New books explore language and place-names

The book’s first language is Shaetlan, but – except for the seven short essays by Shaetlan speakers with which it opens – its sections are accompanied by an English translation, so it’s accessible to those with little or no knowledge of Shaetlan. Here’s a sample from the introduction that illustrates the approach:

Shaetlan is da language spoken alang wi English in Shetland, da maist norderly pairt o da UK. Hit pre-daets English apø da isles an is mair diffren fae English as Low German is fae Dutch. Aa Shaetland spaekers is bilingual wi English. Hits main ancestor languages is Norn (extinct) an Scots, wi a lok o Dutch an Low German bits ithin it.

Shaetlan is the language spoken alongside English in Shetland, the northernmost part of the UK. It pre-dates English on the islands and is more different from English than Low German is from Dutch. All Shaetlan speakers are bilingual in English. Its main ancestor languages are Norn (extinct) and Scots, with a lot of Dutch and Low German influence.

The authors reckon that Shaetlan is spoken by between 30% and 50% of Shetland’s population of around 23,000, and that most of those speakers wouldn’t think of it as a version of Scots, but as a separate language – and that, they say, is particularly evident in its grammar.

However, Shaetlan has faced, and still faces, barriers, as those introductory essays make clear. Ronnie Eunson recalls:

At da Institute I lairnt English grammar, French grammar, German grammar, Latin Grammar and Greek grammar. At Edinburgh I studied Aald Norse grammar, Aald English grammar and Scottish Gaelic grammar – bit nivver Shaetlan grammar! Whit wye dat!?...Da education system idda UK isna wint wi kennin hoo tae wirk wi da laek o Shaetlan. Discrimination in favour o monolingualism is da rule.

John Goodlad remembers the suppression of Shaetlan in school. Referring to the Head Teacher at the time, he says:

I mind tae dis day da wye at dat man, wha most a bøn in his laet fifties, in a poseetion o ultimate authority, belittled and scoarned me fir spaekin in Shaetlan afore da hael class. He wisna only humiliatin me, he wis dismissin my ain tongue, da language o my fokk and my community.

The authors are concerned that, even now, Shaetlan is

…traetit as being ‘wrang’ whin bein øsed idda classroom an ithin skülwark. Da local printit news hae nae øs fir news written ithin Shaetlan.

If any book can change that position, this is it. It offers, “first and foremost, a description of Shaetlan natural speech as it is used in discourse and everyday interaction” designed for newcomers to either Shaetlan or linguistics, or both. In particular, it offers a comprehensive and detailed account of Shaetlan grammar, based on nine years of research. But it also demonstrates that Shaetlan can be used in all forms of communication, including academic work, and not only – as has sometimes seemed to be the case – in poetry, children’s books or cartoons.

The book introduces linguistic concepts such as phonology and morphology, but does so in a very accessible way – and yes, there are quite a few cartoons! The analysis of terms used daily such as du and dee, dis and yun is not only revealing but entertaining, highlighting not only differences with standard English and but commonalities with other languages such as Spanish. The authors also address the frustration felt in Shetland when the islands are wrongly labelled, as in the extract below.

Every element of grammar is dealt with in depth: there simply isn’t space here to do justice to the richness of the exposition, but the excerpts from the text included here may convey some of that. it’s a truly remarkable achievement.

Praise for the book has come from many linguistic experts. Dr Alexander Andrason of the University of Cape Town hails it as “the best language book I have ever read”. Prof. Dr Conchúr Ó Giollagáin of the University of the Highlands and Islands says:

The detailed description of Shaetlan as a mixed language, rooted in historical and sociological context, serves as the most compelling and coherent appeal to date for languagehood recognition for Shaetlan. The readers of this volume will conclude that this is long overdue.

Prof. Dr Kofi Yakpo of the University of Hong Kong adds:

It presents irrefutable evidence that Shaetlan deserves full recognition and support as a viable medium for education and public affairs. An essential, paradigm shifting contribution that will resonate far beyond Scotland’s northern isles.

It is, in short, a huge achievement.

Shaetlan: A young language wi aald røts is published by Kalafine-Skrits at £34, ISBN 978-1-0684573-0-2.

The Coastal Place-names of Papa Stour, by George P S Peterson, edited by Peter W K Peterson

A slimmer volume by far than Shaetlan, this little book is, in its own way, fascinating. In it, the late George Peterson takes us on a walk around the entire coastline of Papa Stour, referring along the way to the names of every point, cave or inlet he encounters. George’s son, Peter, has edited his father’s original. He has added colour photographs, revised some parts of the original text and introduced some new material, drawing on a notebook that his father had produced in 1978.

Papa Stour – which translates as ‘great island of the priests’ – lies a mile off the district of Sandness, in Shetland’s west mainland. Roughly three miles from east to west and two from north to south, its coastline incorporates three large voes (inlets) and one smaller one, which stretch well inland. There are many other bays and dozens of coves, or – in Shaetlan, gios, the term George Peterson uses. A walk around the island is therefore far longer than its size might suggest.

