Scotland's Languages: Scottish English

Scottish English

Acquisition of Scottish English Phonology: An Overview Scottish English is usually characterized as “a language continuum from Broad Scots to Scottish Standard English” (Corbett, McClure & Stuart-Smith, 2003, p.2). A 1996 survey preparatory to the 2001 census by the General Register Office (Scotland) estimated that about 30% of the Scottish population use (Broad) Scots to some extent, rising to 90% in the North East. The linguistic situation on the ground is complicated somewhat by population movement and dialect contact (as well as uncertainty about what constitutes Scots or Scottish Standard English (SSE) in the first place) ... [read the article]

The Scottish Continuum and Descriptive Linguistics There is a tendency to talk about 'Scots' and 'Scottish English' as though these two entities were somehow clearly delineated and neatly identifiable, but on closer examination the situation can appear less clear-cut. For this and other reasons, Scots has often been conceived of as a language continuum that reaches from Broad Scots to Scottish Standard English ... [read the article]

Scottish English English is currently Scotland's first language, a tongue it shares in common with numerous other states around the world. However, the English spoken in Scotland is unique, and very different from the English of England, America or Australia. The English language in Scotland has been permeated by the influence of the older, Norse-influenced variety of Old English that became what is now known as Scots. ... [read the article]

The Voices Recordings (BBC) Listen in to the diverse voices of the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and Isle of Man – from Shetland to Penzance. Eavesdrop on Rotarians in Pitlochry and Travellers in Belfast. Drop in on skateboarders in Milton Keynes. Overhear pigeon fanciers in Durham. The clips are drawn from the Voices recordings – which capture 1,200 people in conversation. Some of the clips are people talking about language – slang, dialect, taboo words, accents. Other clips cover all sorts of subjects and simply offer a flavour of how we talk today.

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