SCOTS Project - www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk Document : 129 Title : Scots Haiku Author(s): Mr Bruce Leeming Copyright holder(s): Mrs Dorothy Leeming Text Scots Today Scots is mainly a literary language. Drawing on several origins - the Inglis of the Northumbrian Angles, the tongues of the Picts, the Celtic Gaels and the Scandinavian Norsemen, as well as, later, Dutch and the French of the Auld Alliance - Scottis was at one time the principal language of the Scottish court and quite distinct from the English of the period (13-16th century). Great literature in Scots was produced by writers like Barbour, Henryson and Dunbar, the 'Makars'. A revival took place in the 18th Century under Ramsay, Ferguson and Burns. A hundred years later in the 1870s Dean Ramsay was still able to write that, despite the remorseless decline of Scots and the nation's assimilation of Standard English, 'I personally recollect old Scottish ladies and gentlemen, proud members of ancient houses, who really spoke Scotch, not, mark me, English with an accent'. Then, earlier this century during the Scottish Literary Renaissance, Hugh MacDiarmid, Douglas Young, Maurice Lindsay and others once again recreated the art of writing in Scots, referring to their lexis as 'Lallans'. Scots speech lives on today all over Scotland in lively dialectal versions which show marked regional variations in vocabulary and pronunciation. I have tried to be consistent in this regard. The English translations are as near literal as possible. Haiku THis form of poetic expression, deriving from ancient Chinese models, was perfected by Matsuo Basho in Japan during the 17th century. Ezra Pound (1895-1972) and The Imagists introduced it to the West early this century. Today haiku are being composed in the United States and all English-speaking countries, in France, Germany, Holland, Spain, Croatia and Romania. They are also being written in fringe languages such as Welsh and Irish Gaelic. The haiku is restricted to three lines in the syllabic pattern 5-7-5, frequently divided by a caesura. However, since this framework provides for certain Japanese linguistic devices, haiku in other languages tend to a shorter length. There is no rhyme or metrical requirement. Usually a seasonal or nature reference is incorporated. This is a deceptively simple poetry. It aims to keep personal feelings largely submerged and eschews 'poetical' words, similes or metaphors. Its true endeavour is to capture fleeting insights - 'haiku moments'. A poem's meaning may be obvious, pictorial perhaps, even occasionally humorous, but not uncommonly intimations of a profound character will arise, intensified by the compression of the words. Some of the moods typical in haiku are compassion, serenity, paradox, wonder. I have sought, in addition, to infuse these haiku here and there with a few 'Scotch' idiosyncrasies, e.g., an awareness of Scotland's beauty but also of the unending struggle in nature, a certain preoccupation with the ghoulish and a wry familiarity with death. BL Mindin AEL, wi' luve Reid cluds lemin at keek-o-day - refleckit in the cray glaur Red clouds glowing at sunrise - reflected in the pigsty mud By the peth at daw aneath new-apen hissels cairds at brakfast By the track at dawn under fresh-sprung hazels breakfasting tinkers Hauf-road up the glen a daurk wee lochan - a cran tentie Halfway up the glen a dark little loch - a heron watchful On a sin-warm kaim a hird sockin: faur ablow a glede fidders On a sun-warmed ridge a shepherd resting: far below a hawk hovers Doon amang the birks linties blithely jink: cluds ahin the ben Down in the birches linnets happily flit: clouds behind the hill Birlin doon the rowth o gean blume taigles a bummer Swirling down the plenteous cherry blossom delays a bee Nune, cushie-doos croodlin: he hauds the kame o his deid wumman Noon, wood pigeons cooing: he holds the comb of his dead wife Auncient staunin stane: sclimmin it cannie a smaa kailworm Ancient standing stone: climbing it carefully a young caterpillar Suddent thunner - the joco dug staps loupin dumfoonert Sudden thunder - the cheerful dog stops jumping aghast I' the drumly burn skelterin doon - a morkin an a babbie's bunnet In the mud-dark stream rushing down - a dead sheep and a baby's bonnet Sabbath morn - i' the kirkyaird toom tinnies, a