Scots Norse: Difference between revisions

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~~'''~~Scots Norse~~'''~~ (Also ''Sodor Norse''; [[w:~~endonym~~|~~endonym~~]]: ~~''{{lang|snon|{{term|Sudhraèsc}}}}''~~; /sˠɤðˠ.ˈreʃc/) is a West Nordic language, ~~thus closer~~ to [[w:Icelandic|Icelandic]] and [[w:Faroese|Faroese]] ~~than~~ [[w:Swedish|Swedish]] or [[w:Danish|Danish]]. It ~~is natively spoken throughout~~ [[w:~~Suðreyjar~~|~~Suðreyjar~~]], ~~being~~ the ~~dominant~~ language ~~of the~~ [[w:~~Hebrides~~|~~isles~~]]. ~~It has recieved heavy~~ influence ~~from~~ [[w:~~Scots Gaelic~~|~~Gàidhlig~~]] ~~over the last several centuries, contributing heavily to the spelling conventions~~ of ~~the language~~, ~~and likely being the primary pushing force behind the development of~~ the broad~~/slender~~ distinction in ~~Scots Norse~~.

Scots Norse (Also Sodor Norse; [[w:Autonym|Autonym]]: Sudhraèghsc; /sˠɤðˠ.ˈreʃc/) is a West Nordic language spoken in the Hebrides most closely related to [[w:Norn|Norn]], less so to [[w:Icelandic|Icelandic]] and [[w:Faroese|Faroese]], and quite distantly to [[w:Swedish|Swedish]], [[w:Norwegian|Norwegian]], and [[w:Danish|Danish]]. It has extremely significant influence from mainly [[w:Scottish Gaelic|Scots]] and [[w:Irish|Irish]] [[w:Goidelic languages|Gaelic]], and less so from the [[w:Germanic languages|Germanic]] languages [[w:Scots language|Scots]] [[w:English language|English]]. The Gaelic influence is most noticeable in the [[w:Morphophonology|morphophonology]] of Scots Norse, both with the [[w:palatalization (linguistics)|slender]]/[[w:velarization|broad]] distinction in [[w:consonants|consonants]] and the presence of [[w:consonant mutation|initial consonant mutation]].

Scots Norse ~~is typically split into~~ two ~~main~~ [[w:dialect|dialect]] ~~groups~~, ~~Inner~~ and ~~Outer, corresponding to the Inner and Outer Hebrides~~, these are further divided into ~~North, South~~, ~~and Central for both, though Central Northern is more often called "Uist Norse". These dialects are almost entirely mutually intelligible~~ within ~~their groups, and mostly so even between~~ the ~~groups~~. Uniting all of these is the ~~standardized form~~, ''~~{{lang|snon|Hàrsudhraèsc}}~~'', literally ~~meaning~~ "High Scots Norse". ~~("high"~~ as in ~~"exalted")~~

Scots Norse has roughly eleven [[w:dialect|dialects]] that form the language's two [[w:dialect continuum|dialect continuums]], these are called [[Western Scots Norse|Veastèghsc]] ("Western") and [[Eastern Scots Norse|Èstèghsc]] ("Eastern") Scots Norse respectively, these are further divided into specific dialects, which can be viewed within the articles themselves. Uniting all of these dialects is the [[w:standard language|standard variety]], called ''Hàsudhraèghsc'', literally "High [[w:Suðreyjar|Suðreyjar]]-ish". All [[w:variety (linguistics)|varieties]] of Scots Norse are written using the [[w:Latin script|Latin script]], employing [[w:Gaelic Type|Gaelic Type]] or [[w:Insular Script|Insular]] as the [[w:script|hand]], this acts as a notable exception to the general notion that Gaelic Type and Insular only survive for ornamental or historical usages, as they are still the primary hand used for Scots Norse.

