionaries, maintains that Scots minority dialects like Cromarty have faced other pressures.
"Educationally, English has been the language used in Scotland since the 18th century. Consequently, Scots speakers are not literate in their own language. Also, until recently, Scots has had a social stigma attached to it as a working-class or second-rate language."
Yet there are signs of improvement for the state of Scots minority dialects. More Scots books, especially children's books, are being published than ever before. In addition, since 2009, the Scottish government has provided funding for the Scottish Language Dictionaries, which has also given the language a status boost.
The support has been seen as a natural progression from the move by Westminster in 2002 to sign the European Union Charter of Minority and Regional Languages recognizing Scots, Gaelic and Welsh as languages separate from English.
Still, the rate of the worldwide loss of dialects and languages remains consistent.
Robinson said he would like to see more efforts taken to safeguard minority Scots dialects.
"Scots has an amazing literary history, yet it is completely ignored in our schools," he said. "The books must be made more widely available and read more in schools for the language to survive in the future."



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From The Daily Mail;
Final word from Cromarty: Scottish Black Isle dialect silenced forever as last native speaker dies aged 92
By Jane Borland
PUBLISHED: 20:17 GMT, 3 October 2012
It was a traditional dialect used for centuries by fisherfolk.
But yesterday it emerged that the language of Cromarty had finally died with the passing of its last speaker.
Bobby Hogg was the only person still fluent in the age-old tongue of the Black Isle and his death at the age of 92 means it will now exist only in audio recordings.
Mr Hogg, a retired engineer, said recently he could still close his eyes, see the boats heading out to sea and hear the unique speech pattern – never normally written down – that set his people apart.
His younger brother Gordon had been the other surviving speaker – but he died in April last year, aged 86.
Yesterday, Dr Robert McColl Millar, of Aberdeen University’s linguistic department, said Mr Hogg’s death was highly significant.
He added: ‘It is the first time that an actual Scots dialect has so dramatically died with the passing of the last native speaker.
‘This was always going to be the danger of the Black Isle, as there were so few speakers even when it was healthy, when the fishing was still good.
‘So Bobby Hogg’s passing is a very sad day. It was a very interesting dialect and was unlike any of the others.
‘There are one or two who still have some facility in the Cromarty fisherfolk dialect but most of the time they speak Highland English.
Bobby was the last fluent native speaker who spoke no other tongue from a child. He was what we term a “dense” speaker. So all we have now are the recordings.’
Mr Hogg, who died on Sunday, had worked across Britain, but kept coming back to Cromarty.
His wife Helen was a direct descendent of the community’s most celebrated son, 19th century polymath Hugh Miller.
But the Hoggs were from the fishing community. In 2007, the brothers were recorded by Am Baile, the project that has created a digital archive of the history and culture of the Highlands and Islands.
Mr Hogg said: ‘Our father was a fisherman and all his folk had been fishermen stretching way back. It was the same on our mother’s side too. When we were young, we talked differently in the fishertown to the rest of Cromarty.
‘It wasn’t written down. It was an oral culture. We had this sort of patois, which I think had both Doric and Gaelic in it.
'There were words, a lot to do with the fishing, which nobody else could understand. It is dying out. You hear a smattering in some things people from Cromarty say, but nobody speaks it fluently but for us.’

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From the Washington Post;
Posted at 09:48 AM ET, 10/05/2012
‘Cromarty fisherfolk’: Another rare language dies in Scotland
By Olga Khazan
The last native speaker of an obscure English dialect known as Cromarty fisherfolk died this week in a tiny fishing town on Scotland’s Black Isle, making his a recently disappeared rare world language.
“Bobby Hogg, who was 92 when he died, was the last person fluent in the dialect once common to the seaside town of Cromarty, 175 miles north of Edinburgh,” the AP reported.
While few people may mourn the demise of Cromarty specifically, it’s another example of the one language that dies every two weeks and a general trend toward linguistic standardization as the global population moves to cities. UNESCO expects half of the globe’s 6,000-plus languages to die off by the end of the century.
So what did Cromarty sound like?
The New Statesman has this excerpt:
"Am fair sconfished wi hayreen; gie’s fur brakwast lashins o am and heggs. (I’m so fed up with herring, give me plenty of ham and eggs for breakfast.)”
And the AP offers up even more:
“Holl tol / Very drunk
Foamin for want / Desperate for tea
At’s theer trouble? / What’s your trouble?
Theer nae tae big fi a sclaffert yet! / You’re not too big for a slap!”
You can listen to exerpts of interviews with Hogg and his (now-deceased) brother Gordon at the Scottish history site Am Baile, which has documented the dialect. In this excerpt, the Hoggs give a run-down of Cromarty fish names:
Bobby: When ye take the different names of fish, they're different in Cromarty to what they are everywhere else, like. Different names. So that's only the start, like. Same wi the line fishing an, ye know, all the things relative to it, right? These things have all disappeared now. Folk don't know what ye're talking about, even.
Gordon: No.
Interviewer: So what are some o the names?
Gordon: Well, a plashack - that's a big, a big flat fish. We call that a plashack.
Gordon: An we call others ones - there's one they call it - it's a biggar-man, an it's a, it's a flounder too. It's a flounder but it's -
Bobby: It's biggar-man - you'll find that in the Scottish Dictionary. It's a flounder, a black flounder, right? Say it's a biggar-man in Cromarty.

