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What’s with this “Wren” thing?
The oldest extant version of the fable
we
are presenting here appeared in 1913 in the first volume of a two-volume anthology
of Low
Saxon folktales (Plattdeutsche
Volksmärchen “Low German Folktales”)
collected by Wilhelm Wisser (1843–1935). Read
more ...
Scottish Gaelic
The
Gaelic language tradition remains strongest on Scotland’s
Western Isles, especially on the Hebridean Islands, like here in
Flodaigh, Outer Hebrides.
Language information: Gaelic is today’s Celtic language of Scotland and is one of the country’s three official languages, the other being English and Scots. It is one of six surviving Celtic languages, the others being Irish, Manx, Welsh,
Cornish and Breton. Among these it shares the Goidelic branch with Irish and Manx.
Gaelic is mainly
used in Scotland (Alba). But there are some Gaelic-speaking communities in Australia (Astràilia), Canada and the USA (Na Stàitean Aonaichte) as well.
Specifically Canadian
Gaelic (Gàidhlig Chanaideanach) has been developed on Eastern Canada’s Cape Breton Island (Eilean Cheap Breatuinn) and in some isolated communities in mainland Nova Scotia (Alba Nuadh or Alba Ùr).
Many people outside
Britain assume that Gaelic is the original language of Scotland. However, the
original Celtic languages of Scotland, probably belonging to the Brythonic branch,
are Pictish and Cumbric, which are now extinct. The ancestral variety of Gaelic
was
imported
to Scotland by the Scotti who immigrated there
from Ireland, possibly beginning with the 4th century CE. It spread
to many parts of Scotland and eventually displaced Pictish, Cumbric
and Old Norse.
Mabou
is one of Nova Scotia’s communities with a Canadian Gaelic language tradition. It has two Gaelic names: Màbu and An Drochaid. Mabou and Màbu are derived from the name Malabo(kek) (“place of confluence”) in the local indigenous Mi'kmaq language.
While
it is nowadays associated specifically with the Scottish Highlands (Gaelic A’ Ghàidhealtachd, Scots Hielands), Gaelic used to be spoken in the Scottish Lowlands (Gaelic A’ Ghalldachd, Scots Lawlands or Lallans) as well, and
some Gaelic
speakers can still be found there. In the Lowlands it soon came to compete
to some degree with the Scots language, and eventually both of them came to
be overshadowed by English (Gaelic
A’ Bheurla, Scots Inglis).
Over
the centuries, Gaelic largely retreated from the Lowlands while retaining a
more or less strong position in the Highlands and on the Western Isles. In
the meantime, it is by no means predominant anywhere on the Scottish mainland,
Gaelic speakers making up no more
than
25%
of
any mainland community’s population. In
some
insular
communities, its position remains somewhat more secure, with up to 75% of Gaelic
speakers. It remains to be seen if recent official recognition and pledged
support will
at
least
stabilize the proportion of Gaelic speakers among Scotland’s people. Gaelic is now being taught in many Scottish schools and is the medium
of instruction in a few of them.
Oral and written
Gaelic literature is rich and has a long history. Gaelic, along with
Scots, is featured prominently in Scottish folk and folk-based musical traditions
which enjoy enormous worldwide popularity, not limited to the millions of
people with Scottish ancestry.
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