==Classification==

Scots Norse has long been a difficulty for linguists to classify, as it shows clear signs of being a mixed language, though the extent of this has been and still is heavily debated and questioned. As well as the general lack of speakers of Scots Norse, it is hard to determine whether Scots Norse stands as a creole or not, thus the general consensus among modern linguists to class it under ''Gaelo-Nordic'' till enough research has been done to reclassify it under a more appropriate position, potentially as a Scottish-Norse creole.

The difficulty in classifying Scots Norse comes largely down to the morphology and phonology, where it is closer to the modern Gaelic languages than the other Nordic languages, having lost most inflection while simultaneously gaining a simple system of preposition inflections from heavily reduced pronouns.

Scots Norse is hard to classify type-wise, as it shows signs of [[w:creolization|creolization]], but not to the extent where it could typically be classed as a [[w:creole|creole]], this leads to the branching from Insular West Norse into so-called "Gaelo-Nordic", characterized by the partial creolization of [[w:Old West Norse|Old West Norse]] with [[w:Middle Irish|Middle Irish]] and Scots Gaelic. Regardless how it is classed, Scots Norse is with no doubt some kind of [[w:mixed language|mixed language]].

==History==

===Pre-Modern===

Scots Norse originates in the mid to late 13th century, around the time Suðreyjar was handed over to Scotland with the [[w:Treaty of Perth|Treaty of Perth]]. Though the language would continue to be largely unchanged from the Old Norse of the 12th century, 1266AD is often used as a dividing date between Old Norse and the earliest forms of Scots Norse. While 1266 is a relatively arbitrary date, it serves its purpose as a convenient divide between two stages, as following the Treaty of Perth, the Hebrides would gain a much larger population of ~~[[w:Gaelic|~~Gaelic]] and ~~[[w:English|~~English]] speakers (At this point still Middle Irish and [[w:Middle English|Middle English]]), and from roughly 1450AD onward, Scots Norse would be increasingly influenced by Scots Gaelic and, to a lesser extent, Scots.

Scots Norse originates in the mid to late 13th century, around the time Suðreyjar was handed over to [[w:Scotland|Scotland]] with the [[w:Treaty of Perth|Treaty of Perth]]. Though the language would continue to be largely unchanged from the Old Norse of the 12th century, 1266AD is often used as a dividing date between Old Norse and the earliest forms of Scots Norse. While 1266 is a relatively arbitrary date, it serves its purpose as a convenient divide between two stages, as following the Treaty of Perth, the Hebrides would gain a much larger population of Gaelic and English speakers (At this point still [[w:Middle Irish|Middle Irish]] and [[w:Middle English|Middle English]]), and from roughly 1450AD onward, Scots Norse would be increasingly influenced by Scots Gaelic and, to a lesser extent, Scots.

Having been spoken throughout Suðreyjar, Scots Norse had a dialect within the [[w:Isle of Man|Isle of Man]] (Scots Norse {{lang|snon|{{term|Monaègharr}}}}). Little is known about Manx Norse ({{lang|snon|{{term|Monaèsc}}}}), as it is very poorly recorded, the most extensive description being a short document from around 1500AD that contains a list of about 150 words (see ''[[the Noreine speche fra Man]]''), with a very poor description of the pronunciations. Though from this description we can gather that ~~Manx Norse~~ still had the [[w:dental fricative|dental fricatives]] that had been lost in other dialects (merging with t/d), we get this from the description "... these [th and dh] are like that of the Saxons' beloved þ."

Having been spoken throughout all of Suðreyjar, Scots Norse once had a dialect within the [[w:Isle of Man|Isle of Man]] (Scots Norse {{lang|snon|{{term|Monaègharr}}}}). Little is known about Manx Scots Norse ({{lang|snon|{{term|Monaèsc}}}}), as it is very poorly recorded, the most extensive description being a short document from around 1500AD that contains a list of about 150 words (see ''[[the Noreine speche fra Man]]''), with a very poor description of the pronunciations. Though from this description we can gather that it still had the original [[w:dental fricative|dental fricatives]] that had been lost in other dialects (merging with t/d), we get this from the description "... these [th and dh] are like that of the Saxons' beloved þ."