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From The New Statesman;
http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/lifestyle/2012/10/death-cromarty-fisherfolk-dialect
The death of the Cromarty fisherfolk dialect
By Helen Lewis Published 04 October 2012 13:38
Listening to extinct languages and dialects is an eerie, but incredible, experience.

The last native speaker of the Cromarty fisherfolk dialect, Bobby Hogg, has died - and with him, a version of our language which had unique words, expressions and character.
You can listen to Hogg and his brother Gordon speaking here: the dialect has a lilting, sing-song quality. Linguists think it was influenced by Norse and Dutch, and survived because of the close-knit community and relative geographical isolation of Cromarty in the Scottish Highlands.
We're lucky that in 2009, a researcher called Janine Donald set out to preserve and record as much of the Cromarty dialect as she could. She wrote up her findings here, and it's quite hard to see what the roots of some of the words are that were in use. For example, where did "amitan", meaning "a fool" come from? (Also, can we revive "belligut" for "a greedy person"?)
"Am fair sconfished wi hayreen; gie’s fur brakwast lashins o am and heggs." (I’m so fed up with herring, give me plenty of ham and eggs for breakfast.)
Unsurprisingly, there's a lot of specialist vocabulary relating to fishing, which I imagine is now gone for good, like "o the teydin" meaning "seventh fishing line".
There's always something poignant about the death of a last speaker of a language, pidgin, creole or dialect. According to K. David Harrison's film for National Geographic, in 2010 there were around 7,000 languages in the world, but they were disappearing at the rate of one every two weeks. Dialects and other particular sub-forms of a language, therefore, are probably disappearing more regularly. For example, linguists think that only two forms of Gaelic will survive.
Thankfully, after years of neglect, there are now several organisations doing their best to capture these languages and dialects before an increasingly interconnected world means they are lost for ever.
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NOTE: Before he died Bobby Hogg and his brother helped compile a brief glossary of Comarty-Scots which I have a copy of. I will post some examples form it in the future.


http://www.ambaile.org.uk/en/item/item_page.jsp?item_id=131892

Some Gaelic and Welsh election terms

In time for the Canadian Elections;

Queen Elizabeth;
Welsh ~ Elisabeth II, Brenhines y Deyrnas Unedig
Cornish ~ Elisabeth II a Bow Sows
Gaelic ~ Ban-rìgh Ealasaid II (although some diehards insist on calling her Ealasaid I for historical reasons, since Ealasaid I was Queen of England, Ireland and Wales but not Scotland)
Irish ~ Eilís II na Ríochta Aontaithe

Governor General;
Gaelic ~ Mór-Uachdaran
Irish ~ Seanascal

Prime Minister;
Welsh ~ Prif Weinidog (Any resemblance to "Wiener Dog" is a total coincidence)
Cornish ~ Pennmenyster
Gaelic ~ Prìomhairean
Irish ~ Príomh-Aire (or Taoiseach)

Member of Parliament;
Welsh ~ Aelod Seneddol
Gaelic ~ Buill-Pàrlamaid
Irish ~ Teachta Dála
Scots ~ Commissioners tae the Pairlament

Conservative Party;
Welsh ~ Y Blaid Geidwadol
Cornish ~ Parti Gwithadorek
Gaelic ~ An Páirtí Coimeádach
Irish ~ Pháirtí Choimeádaigh

