South Northern Scots
South Northern Scots
Consonants
Consonants usually have the same phonetic
values (pronunciation)
in Scots, as in Standard English.
For more detail see Orthography.
| Scots Spellings |
Pronunciation in
words like: |
| |
|
IPA |
|
| <ch> |
medial and final |
/x/ |
nicht, bocht, loch |
| <ch> |
initial |
/ʧ/ |
chield, chowk, chap,
chirl |
| <nch> |
usually |
/nʃ/ |
brainch, clinch, dunch,
hainch, Inch, French |
| <tch> |
usually |
/ʧ/ |
fleetch, wratch |
| <dge> |
usually |
/ʤ/ |
fadge, begrudge, cadge,
cruldge |
| <g> |
occasionally |
/ʤ/ |
gigot, breinge |
| <gn> |
usually |
/gn/ |
gnap, gnap |
| <kn> |
usually |
/tn/ |
knap, knee, knot,
knowe |
| <ld> |
usually |
/ld/ |
auld, bield, cauld,
elder, fauld |
| <nd> |
usually |
/n/ |
baund, daunder, haund,
find, sindry |
| <ng> |
usually |
/ŋ/ |
finger, hing, ingan,
single |
| <nk> |
usually |
/ŋk/ |
bink, hank |
| <qu> |
usually |
/kw/ |
acquent, queen, quair |
| <sh> |
usually |
/ʃ/ |
creash, sheep |
| <sh> |
occasionally |
/ʒ/ |
fushion, pushion |
| <th> |
usually |
/θ/ |
graith, thole, thrawn
|
| <th> |
usually |
/ð/ |
blether, thaim, thair |
| <wh> |
interrogatives |
/f/ |
wha, whan, whaur,
whit |
| <wh> |
all other words |
/ʍ/ |
whaup, wheel, wheech,
whin |
Vowels and Diphthongs |
| vowels |
unstressed |
/ə/ |
aboot, the, oxter,
duntit, bannock, smeddum |
| <a> |
initial in |
/ə/ |
ahint, awa etc. |
| <a> |
usually |
/a/1From
Dundee to Arbroath /ɛ/ may occur before
/b/ and /g. |
aff, lang, mak,
wash,watch |
| <a> |
final in |
/a:/2The
pronunciation /ɔ:/ is spreading in Angus. |
awa, twa, wha |
| <au> |
usually |
/a:/2The
pronunciation /ɔ:/ is spreading in Angus. |
auld, haud, haund,
saul, saund, slauchter |
| <aw> |
usually final |
/a:/2The
pronunciation /ɔ:/ is spreading in Angus. |
aw, blaw, caw,
draw, faw, gnaw, gaw,
haw, slaw, snaw, staw,
bawbee, bawsant |
| <aw> |
occasional |
/a:/2The
pronunciation /ɔ:/ is spreading in Angus. |
awn, awfu, bawbee,
bawsant |
| <ai> |
initial and medial |
/e/ |
aiblins, braid,craitur,
aik, aiple, ait, aith,
fain, gaither, graith, haimer,
laim |
| <aCe> |
C=consonant |
/e/ |
ale, face, gate,
hame, Pace |
| <ane> |
usually |
/i/ |
alane, ane, ance,
bane, gane, mane, nane,
stane |
| <ae> |
usually |
/e/ |
ae, brae, f(r)ae,
gae, sae, tae n., wae |
| <ae> |
except in |
/ø/3The
traditional /ø/ prevails inland including
daes, daesna, daena, in West
Angus /y/, in Kincardinshire /i/ and
along the coast /e/ is common but those have
often been replaced by the characteristic Central
Scots pronunciations.
| Scots
Spellings |
Pronunciation
in words like: |
| |
|
IPA |
|
| <ae> |
final |
/e/ |
in adae, dae,
shae, tae v. |
| <ui> |
initial short |
/jɪ/ |
uiss |
| <ui> |
medial short |
/ɪ/ |
abuin, bluid,
bruit, duin, fruit, luif,
luim, muin, spuin, Yuil |
| <ui> |
initial long |
/je:/ |
uise |
| <ui> |
medial long |
/e:/ |
abuise, buird,
fluir, fuird, muir, muisic,
ruise, shuir |
| <ae> |
medial |
/ɪ/ |
in daes, daesna,
daena |
|
adae, dae, shae,
tae v. |
| <ay> |
usually |
/e/ |
day, gray, lay |
| <ea> |
usually |
/i/4In
the North some words may be pronounced with /e/,
to the south the tendency is much stronger. |
beast, cheap, deave,
east, heap, hear, meat,
ream, sea, tea |
| <ee> |
usually |
/i/ |
dee, dree, eetem,
freet, jeely, keep, meet,
teeth, weel, weet |
| <ei> |
usually |
/i/4In
the North some words may be pronounced with /e/,
to the south the tendency is much stronger. |
beir, deid, heid,
meidae, peir, spreid, teir,
threid |
| <ie, ei> |
usually |
/i/ |
bield, eild, chield,
scrieve, shielin |
| <ei> |
before /x/ |
/i/ |
dreich, heich, skeich |
| <e> |
usually |
/ɛ/ |
bed, ebb, esh,
fecht, gled, gless, seck,
wecht |
| <i> |
usually |
/ɛ/ |
drink, in, inch,
licht, lift, pit, rin,
simmer, sin,stibble, |
| <i> |
after <w> and <wh> often |
/ʌ/ |
whin, whisper, whit,
wid, wind, wir, wird,
wirm, wittins |
| <o(a)> |
usually |
/o/ |
boat, boss, box,
coal, cod, common, dochter,
on, rock, thocht |
| <oo> |
usually |
/u/ |
aboot, coont, droop,
hoose, moose, oot, scoor,
soond |
| <ou> |
usually |
/u/ |
allou, bouk, broun,
couer, coum, doun, dout,
poupit, thoum |
| <uCe> |
usually |
/u/ |
dule, hure |
| <u> |
usually |
/ʌ/ |
bund, burn, drunken,
fund, grund, truff, unce,
wund |
| <ui> |
usually |
/ø/3The
traditional /ø/ prevails inland including
daes, daesna, daena, in West
Angus /y/, in Kincardinshire /i/ and
along the coast /e/ is common but those have
often been replaced by the characteristic Central
Scots pronunciations.
