Origins: Seventeen Come Sunday/Waukrife Mammy

Subject: Origins: Seventeen Come Sunday/Waukrife Mammy
From: Richie
Date: 10 Jan 18 - 06:06 PM

Hi,

I wanted to share a study of Seventeen Come Sunday/Waukrife Mammy with you and welcome your contributions. Steve Gardham is helping with this thread.

Right now we're lost somewhere in Scotland. We're looking at versions of "Waukrife Mammy" (Wakeful Mother) which had been collected, recreated by Robert Burns about 1788.

One phrase "clod that winna (will not) cling" is found in a 1795 chapbook and also Cromek, Cunningham. Here is the stanza:

Blink o'er the burn, my bonny lass,
Blink o'er the burn, my honey,
For you've got the clod that will not cling,
In spite of your waulkrif mammie.

Several versions have "clod that winna cling" -- what is a literal translation?

Richie