Liberal Party;
Welsh ~ Plaid Ryddfrydol
Cornish ~ Parti Livrel
Gaelic ~ An Pairti Libearalach
Irish ~ Páirtí Liobrálach
Scots ~ Leiberal Pairty

New Democratic Party;
Welsh ~ Plaid Newydd Democratiaid
Gaelic ~ Pàrtaidh Uire Deamocratach
Irish ~ Pháirtí Nua Daonlathach

Green Party;
Welsh ~ Plaid Werdd
Gaelic ~ Pàrtaidh Uaine
Irish ~ Comhaontas Glas
Scots ~ Green Pairty

Communists:
Welsh ~ Comiwnyddiaeth
Gaelic ~ Comunnachas
Irish ~ Cumannachas

Prime Numbers in various British Leids

Numbers 1 - 12 in Old English, Scots, Irish, Gaelic, Manx, Welsh, Breton, Shelta and Yola.

Old English
1. An
2. Twa
3. Brie
4. Féower
5. Fif
6. Syx
7. Seofon
8. Eahta
9. Nigon
10.Tyn
11.Endlefan
12.Twelf

Scots;
1. Yin
2. Twae
3. Threi
4. Fower
5. Foive
6. Sax
7. Seeven
8. Aucht
9. Nine
10.Tenn
11.Eleveen
12.Twal

Old Irish;
1. Oen
2. Da
3. Tri
4. Cethair
5. Coic
6. Se
7. Secht
8. Ocht
9. Noi
10.Diech

Irish;
1. Aon
2. Dha
3. Tri
4. Ceathair
5. Cúig
6. Se
7. Seacht
8. Ocht
9. Naoi
10.Ten
11.Aon déag
12.Dó dhéag

Gaelic;
1. Aon
2. Da
3. Tri
4. Ceithir
5. Cóignear
6. Sia
7. Seachd
8. Ochd
9. Naoi
10.Deich
11.Aon deug
12.Dà dheug

Manx;
1. Un
2. Da
3. Tree
4. Kiare
5. Queig
6. Shey
7. Shiaght
8. Hoght
9. Nuy
10.Jei
11.Nane jeig
12.Daa yeig
13.Tree jeig

Welsh;
1. Un
2. Dau
3. Tri
4. Pedwar
5. Pump
6. Chwech
7. Saith
8. Wyth
9. Naw
10.Deg
11.Un ar Deg
12.Deudegg

Breton;
1. unan
2. daou
3. tri
4. pevar
5. pemp
6. c'hwec'h
7. seizh
8. eizh
9. nav
10.dek

Shelta;
1. Ayn
2. Odd
3. Sheeka
4. Shaka
5. Shooka
6. Shay
7. Sheltoo
8. Okht
9. Ayen
10.Chal gyetcha

Yola;
1. Oane
2. Twye
3. Dhree
4. Vowér
5. Veeve
6. Zeese
7. Zebbem
8. Ayght
9. Neene
10.Dhen

In time for Robbie Burns Day; "Scots Wha Hae" lyrics translated

"Scots Wha Hae" ~ The unofficial Scottish national anthem, written by Robbie Burns in the Scots Leid. Translates as "Scots Who Have" in English.
BTW the Gaelic translation of title is "Brosnachadh Bhruis" which is not a literal translation, "Bhruis" is the Gaelic version of "Bruce" and "brosnachadh" basically means "war cry".

a) SCOTS WHA HAE (in Scots)
"Scots, wha hae wi' Wallace bled,
Scots, wham Bruce has aften led,
Welcome tæ yer gory bed,
Or tæ victorie.

Now's the day, and now's the hour:
See the front o' battle lour,
See approach proud Edward's power -
Chains and Slavery.

Wha will be a traitor knave?
Wha will fill a coward's grave?
Wha sæ base as be a slave?
Let him turn and flee.

Wha, for Scotland's king and law,
Freedom's sword will strongly draw,
Freeman stand, or Freeman fa',
Let him on wi me.

By Oppression's woes and pains,
By your sons in servile chains!
We will drain our dearest veins,
But they shall be free.

Lay the proud usurpers low,
Tyrants fall in every foe,
Liberty's in every blow! -
Let us do or dee."

b) SCOTS WHA HAE (in English)
"Scots, who have with Wallace bled,
Scots, whom Bruce has often led,
Welcome to your gory bed
Or to victory.