The coastline is spectacular, consisting mostly of cliffs that are formed from the same type of volcanic rock found in Eshaness, at the other, northern side of the wide St Magnus Bay. Stacks, caves, blowholes and natural arches add to the drama, but there are also beautiful sandy beaches. Up until very recent times, many ships came to grief on the rocks and skerries. Today, although the strong tides demand respect, it’s a coast that invites exploration by kayak or small boat.

The island doesn’t have many permanent residents now, but as recently as the 1980s was home to a larger population, after the local postmaster successfully advertised nationally for new residents. Much farther back, in the 19^th century, almost 400 people lived here.

George’s exploration is prefaced by his wonderfully-detailed map, though you’ll need a magnifying glass to reveal the dozens of place-names that he recorded. The walk takes us around the island, clockwise, beginning at the Sooth Sand, a beach in the south east.

It’s not possible in a brief review to do justice to the astonishing amount of detail that George, and now Peter, have managed to include. However, some sections and themes are especially memorable.

Shipwrecks feature a great deal. George records four vessels that met their end at the mouth of Hamna Voe. The first of these was a French whaler, which was driven ashore in a gale; all of the 44 crew reached shore safely. In September 1746, the crew of a German ship, Die Frau Rebeccah Elisabeth, were less fortunate and it’s worth quoting George’s account directly:

Eleven bodies were washed up and buried in the Papa kirkyard, six at the expense of the Kirk Session and five at the personal expense of Mr George Greig, merchant in Papa, and a man of philanthropic character. A letter was forwarded to Herr Burchard Fixen in Hamburg, agent for the owners, requesting payment for the 11 coffins and other funeral expenses. However, the reply from Herr Fixen only came in 1750, to the effect that the Papa men might be content with what they had saved from the ship for their payment.

This was followed by another tragedy in extraordinary circumstances: islanders, fearing the Press Gang – which had already seized some young men for naval service – mistook a vessel lying offshore for one of the Press Gang’s ships and shone lights to lead the vessel onto the rocks. To the horror of the community, the ship turned out to be a Dutch brig, from which all the crew were lost. Several of them were buried nearby.

In 1864, a Norwegian ship foundered in the voe, the anchors having failed to hold her in a gale. This time, though, islanders helped to save all the crew.

George explains that another notoriously dangerous area is the Vae Skerries, just west of Papa Stour. Many vessels have perished there, but especially traumatic was the loss of the crew of the Ben Doran, an Aberdeen trawler, in March 1930. Because of the sea conditions, those aboard several rescue vessels were unable to intervene and could only watch the tragedy unfold.

It was only after the the Elinor Viking ran aground in December 1977 that a light was installed on the Skerries. On that dark and stormy evening, the crew had been taken off by a volunteer British Airways helicopter team, with support from another helicopter and an RAF Nimrod aircraft. It was an extremely dangerous operation and two of the aircrew later received Queen's Gallantry Medals. Those of us who followed reports of the rescue on BBC Radio Shetland remember it well. As George points out, this was “the first time a man had ever been rescued off the Vae Skerries”.

However, there is a great deal more to the narrative than shipwrecks, and much of it is far more lightsome. Almost every page features a tale of some local or visiting character, many of whom are remembered in placenames. An example is the story that George tells about the spring known as Lindsay’s Waal:

He was Sir Edwin Lindsay (The Prisoner of Papa Stour) who between 1809 and 1835 lived at the Haa in the care of Gideon Henderson. Whilst serving as an officer in the army Sir Edwin had apparently refused to fight a duel. His father considered that his son had disgraced the family , so he was sent here to Papa to be out of the way. Sir Edin had little contact with the Papa folk. He wandered the island freely, and as he made no attempt to escape, he seemed reasonably content in a lethargic sort of way. He was fond of swimming at the Kirk Sand, and would lie there on the Kletts for hours, sunbathing.

Altogether more bizarre is the account of what was seemingly a Moroccan pirate ship, from which a kidnapped English boy had managed to escape. The story, as it has been handed down, relates how the islanders were saved from the predatory pirates by a witch who induced a storm, driving the ship onto the rocks.

Most of the placenames mentioned are in Shaetlan; a small cave called the Essy Keeshick (ash bucket); a larger one called the Muckle Doon Heiller; the Spootin Skrivvik a Gueberry (a spectacular blowhole); or the Gio a Kreed (a small inlet or cove). But there are surprises, too: one wouldn’t expect to encounter a tiny gio called Robin Hood. George’s suggestion is that this, like some other names in Papa, may be a corruption of a Gaelic term. Shetlanders never spoke Gaelic, but Irish or Scottish priests who moved into Shetland – and to Papa Stour – would have done.

For anyone visiting Papa Stour, or who is interested in the island’s history, this book is obviously an essential companion. However, the stories it contains hold lots of interest for the general reader, too, and Peter Peterson is to be congratulated on having his father’s work brought to the attention of a new audience.

The Coastal Place-names of Papa Stour is published by The Shetland Times Ltd, ISBN 978-1-910997-64-2 at £10.99.

If you’d like to find out more about Papa Stour, there is a substantial amount of information online and an excellent starting point is Leah Irvine’s online guide.