lassie's shae Sunday morning - in the churchyard empty cans, a girl's shoe At the Ranza burn twa laddies guddlin troot: abune, twa jets screich At the Ranza burn two boys tickling trout: above, two jets scream I' the smirr heich abune the hotchin toun ane maw wimplin In the drizzle high above the busy town one gull meandering Dreich the day: the craws cannae fash thirsels croupin Dull today: the crows can't be bothered to caw Hairst een lown dayset: a cheet rivin a taidie Autumn evening peaceful sunset: a cat ripping up a small toad Heich i' the corries snaw: doon here het sin - kye doverin In the high corries snow: down here hot sun - cattle dozing Hielan getherin doolfu piobaireachd keens: new thrissels grushie Highland gathering sad pibroch laments: new thistles thriving Een athort the bey yatt lichts gliff yallochie - tassies plinkin Evening across the bay Yacht lights gleam yellowish - glasses tinkling A whaup's wheeple lane amang the hills - bairnheid mindins A curlew's cry lonely in the hills - memories of childhood Twa meenits seelence at the cairn: ane gizzen leaf scartin the plainstanes Two minutes silence at the memorial: a dry leaf scraping the paving stones Daunerin blithe i' the caul - kiltit callan troosered lass! Happily strolling in the cold - kilted lad girl in trousers! In Auld Reekie e'en the paurk flouers - mim-mou'd! In Edinburgh even the park flowers - affected! Yon trystit lassie dressin her Sunday coat smirks hidlins That engaged girl ironing her best skirt smiles secretly Ladin the deid-kist intil the pail - ane chiel lunts a gun Loading the coffin into the hearse - one man smokes a pipe Cranreuch at daw hoolets screichin - wraiths? Aye, wi' toom wames Hoar frost at dawn owls screeching - ghosts? Yes, with empty bellies Loch o jeel skimmers braw wi' gowden sin: i' the wuids hairts dee Frozen loch shimmers beautiful with golden sun: in the woods deer die I' the snawie wynd a chitterin gangrel: toun lums reikin In the snowy lane a shivering vagrant: town chimneys smoking The bien kipple sleep snog: whit wey fykie the bawkie-birds? The comfortable couple sleep snugly: why are the bats restless? Ne'erday splore, bauld hechts: the morn mair weet New Year party, brave resolutions: still raining in the morning Munelicht glints siller on the sauch plantin - hoo daurk aneath Moonlight shines silver on the willow copse - how dark below This work is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. The SCOTS Project and the University of Glasgow do not necessarily endorse, support or recommend the views expressed in this document. Information about document and author: Text Text audience Adults (18+): General public: Specialists: Males: Females: Audience size: 1000+ Text details Method of composition: Handwritten Year of composition: 1990 Word count: 1102 General description: First collection of Haiku in Scots with an English version. Text medium Book: Text publication details Published: Publisher: Hub Editions Publication year: 1997 Place of publication: Lincolnshire ISBN/ISSN: 1 870653 51 3 Edition: Third Text setting Education: Leisure/entertainment: Private/personal: Text type Poem/song/ballad: Other: Collection of poems Author Author details Author id: 539 Title: Mr Forenames: Bruce Surname: Leeming Gender: Male Decade of birth: 1930 Educational attainment: Highers/A-levels Age left school: 18 Upbringing/religious beliefs: Protestantism Occupation: Retired businessman and writer Place of birth: Glasgow Region of birth: Glasgow Birthplace CSD dialect area: Gsw Country of birth: Scotland Place of residence: Edinburgh Region of residence: Midlothian Residence CSD dialect area: midLoth Country of residence: Scotland Father's occupation: General Manager Father's place of birth: Nottingham Father's region of birth: Nottinghamshire Father's country of birth: England Mother's place of birth: Port Glasgow Mother's region of birth: Renfrew Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area: Renfr Mother's country of birth: Scotland Languages: Language: English Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Work and daily living Language: Malayalam Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: No Understand: No Circumstances: Basic level. Lived in Far East for 14 years Language: Scots Speak: No Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Literary language