Now is the day, and now is the hour:
See the front of battle lower,
See approach proud Edward's power -
Chains and slavery.

Who will be a traitor knave?
Who will fill a coward's grave?
Who's so base as be a slave? -
Let him turn, and flee.

Who for Scotland's King and Law
Freedom's sword will strongly draw,
Freeman stand or freeman fall,
Let him follow me.

By oppression's woes and pains,
By your sons in servile chains,
We will drain our dearest veins
But they shall be free.

Lay the proud usurpers low,
Tyrants fall in every foe,
Liberty is in every blow,
Let us do or die!"

c) "BROSNACHADH BHRUIS" (in Gaelic)
"Albannaich a chail ur fuil
Fo'n laoch Uallas'us fo Bhrus,
Failt' do shuain ur bais an duigh,
No do bhuidhinn stri.

Feuch an latha, so an uair,
Faicaibh gnuis a bhlair fo ghruaim,
Feachd righ Eideard teachd le uaill,
'S geimhlean cruaidhe dhuinn.

Co bhiodh iudasach sa chath,
Co'n uaigh gealtair a bhiodh taisgt',
Co a bhiodh na thraill fo smachd,
Teich gu grad 's na till.

Co as leth tir aird an fhraoich,
Thairneas claidheamh treun na saors',
Le'n fhearr bas na geill' do h-aon,
Thig do'n raon leam fhein.

Le gach truaighe fuaight' ri' daors',
Le cuing thruaillidh cloinn ar gaoil,
Doirteamid ar fuil na taom,
Ach sar shaor bidh sinn.

Sgriosaibh na Sr-foirnidh dhan,
Tuitidh aintighearna 's gach namh,
Anns gach beum tha saors' an aigh,
Buaidh no bas biodh leinn!"

Some passages from Wycliffe's Bible with Modern Translation

Written in a period of years from 1382 to 1395 in the Middle English tongue by John Wycliffe and distributed widely in the British Isles the Wycliffe was a huge influence on the development of English as well as the Scots and Yola lieds which kept many of it's words into the modern era.

1. a)Wycliffe version;
"Oure fadir þat art in heuenes halwid be þi name;
þi reume or kyngdom come to be.Be þi wille don in herþe as it is dounin heuene.
yeue to us today oure eche dayes bred.
And foryeue to us oure dettis þat is oure synnys
as we foryeuen to oure dettouris þat is to men þat han synned in us.
And lede us not into temptacion but delyuere us from euyl."

b)Modern version;
"Our father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debters.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.'


2. a)Wycliffe version;
"And God seide, Lict be maad; and lict was maad"
~ Genesis 1:3

b) King James translation;
"And God said, Let there be light; and there was light"
~ Genesis 1:3 Old Testament

3. a)Wycliffe version;
"For God louede so the world that he yaf his oon bigetun sone, that ech man that beliueth in him perische not, but haue euerlastynge lijf."
~ John 3:16

b) Modern King James translation;
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."
~ John 3:16 New Testament


4. a) Wycliffe version in Middle English;
"And it is don, aftirward Jesus made iourne bi cites & castelis prechende & euangelisende þe rewme of god, & twelue wiþ hym & summe wymmen þat weren helid of wicke spiritis & sicnesses, marie þat is clepid maudeleyn, of whom seuene deuelis wenten out & Jone þe wif off chusi procuratour of eroude, & susanne & manye oþere þat mynystreden to hym of her facultes."
~Luke ch.8, v.1–3

b) Modern Translation;
"And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and showing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him, and certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, and Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance."
~Translation of Luke ch.8 v.1–3, from the New Testament

Two "Canterbury Tales" prolouges with translation

Written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 1380's "The Canterbury Tales" is considered the greatest example of literature of the English language of the pre-Renaissance, Middle English era. "Canterbury Tales" are a collection of short stories told from the point of view of a group of travelers on the way to Canterbury. Along with the Wycliffe and Caxton Bibles, the work was the most hugely influential in the development of English literature until Shakespeare's works. It also left an important legacy in the Scots and Yola leids which retained many words and spellings after they left Modern English.
Below are two examples with modern translations.

