Ok, the problem here is that once again it seems like we are pigeonholing "folk" music. It's like asking where did drama come from.

I think first you have to define folk. (Boy, that ought to stir up a hornets nest!) Then you can figure out who first sang it.

Minstral and Bard are pretty loose terms as well. What makes a bard? Folk music? Or is it folk if a bard sings it?

Don't hurt me.*g*