Document 1706

Scots Tung Wittins 55

Author(s): Robert Fairnie

Copyright holder(s): Name withheld

Nummer 55
Julie 1998

Scots Tung WITTINS

Eydentlie uphaudin the Scots Leid Campaine
E-mail: [CENSORED: emailaddress] Ph. [CENSORED: phonenumber]

Scots Tung an The Scottish Fund For The Disabled complouter thegither tae gie a heize tae yin anither.
[NOTE: wheelchair sign here in original]
The abuin Scottish Fund For The Disabled is proponin tae big up its monthly magazine, Wheels, fae A5 size tae A4 wi a pul-oot A3 bittie in the mids tae gie fower A4 pages aw scrievit in Scots insteid o the twa A5 pages thai hae the noo. Officiars o the Fund is complouterin wi us for Scots Tung tae fend the maist o the Scots language text wi the bouk o't bein taen fae the Scots Tung WITTINS. Scots Tung wull be gien the inlat tae vizzie a draft copie o Wheels tae edit the Scots language content afore furthsettin. Wi the SFFTD ettlin tae big up the circulation o Wheels, fae juist ower a thoosand the noo, tae echt or aiblins ten thoosand in the neist twa three year, this is shuir tae tak the wirds o STW tae monie mair een nor it daes the noo. Forby aw this, the officiars o the Fund haes sayed that thai micht weel be intrestit in furthsettin an mercatin oor caur stickers, framed texts an Yule cairds in the days tae come. It's aw airlie doors yet, but here howpin!

European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.
Follaein on fae the wittins in Nummer 54 o the Scots Tung WITTINS anent the United Kingdom proponin tae ratify the abuin charter wi regaird tae the Gaelic unner Pairt III an tae Scots unner Pairt II, here a ful copie o Pairt II o the Charter, the yin that's tae be applied tae the Scots language:-

Part II
Article 7 – Objectives and principals

1. In respect of regional or minority languages, within the territories in which such languages are used and according to the situation of each language, the Parties shall base their policies, legislation and practice on the following objectives and principles:

(a) the recognition of the regional or minority languages as an expression of cultural wealth;

(b) the respect of the geographical area of each regional or minority language in order to ensure that existing or new administrative divisions do not constitute an obstacle to the promotion of the regional or minority language in question;

(c) the need for resolute action to promote regional or minority languages in order to safeguard them;

(d) the facilitation and/or encouragement of the use of regional or minority languages, in speech and writing, in public and private life;

(e) the maintenance and development of links, in the fields covered by this Charter, between groups using a regional or minority language and other groups in the State employing a language used in identical or similar form, as well as the establishment of cultural relations with other groups in the State using different languages;

(f) the provision of appropriate forms and means for the teaching and study of regional or minority languages at all appropriate stages;

(g) the provision of facilities enabling non-speakers of a regional or minority language living in the area where it is used to learn it if they so desire;

(h) the promotion of study and research on regional or minority languages at universities or equivalent institutions;

(i) the promotion of appropriate types of transnational exchanges, in the fields covered by this Charter, for regional or minority languages used in identical or similar form in two or more States.

2. The Parties undertake to eliminate, if they have not yet done so, any unjustified distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference relating to the use of a regional or minority language and intended to discourage or endanger the maintenance or development of it. The adoption of special measures in favour of regional or minority languages aimed at promoting equality between the users of these languages and the rest of the population or which take due account of their specific conditions is not considered to be an act of discrimination against the users of more widely-used languages.

3. The Parties undertake to promote, by appropriate measures, mutual understanding between all the linguistic groups of the country and in particular the inclusion of respect, understanding and tolerance in relation to regional or minority languages among the objectives of education and training provided within their countries and encouragement of the mass media to pursue the same objective.

4. In determining their policy with regard to regional or minority languages, the Parties shall take into consideration the needs and wishes expressed by the groups which use such languages. They are encouraged to establish bodies, if necessary, for the purpose of advising the authorities on all matters pertaining to regional or minority languages.