1.a) From the general prologue;
Original in Middle English(London dialect):
"Whan that Aueryłł wt his shoures soote,
The droghte of Marcħ, hath perced to the roote;
And bathed euery veyne in swich lycour,
Of which vertu engendred is the flour;
Whan zephirus eek wt his sweete breeth,
Inspired hath in euery holt and heeth;
The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne,
Hath in the Ram, his half cours yronne;
And smale foweles, maken melodye,
That slepen al the nyght with open iye;
So priketh hem nature, in hir corages,
Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrymages;
And Palmeres for to seeken straunge strondes,
To ferne halwes, kouthe in sondry londes;
And specially, from euery shyres ende,
Of Engelond to Caunterbury they wende;
The holy blisful martir for to seke,
That hem hath holpen whan þt they weere seeke."

b) Modern English translation (note the brackets have been added as they did not exist in Middle English);
"When in April the sweet showers fall
And pierce the drought of March to the root, and all
The veins are bathed in liquor of such power
As brings about the engendering of the flower,
When also Zephyrus with his sweet breath
Exhales an air in every grove and heath
Upon the tender shoots, and the young sun
His half course in the sign of the Ram has run
And the small fowl are making melody
That sleep away the night with open eye,
(So nature pricks them and their heart engages)
Then folk long to go on pilgrimages,
And palmers long to seek the stranger strands
Of far off saints, hallowed in sundry lands,
And specially from every shires’ end
Of England, down to Canterbury they wend
The holy blissful martyr, quick
To give his help to them when they were sick."

2.a) From "The Merchant's Prologue";
"Wepyng and waylyng, care and oother sorwe
I knowe ynogh, on even and a-morwe,'
Quod the Marchant, 'and so doon oother mo
That wedded been."

b) Modern English translation;
"Weeping and wailing, care and other sorrow
I know enough, in the evening and in the morning,'
said the Merchant, 'and so does many another
who has been married."

The Lord's Prayer in various British Leids

Since the Lord's Prayer has been highly standardized and well known for centuries it is often used to compare different languages;
1.First by way of comparison (in case you've forgotten it) here's the English version;
Our Father, who is in heaven,
Hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come, your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
As we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial,
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
Amen.

2.The Prayer in Braid Highland Scots-English;
Fiitheeb o' us a', biding Aboon !
Thy name be holie!
Lat thy reign begin !
Lat thy wull be dune, baith in Tirth and Hoeven !
Gie us ilka day oor needfu' fendin.
And forgie ub a' oor ill deeds, as we e'en forgie thae wha did us ill.
And lat us no be sift.it; hut save us frae the Ill-Ane
I For the croon is thine ain,
and the micht and the glory, for evir and evir,
Amen !

3.The Prayer in Lowlands Scots;
Our Father, wha art in heaven,
ballowet be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will he dune
in yirth as it is in heaven.
Gie us this day our daily bread.
An' forgie us our debts, as we forgie our debtors.
An' lead us na intil temptation, hut deliver us frae evil ;
for thine is the kingdom, an* the power, an' the glory, for ever.
Amen.

4.The Prayer in Scottish Gaelic;
Ar n-Athair a tha air nèamh,
Gu naomhaichear d' ainm.
Thigeadh do rìoghachd.
Dèanar do thoil air an talamh,
mar a nithear air nèamh.
Tabhair dhuinn an-diugh ar n-aran làitheil.
Agus maith dhuinn ar fiachan,
amhail a mhaitheas sinne dar luchd-fiach.
Agus na leig ann am buaireadh sinn;
ach saor sinn o olc:
oir is leatsa an rìoghachd, agus a' chumhachd, agus a' ghlòir, gu sìorraidh.
Amen.

5.The Lords Prayer in Irish Gaelic;
Ár n-Athair, atá ar neamh
go naofar d'ainm.
Go dtaga do ríocht.
Go ndéantar do thoil ar an talamh,
mar dhéantar ar neamh.
Ár n-arán laethúil tabhair dúinn inniu,
agus maith dúinn ár bhfiacha,
mar mhaithimid dár bhféichiúna féin.
Agus ná lig sinn i gcathú,
ach saor sinn ó olc.
Óir is leatsa an Ríocht agus an Chumhacht agus an Ghloir, tré shaol na saol.
Amen.

6.The Prayer in Old Irish (circa 500-1000 a.d.)
A athair fil hi nimib,
Noemthar thainm.
Tost do flaithius.
Did do toil i talmain
amail ata in nim.
Tabair dun indiu ar sasad lathi.
Ocus log dun ar fiachu
amail logmaitne diar fhechemnaib.
Ocus nis lecea sind i n-amus n-dofulachtai.
Acht ron soer o cech ulc.
Amen ropfir.

