Reading Strategy
Older Scots Reading 1
Chapter 1 · Reading Strategy
🔍 Reading Strategy
From Chapter 2 on, every chapter reads one real text. Before that you need a routine. Older Scots looks odd on the page, but a short list of spelling habits and endings accounts for most of the oddness. This chapter gives the list, from two Wikipedia articles, and practises it on the only two passages those articles quote. It assumes Middle English Grammar 1, because Older Scots shares the Northern verb endings you met there.
One rule I am keeping
As in Middle English Reading 1, I do not make up Older Scots sentences. Every example below is quoted from a source named under it. Neither source gives a translation, so the glosses and translations are mine and unverified.
What the sources say about spelling and endings
| Feature | What the article says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| quh- | Written for wh- | Early Scots, Middle Scots |
| sch- | Written for sh- | Middle Scots |
| ch | Used for gh or ȝ | Early Scots |
| þ, ȝ | Thorn and yogh; yogh stands for /j/, and y sometimes stands for th or thorn | Early Scots |
| u / v / w, i / j | Interchangeable | Middle Scots |
| -ys / -is | Plural and genitive ending, later contracted to Modern Scots -s | Middle Scots |
| -and | Present participle in the north; the verbal noun is -yng, the two merging by 1700 | Early Scots, Middle Scots |
| -yt / -it | A Scottish past-tense ending | Early Scots |
| -(e)s | A northern present-tense ending | Early Scots |
| ane | Numeral, indefinite article and "a" | Middle Scots |
| Other habits | Silent d after n, silent h, a pleonastic -t after -ch and -th, l or i after a vowel marking length. No fixed spelling until the later 16th century. | Middle Scots |
The Middle Scots article is tagged as needing more citations, and several of its claims are marked "citation needed". Treat this table as a study aid, not as settled fact.
The routine, step by step
| Step | Ask | Look back at |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Letters | Which letters need decoding: quh, sch, ch, þ, ȝ, u / v? | The table above; Middle English Grammar 1, Chapter 1 |
| 2. Verbs | Is there an -is / -s present, an -and participle, an -it past? | Middle English Grammar 1, Chapter 6 (the Northern -es) |
| 3. Nouns | Plural or genitive in -is / -ys? | Middle English Grammar 1, Chapter 2 |
| 4. Pronouns | Which pronouns? The Middle English table applies only where a source confirms it. | Middle English Grammar 1, Chapter 5 |
| 5. Little words | the, ane, and the words around them. | The table above |
| 6. Read it again | Put it into English and check that it makes sense. |
Worked example 1: a document of 1379
Till all þat þir lettres herys or seis Alysandre lyndessay lorde of glennesk knycht gretyng in god euer lestand
to all that these letters hear or see Alexander Lindsay lord of glennesk knight greeting in God ever lasting
Source: Wikipedia, Early Scots, the opening of the 12 March 1379 document signed by Alexander Lindsay, as the page tool gave it. The article gives no translation, so the gloss is mine and unverified.
- Letters. þat and þir use thorn. knycht has ch where we write gh, as the article describes. euer uses u where we write v.
- Verbs. herys and seis end in -ys and -is, with the plural lettres as their subject. That fits the Northern -es plural of Middle English Grammar 1, Chapter 6; the connection is my reading. lestand ends in -and, the northern present participle.
- Nouns. lettres has the plural -es (Chapter 2).
- Small words. þir is "these" (my reading from the sense). gretyng ends in -yng, a verbal noun, "greeting". Till is "to" (my reading).
Worked example 2: a pamphlet of 1581
Thair be tua kynd of prayeris in the kirk, the ane is priuat, quhilk euerie man sayis be him self,
there be two kinds of prayers in the church, the one is private, which every man says by himself
Source: Wikipedia, Middle Scots, the excerpt from Nicol Burne's 1581 pamphlet Of the praying in Latine, first line, as the page tool gave it. No translation is printed; the gloss is mine and unverified.
- Letters. quhilk has quh-, "which". priuat has u for v.
- Nouns. prayeris has the plural -is.
- Verbs. sayis ends in -is with the singular subject man: a 3rd singular ending, like the -es variant of Middle English Grammar 1, Chapter 6.
- ane. It stands for "one" in the ane, a use the article lists for the numeral.
- The rest. tua is "two", kirk is "church", and be him self is "by himself". These are my readings from the sense, and the sources do not confirm them.
📋 Quick Reference
| Do this | Because |
|---|---|
| Decode quh, sch, ch first | They stand for wh, sh, gh |
| Treat u and v as interchangeable | euer, priuat |
| Expect -is on nouns and verbs | Plural, genitive and present endings |
| Read -and as a participle | The northern present participle |
| Say "not in my lists" at a gap | The sources were short |
✏️ Try It Yourself
Say the answer first, then click to check.
1. What does quh- stand for?
Show answer
wh-, as in quhilk "which".
2. What does ch stand for in knycht?
Show answer
gh: the word is "knight".
3. What ending marks the northern present participle?
Show answer
-and, as in lestand.
4. What do herys and seis agree with?
Show answer
The plural subject lettres.
5. Translate quhilk euerie man sayis.
Show answer
"Which every man says."
6. What ending does prayeris carry, and what does it show?
Show answer
-is, the plural: "prayers".
7. Why can u in priuat be read as v?
Show answer
The article says u, v and w are interchangeable in Middle Scots.
8. What are the three uses of ane that the article lists?
Show answer
The numeral, the indefinite article, and "a".
9. Why does the routine have no sound step?
Show answer
The articles describe sound shifts but I have not given a pronunciation step, and I will not claim a sound without a source.
10. Why are the glosses on these two passages marked as mine?
Show answer
Neither article prints a translation, so the glosses are my readings from the sense.