5. The Parties undertake to apply, mutatis mutandis, the principles listed in paragraphs 1 to 4 above to non-territorial languages. However, as far as these languages are concerned, the nature and scope of the measures to be taken to give effect to this Charter shall be determined in a flexible manner, bearing in mind the needs and wishes, and respecting the traditions and characteristics, of the groups which use the languages concerned.

~~~ooo~~~
Tho Pairt II is naewey near as comprehensive as Pairt III is, it still haes a guid muckle scowth for the Scots language tae ken the guid o an we maun dae aw we cuin tae haud the Scottish Office tae the verra letter o the Charter if no mair.

Scots Tung WITTINS
on the wab.
The Scots Tung Wittins cuin be vizzied or doon-loadit an prentit (noo in HTML format) fae the wab-steid o:-

The Scots Speikers Curn, Glesca.
Wab-steid backin:-
http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~love/
Neist Forgaitherin. Mon. 14t. Sept. 1998 7.30pm tae 9.00pm Comatee Rm. C. Brunton Ha, Musselburgh,

Scottish Cultur an the Curriculum.
wer the lest twa year, the Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum haes spent aroond £40,000 o oor siller kythin a Review Group tae report thair consait anent hoo muckle Scottish cultur shuid be eikit tae the curriculum. This Review Group haes noo feenished its darg an the report, cried Scottish Culture and the Curriculum, haes been signed bi the group's chairman, Maister Neil R. Galbraith, an haundit ower tae the SCCC for thair conseederation. Naebodie kens whit wey the SCCC haes taen cauld feet an decidit no tae furthset the report. Thai threap that thai want mair time tae get the 'braider picter' an that this haes nocht tae dae wi suppression. Weel, thare aye some water whaur the stirkie droons an Maister David Duncan, Secretar o the SCCC, is makin onie's amount o water as he gars fowk tae ding copies o Scottish Culture an the Curriculum aff o the internet an threapin breach o copiericht. He nae suiner gets it taen aff the ae wab-steid nor it kythes back on twa three ithers. Thare maun be mair copies o it noo in the hauns o intrestit fowk aw ower the warld nor he haes hissel. At the time o scrievin, the abuin report wis tae be haed at
:- http:// www.snp.org.uk/library/sccc/sccc1.htm an http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~love/ amang ithers. Hoo muckle braider a picter cuid oniebodie get nor yin that's taen a guid twa year tae big up? Naebodie kens whit the SCCC is feart o for Brian Wilson haes threapit areddies that thare nocht in the abuin report as micht fash the goverment. Forby that, maist o whit the report is speirin for is tae mak mair an better yiss, whaur Scots is concairned, o whit the goverment haes greed tae areddies, Pairt II o the European Charter inclusit. Here ablow is the gist o yin or twa bits an pieces threapit bi the report on Scottish Cultur an the Curriculum, whaur the Scots language is concairned:-

Forby historie, monie feckfu idaias lowp fae the wame o oor pernicketie language seetiation in Scotland. Spoken an scrievit English is noo the maist cowmon wey o traffeckin in Scotland tho the kin that's spoken the maist is a variant o the staundart leid an its leeterature maistlie haes tae dae wi Scottish vizzies an thochts anent sic like nories.

Tho Scots haes a cowmon historical hame-comin tae English, it canna sickerlie be cried a byleid. It wis doon-hauden an makit a bauchle o in the days gane by an noo it wants maistlie for an acceppit wey o speikin an scrievin tae an amang the estaiblishment. In spite o hunners o years o onding, it still aye pits itsel forrit as variants o diffrent bouk athort the kintra an is yaised an unnerstuid bi aiblins twa million fowk. Thae variants is suffeecientlie sib tae yin anither in wird leet an gremmar tae be seen as the ae language, an thai'r aw sortit oot in a muckle reenge o Scots dictionars. Scots haes yin o the maist faur reengin an kenspeckle leeteratures o onie o the 'so-called' lesser yaised European leids an haes aye been an still is o muckle intrest tae collegianers aw ower the warld. Scrievins in aw kins an byleids o Scots cairries on an is growthie the day, aften scrievit in weys o parteeclar intrest tae the bairns.

The Scots leid haes been doon-hauden in the scuils for monie a year noo for it wis aye threapit that it middilt wi the guid lairnin o English. Ower the lest five an twintie year tho, thare's been mair an mair (but no sicker) tent taen o the muckle guid that micht be gien tae the curriculum bi the Scots language an its leeteratur. For aw that, it bides sicker that Scots, an aw its monie byleids, haes nivver been gien the wicelike an feckfu uphaud that the Review Curn thocht it haed a richt tae. The Review Curn gies a muckle strang uphaud tae the sicker consait o the SOEID in its guidelines on English for 5-14 year aulds as it gies tae the SCCC an its Scottish Language Project that kythed The Kist/A' Chiste. It's o the consait that, richt fae the stert o a bairn's eddication, an stertin wi the byleid o thair ain airt, the bairns shuid leuk intae, yaise an enjoy the local diffrences o Scots speikin an scrievin. This shuid aw gaun aheid as a balanced pairt o thair English program. Thare a muckle want tae uphaud an gie a heize tae scuils in makin the maist o the inlats that are tae haun areddies in 5-14 plannin an SQA syllabuses.

The Curn gies its ful uphaud tae the takin up o kinch-reddin skeels, sic as creetical thinkin, ettlin tae an sortin oot, leukin ower an weyin up an it coonts thaim in as the cultural oot-comes o a Scottish curriculum. It's the Curn's consait that, in communication, the yiss o Scots shuid be allooed an that this shuid be the speak o some curricular wice.

The Curn haes, alang wi ithers, a concairn for leeteracy an coontin an it disna see onie conter atween the growin an richtfu intrest in thae foondin skeels an its ain proponins here. Scottish texts an graith haes strang wechtie claims, fae a scientific wey o learnin pint o view, for yiss in airlie lairnin in cockin lugs, speikin, readin an scrievin in Scots an English. Thai cuin hae some yiss an aw in mathematical seetiations sic as witterins haunlin, meisurement an shape.

The Curn is gey croose that a curriculum learnt throu Scots an English wull eik tae a leukin ower an wirkin oot kinna lairnin thegither wi feckfu lairnin an aw Aw Scotland's leids hae the throu-pits tae forder the oncome o intelleck, communications o diffrent kins, an awaurness o the importance o rules an the muckle want for accuracie. The Curn trews that, for some pupils, parteeclar at the stert o thair eddication, lairnin micht weel be faceelitatit bi an unnerstaunin acceppins o the language brocht intae the scuil fae the hoose, juist the wey that the guidelines on English Language 5-14 wices.