| Scots
Spellings |
Pronunciation
in words like: |
| |
|
IPA |
|
| <ae> |
final |
/e/ |
in adae, dae,
shae, tae v. |
| <ui> |
initial short |
/jɪ/ |
uiss |
| <ui> |
medial short |
/ɪ/ |
abuin, bluid,
bruit, duin, fruit, luif,
luim, muin, spuin, Yuil |
| <ui> |
initial long |
/je:/ |
uise |
| <ui> |
medial long |
/e:/ |
abuise, buird,
fluir, fuird, muir, muisic,
ruise, shuir |
| <ae> |
medial |
/ɪ/ |
in daes, daesna,
daena |
|
abuin, abuise, bluid,
bruit, buird, cuil, cuit,
duin, fluir, fruit, fuird,
guid, luif, luim, muin,
muir, muisic, ruise, schuil,
shuir, spuin, uise, uiss,Yuil |
| <eu> |
usually |
/ju/ |
beuch, beuk, eneuch,
heuk, leuch, leuk, neuk,
sheuch, teuch, teug |
| <ew> |
usually |
/ju/ |
dew, few, new,
spew |
<iCe,
yCe> |
C=consonant |
/əi/5The
pronunciation /aɪ/ or /ae/ also
occurs in long positions. |
advice, bide, byle,
fine, fire, ile, rive,
tyne, wice, wyte |
| <(e)y(e)> |
usually |
/əi/5The
pronunciation /aɪ/ or /ae/ also
occurs in long positions. |
cry, eyntment, eyster,
fley, kye |
| <oi> |
usually |
/oi/ |
Boid, foy, noise,
ploy |
| <ow> |
initial and medial |
/ʌu/ |
bowt, cowp, cowt,
gowd, gowf, lowp, owsen |
| <owe> |
final |
/ʌu/ |
flowe, glowe, growe,
howe, knowe, lowe, rowe,
towe |
Suffixes |
| <ae> |
usually |
/ə/ |
Americae, airae, barrae,
nairae, swallae, windae |
| <ie> |
diminutive |
/i/6If
the preceding vowel is /i/ or /əi/,
or the preceding consonant is /b, d,
ð, g, v, ʒ/ or
/z/, the pronunciation is /i/, otherwise
/ɪ/. /e/ may also occur. |
grannie, laddie, lassie,
shappie, wifie |
| <fu> |
usually |
/fɛ/ |
awfu, carefu, mensefu |
| <na> |
negative |
/nə/ |
daena, haesna, maunna,
winna, wisna |
| <y, ie> |
adverbial and adjectival |
/i/6If
the preceding vowel is /i/ or /əi/,
or the preceding consonant is /b, d,
ð, g, v, ʒ/ or
/z/, the pronunciation is /i/, otherwise
/ɪ/. /e/ may also occur. |
reekie, sairy, stany,
stourie |
| <ly> |
adverbial |
/li/6If
the preceding vowel is /i/ or /əi/,
or the preceding consonant is /b, d,
ð, g, v, ʒ/ or
/z/, the pronunciation is /li/, otherwise
/lɪ/. /le/ may also occur. |
brawly, feckly, fully,
geyly, likely, uncoly |
Footnotes
- From Dundee to Arbroath /ɛ/
may occur before /b/
and /g/.
- The pronunciation /ɔ:/
is spreading in Angus.
- The traditional /ø/
prevails inland including daes, daesna,
daena, in West Angus /y/,
in Kincardinshire /i/
and along the coast /e/
is common but those have often been replaced by the
characteristic Central Scots pronunciations.
| Scots
Spellings |
Pronunciation
in words like: |
| |
|
IPA |
|
| <ae> |
final |
/e/ |
in adae, dae, shae,
tae v. |
| <ui> |
initial short |
/jɪ/ |
uiss |
| <ui> |
medial short |
/ɪ/ |
abuin, bluid, bruit,
duin, fruit, luif, luim,
muin, spuin, Yuil |
| <ui> |
initial long |
/je:/ |
uise |
| <ui> |
medial long |
/e:/ |
abuise, buird, fluir,
fuird, muir, muisic, ruise,
shuir |
| <ae> |
medial |
/ɪ/ |
in daes, daesna,
daena |
- In the North some words may be pronounced with /e/, to the south the tendency is much stronger.
- The pronunciation /aɪ/
or /ae/ also occurs
in long positions.
- If the preceding vowel is /i/
or /əi/,
or the preceding consonant is /b,
d, ð, g, v, ʒ/
or /z/, the pronunciation
is /i/, otherwise
/ɪ/. /e/ may also occur.
Literature:
Adams, David (1996) "The Angus and
Mearns Dialect" in Bothy Nichts And Bothy Days,
Edinburgh: John Donald, 77-87.
Gray, Walter (1992) Parliamo Aberbrothock, Arbroath: Herald Press.
Mather, James Y. and H. H. Speitel (1986) The Linguistic
Atlas of Scotland volume 3, London: Croom Helm.
Johnston, Paul (1997) "Regional variation" in Charles
Jones ed. The Edinburgh History of the Scots Language,
Edinburgh University Press, 443-513.
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