7.The Prayer in Manx Gaelic (the language of the Isle of Man);
Ayr ain t'ayns niau,
Casherick dy row dt'ennym.
Dy jig dty reeriaght.
Dt'aigney dy row jeant er y thalloo,
myr t'ayns niau.
Cur dooin nyn arran jiu as gagh laa,
as leih dooin nyn loghtyn,
myr ta shin leih dauesyn ta jannoo loghtyn nyn 'oi.
As ny leeid shin ayns miolagh,
agh livrey shin veih olk:
Son lhiats y reeriaght, as y phooar, as y ghloyr, son dy bragh as dy bragh.
Amen.

8.The Lords Prayer in Shelta Gaelic;
The language of the Shelta (also known as the Irish travelers) nomads who live throughout the British Isles and North America. The older Gaelic version dates to the 14th to 18th centuries and is more closely related to the other Gaelic tongues with some influences from English and Welsh;
Mwilsha's gater, swart a manyath,
Manyi graw a kradji dilsha's manik.
Graw bi greydid, sheydi laadu
Az aswart in manyath.
Bag mwilsha talosk minyart goshta dura.
Geychel aur shaaku areyk mwilsha
Geychas needjas greydi gyamyath mwilsha.
Bat bog mwilsha ahim gyamyath.
Gradum a gradum.

9.The Lord's Prayer in English Shelta. The newer version (ie.post 19th century) is more clearly influenced by English. Also known as the Traveler's Cant;
Our gathra, who cradgies in the manyak-norch,
We turry kerrath about your moniker.
Let's turry to the norch where your jeel cradgies,
And let your jeel shans get greydied nosher same as it is where you cradgie.
Bug us eynik to lush this thullis,
And turri us you're nijesh sharrig for the gammy eyniks we greydied
Just like we ain't sharrig at the gammi needies that greydi the same to us
Nijesh let us soonie eyniks that'll make us greydi gammy eyniks,
But solk us away from the taddy.
Amen.

10.The Prayer in Welsh;
Ein Tad, yr hwn wyt ,
yn y nefoedd,sanctciddier dy Enw.
Deled dy deyrnas.
Qwneler dy ewyllys, megis yn y nef, felly ar y ddaear licfyd.
Dyro i ni heddyw tin burn bcunyddiol,
A maddeu i ni ein dyledion,
Tel y maddeuwn ninnau i'n dyledwyr.
Ac nac arwain ni i brofedigaeth ; eithr g wared ni rhag drwg.
Canys eiddot ti yw y deyrnas, a'r nertb, a'r gogoniant, yn oea oesoedd.
Amen.

11.The Prayer in Cornish (the language of Cornwall, closely related to Welsh);
Agan Tas ni, eus y’n nev,
bennigys re bo dha hanow.
Re dheffo dha wlaskor,
Dha vodh re bo gwrys y’n nor kepar hag y’n nev.
Ro dhyn ni hedhyw agan bara pub dydh oll,
ha gav dhyn agan kammweyth
kepar dell evyn nyni
dhe’n re na eus ow kammwul er agan pynn ni;
ha na wra agan gorra yn temptashyon,
mes delyrv ni dhiworth drog.
Rag dhiso jy yw an wlaskor,
ha’n galloes ha’n gordhyans,
bys vykken ha bynari.
Yndella re bo!
Amen.

12.The Prayer in Breton (not actually in Britain but closely related to Welsh and Cornish);
Hon Tad,
c'hwi hag a zo en Neñv,
ra vo santelaet hoc'h ano.
Ra zeuio ho Rouantelezh.
Ra vo graet ho youl war an douar evel en neñv.
Roit dimp hizio bara hor bevañs.
Distaolit dimp hon dleoù
evel m' hor bo ivez distaolet d' hon dleourion.
Ha n' hon lezit ket da vont gant an temptadur,
met hon dieubit eus an Droug.