~~~ooo~~~
ha cuin fund ocht thare tae pit fear intae the herts o the SCCC? In fack, the Review Curn isna sweir tae yaise the odd euphemism or twa. For exemplar, it gies 'middlin wi the guid lairnin o English' as the raison for dingin doon the yiss o Scots in the scuils whan awbodie kens that thon wis juist the excuise that wis yaised. The richt raison wad mair liker be the nineteent century poleetical lair o garrin the concep o bein North British tak ower fae an tak the place o the concep o bein Scottish. The 1872 Education Act (Scotland), that steekit the door agin the yiss o oor twa hamelt Scottish languages in aw Scottish Scuils, wis passed an becam the law o the kinrick at a time whan Scotland haed 52 Liberal an 8 Conservative MP's in the Wastmeinster pairliament. We wunner gin, in English heids, the concep o North British wad mean juist the same as North English or did thai see thirsels as South British?

Scots, an wittins anent Scots, in the media.
Scrievin in the Scotsman (6t.Julie), Jack McLean tells hoo his auld freen, Arnold Kemp wis scrievin anent the guddle ower the doon-haudin o the abuin Scottish Culture and the Curriculum in the Observer. He wis scrievin in thon English paper hoo Scottish cultur wisna gaun tae be allooed on tae the Scottish curriculum an pit forrit a weel biggit threap that the Scots language haed the richt tae be recognized. Tho Jack greed wi awthin Arnold sayed an his richt tae say it, he pintit oot hoo Arnold an monie o his feres wisna able tae speik Scots thirsels excep gin it wis oot o a buik. (Hoo monie fowk dae we ken like that?) J.McL gauns on tae say hoo fowk like Arnold an his pals canna dae whit maist eddicatit men an weemin o warkin-cless backgrund cuin. Thai cuin speik, scrieve, think, an jouk up the road in fower dialecks.

The Scots Magazine this month is weel up tae its raigler staundart wi John Macleay crackin on anent brock, bruck an midges in the Speaking Scots page. Bob Morrow's cuttie storie, Vanishing Act, haes the narrative maistlie aw in English but aw the dialogue is in Scots an thare the raigler cuttie storie fae Jennie Chaplin cried A Moving Experience. This month she haes it scrievit in Scots richt fae the stert.

Information about Document 1706

Scots Tung Wittins 55