The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #95549   Message #2963030
Posted By: Taconicus
11-Aug-10 - 02:08 PM
Thread Name: Folklore: Is Scots a Language or a Dialect?
Subject: RE: BS: Is Scots a Language or a Dialect?
Hey Jack Campin -- I'm not going to argue with you. I know that when ordinary people like me say "Scots English" they mean all sorts of things running the gamut from English laden with Scots words to strictly Scottish English, which I guess is what you're talking about, and there is always someone who wants to be ultra-technical about it, including those who would take you (Jack Campin) to task for calling it Scots English instead of Scottish English, which I've heard some say is supposedly the more proper title.

I wasn't trying to start an etymological debate; I was just trying to leave the link to a useful dictionary for deciphering Scots words in otherwise English-language Scottish songs. That's all I meant by "Scots English": language, specifically Scottish folk music lyrics, that are written in English, but have a great number of Scots words and/or pronunciations. If more well-educated folks like yourself use the phrase as a term of art for something else, sorry. I guess I should've written just "Scots dictionary," but I don't know how to edit my existing posts, so there it lies.