13.The Prayer in Shetland Norn. Norn was the language spoken of the Shetland and Orkney Islands which died out in the late 19th century. It was a Norse Viking tongue related to Norwegian, Icelandic and Faeroese.
Fy vor or er i Chimeri.
Halaght vara nam dit.
La Konungdum din cumma.
La vill din vera guerde
i vrildin sindaeri chimeri.
Gav vus dagh u dagloght brau.
Forgive sindorwara
sin vi forgiva gem ao sinda gainst wus.
Lia wus ikè o vera tempa,
but delivra wus fro adlu idlu.
For do i ir Kongungdum, u puri, u glori,
Amen

14.The Prayer in Orkney Norn;
Favor i ir i chimrie,
Helleur ir i nam thite,
gilla cosdum thite cumma,
veya thine mota vara gort
o yurn sinna gort i chimrie,
ga vus da on da dalight brow vora
Firgive vus sinna vora
sin vee Firgive sindara mutha vus,
lyv vus ye i tumtation,
min delivera vus fro olt ilt,
Amen.

15.The Prayer in Anglo-Saxon (circa 900 a.d.);
Fæder ūre þū þe eart on heofonum,
Sī þīn nama ġehālgod.
Tōbecume þīn rīċe,
ġewurþe ðīn willa, on eorðan swā swā on heofonum
Ūrne ġedæġhwāmlīcan hlāf syle ūs tō dæġ
and forgyf ūs ūre gyltas, swā swā wē forgyfað ūrum gyltendum.
And ne ġelǣd þū ūs on costnunge, ac ālys ūs of yfele.
Soblice

16.The Prayer in Old Northumbrian, a variety of Saxon spoken in Northern England, influenced by Norse (circa 950 a.d.);
Suae ðonne iuih gie bidde fader
urer ðu arð ðu bist in heofnum & in heofnas;
sie gehalgad noma ðin;
to-cymeð ric ðin.
sie willo ðin suae is in heofne & in eorðo.
hlaf userne oferwistlic sel us to dæg.
& forgef us scylda usra suae uoe forgefon scyldgum usum.
& ne inlæd usih in costunge ah gefrig usich from yfle.

17.The Prayer in Old Scots;
Uor fader quhilk beest I Hevin, Hallowit weird thyne nam.
Cum thyne kinrik.
Be dune thyne wull as is I Hevin,
sua po yerd.
Uor dailie breid gif us thilk day.
And forleit us uor skaiths, as we forleit them quha skaith us.
And leed us na intill temptatioun.
Butan fre us fra evil.
Amen.

18.The Prayer in Gaulish-Brittonic (circa 100 a.d., this is a anonymous translation and may not be accurate);
Even taad rhuvn wytyn y neofoedodd,
Santeiddier yr hemvu tau.
De vedy dyrnas dau
Guueler dy wollya arryddayar megia agyit y nefi.
Eyn bara beunydda vul dyro inuiheddivu.
Ammaddeu ynny
eyn deledion, megia agi maddcvu in deledvvir ninaw.
Agna thowys Jni in brofedigaeth,
Namyn gvvaredni rbag drug.
Amen.

19.The Prayer in Jerriais, The language of Jersey, one of the Channel Islands. Essentially is dialect of Norman-French, the other Channel Islands have similar dialects;
Nouot' Péthe qu'es au ciel
qu'Tan nom sait sanctifié
qu'Tan règne veinge
qu'Ta volanté sait faite
sus la tèrre coumme au ciel
baille-nouos aniet not' pain d'la journée
et nouos pardonne nouos offenses
coumme nou pardonne les cheins tchi nouos ont offensé
et n'nouos mène pon dans la tentâtion
mais délivre-nouos du ma
car à Té est lé règne, l'pouver et la glouaithe
au siècl'ye des siècl'yes
Âmen

20.The Prayer in Anglo-Romani, the language used by the Romany (or Gypsy)community in England and Scotland. (In Wales and Ireland the Romany creole are more influenced by Celtic leids);
Moro Dad, so see adre mi Duvelesko keri,
te wel teero kralisom, too zee be kedo adre chik,
jaw see adre mi Duvelesko keri.
Del mendi kova divvus moro divvusly mauro,
ta fordel mendi moro wafedo-kerimus,
pensa mendi fordels yon ta kairs wafedo aposh mendi,
ta lel mendi kek adre wafedo-kerimus.
Jaw keressa te righer mendi avri wafedo.
Jaw see ta jaw see.

21.And one more; The Prayer in Gullah. Not actually spoken in Britain, but an interesting variety of English Creole. Gullah is one of the languages formed by the African slaves in the United States and Caribbean, surviving in communities in South Carolina;
We Fader wa dey een heaben leh ebrybody hona ya nyame.
We pray dat soon ya gwine rule oba de wol.
Wasoneba ting ya wahn, leh um be so een dis wol
Gii we de food wa we need dis day yah an ebry day.
Fagib we fa we sin, same like we da fagib dem people wa do bad
at we Leh we dohn hab haad test wen Satan try we.
Keep we fom ebil.
Amen.
Anglo-Norman;
Li nostre pere, qui ies es ciels:
saintefiez seit li tuens nums.
Avienget li tuns regnes.
Seit faite la tue voluntet,
sicum en ciel e en la terre.
Nostre pain cotidian dun a nus oi.
E pardune a nus les noz detes,
eissi cume nus pardunums a noz deturs.
E ne nus mener en temtatiun,
mais delivre nus de mal. Amen.

A few slightly derogatory regional terms

1. Teuchter ~ A Lowland Scottish word referring to Highland Scots, especially Gaelic speakers. No specifically derogatory but often used to imply lower class "white trash" or "hillbillies". Pronounced "chookter".

2. Sassenach ~ A Highland Scots and Irish word to refer to Lowland Scots or English. Translates as "Saxons". Not specifically derogatory, but by lumping in Lowland Scots together with the English as "Saxons" it implies that they are foreigners and not truly Scots. Pronounced "sassenakh".

3. Erse ~ A Lowland Scots word to refer to the Gaelic language and Gaelic tongue. Translates as "Irish" implying that Gaelic speakers are foreigners.

4. Taffy or Taffs ~ An English term referring to the Welsh, Cornish, Bretons or Cumbrians. Originally Taffy was a short form of Taffydd or Daffydd, a Welsh version of David, a common Welsh and Cornish name. Not specifically derogatory but is used to imply a lout. Evolved into the word "daffy" which then become a more general insult.

5. Sais ~ A Welsh word for the English, the female form is Saesnes. Originally from an old Saxon word meaning "fair" as in having lighter hair and skin, which doesn't sound too bad, however it can also be be meant to imply an effeminate toff. Or it could also be a corruption of the word Saxon similar to the Scottish term "Sassenach".

6. Sows ~ The Cornish word for the English, and the Cornish word for the English language is "Sowsnek" both of which sound particularly insulting, at least in English. Actually it comes from the same root word as the Welsh "sais".

7. Paddy ~ A common English and Scots term for the Irish, usually implies a drunken buffoon. Originally derived from the common Irish name Patrick (Padraig in Irish), St. Patrick is also of course the Patron Saint of Ireland. The term "Micks" used as insult is an American derivative. A female term sometimes used in the Victorian and Edwardian eras was "Bridget" although this has since fallen away.

Some other regional terms;

8. Grasano ~ Shelta term for a Scottish person

9. Shisher ~ Shelta term for an Irish person

10.Rilanthu ~ Another Shelta term for an Irish person

11.Palanthus ~ Shelta term for an English person

12.Eerish ~ Yola term for the Irish

Scottish New Years Terms

1. "Auld Lang Syne" ~ From the classic Robbie Burns poem, literally "Old long since", thus "Days of auld lang syne" means "days of old gone by".

2. Hogmanay ~ The name given to the New Year's celebrations. The origin of the word is unknown, some possibilities include the Norman French "hoguinané" or "Homme est né" or "Man is born" , the Norse "Hoggo-nott" a yuletime feast, the Flemish "hoog min dag" or "great love day", the Saxon "Haleg monath" or "Holy Month" or the Gaelic "Oge maidne" or "new morning".

3. "Lang may yer lum reek" ~ A traditional New Years greeting meaning "Long may your chimney smoke" or may you have enough fuel. Lum = Chimney, Reek = smoke.

4. "Handselling" ~ Was the custom of gift giving on the first Monday of the New Year but this has died out except for the Outer Islands. Also "Hanselling".

5. "Burning the clavie" ~ A bonfire made of a wooden cask filled with tar held together with an iron spike called a "clavis" in Latin; hence the term, however it may more likely also be from Scottish Gaelic "cliabh", a basket used for holding combustibles.

6. Douro ~ The alter upon which the clavie is burned.

7. Ne'erday ~ New Years Day.

8. Auld Handsel Monday ~ is traditionally celebrated on the first Monday after the 12th of January. Small gifts or tips are given out, roughly equal to Boxing Day in England and Canada. A "Handsel" or "Hansel" is a small gift box.