Following the treaty of Perth, the usage of Norse began declining significantly, with evidence it was nearly extinct by 1550. A small revitalization ~~occured~~ in the mid 18th century when several of the last native speakers (~~at the time, Scots Norse~~ had no more than 150 remaining speakers) gathered together to document the language so it could be taught to children. This effort was mostly effective, leading to the first noticeable rise in speaker count since it began declining. By the 1880's, there would be upwards of 1,500 native speakers, a majority of them young.

Following the treaty of Perth, the usage of Norse began declining significantly, with evidence it was nearly extinct by 1550. A small revitalization occurred in the mid 18th century when several of the last native speakers (having had no more than 150 remaining speakers) gathered together to document the language so it could be taught to children. This effort was mostly effective, leading to the first noticeable rise in speaker count since it began declining. By the 1880's, there would be upwards of 1,500 native speakers, a majority of them young.

===Modern===

Modern Scots Norse is typically classed as critically endangered due to how few speakers it has, having no more than 2,500 native speakers as of 2020, and virtually all of them live in the Hebrides, making it extremely limited.

Modern Scots Norse is typically classed as critically endangered due to how few speakers it has, having no more than 2,500 native speakers as of 2020, and virtually all of them live in the Hebrides, making its usage extremely limited.

Since the early 1990's, Scots Norse has gained a small but dedicated community of linguists that are determined to further document it and make resources more readily available. As of 2018, an online course has been published that goes over Standard Scots Norse, and it has been continually updated since then, improving the quality and extent of the contents, having started out as a rather barebones description of the phonology, orthography, and rudimentary grammar.

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-'''Scots Norse''' (Also ''Sodor Norse''; [[w:endonym|endonym]]: ''{{lang|snon|{{term|Sudhraèsc}}}}''; /sˠɤðˠ.ˈreʃc/) is a West Nordic language, thus closer to [[w:Icelandic|Icelandic]] and [[w:Faroese|Faroese]] than [[w:Swedish|Swedish]] or [[w:Danish|Danish]]. It is natively spoken throughout [[w:Suðreyjar|Suðreyjar]], being the dominant language of the [[w:Hebrides|isles]]. It has recieved heavy influence from [[w:Scots Gaelic|Gàidhlig]] over the last several centuries, contributing heavily to the spelling conventions of the language, and likely being the primary pushing force behind the development of the broad/slender distinction in Scots Norse.
+Scots Norse (Also Sodor Norse; [[w:Autonym|Autonym]]: Sudhraèghsc; /sˠɤðˠ.ˈreʃc/) is a West Nordic language spoken in the Hebrides most closely related to [[w:Norn|Norn]], less so to [[w:Icelandic|Icelandic]] and [[w:Faroese|Faroese]], and quite distantly to [[w:Swedish|Swedish]], [[w:Norwegian|Norwegian]], and [[w:Danish|Danish]]. It has extremely significant influence from mainly [[w:Scottish Gaelic|Scots]] and [[w:Irish|Irish]] [[w:Goidelic languages|Gaelic]], and less so from the [[w:Germanic languages|Germanic]] languages [[w:Scots language|Scots]] [[w:English language|English]]. The Gaelic influence is most noticeable in the [[w:Morphophonology|morphophonology]] of Scots Norse, both with the [[w:palatalization (linguistics)|slender]]/[[w:velarization|broad]] distinction in [[w:consonants|consonants]] and the presence of [[w:consonant mutation|initial consonant mutation]].
-Scots Norse is typically split into two main [[w:dialect|dialect]] groups, Inner and Outer, corresponding to the Inner and Outer Hebrides, these are further divided into North, South, and Central for both, though Central Northern is more often called "Uist Norse". These dialects are almost entirely mutually intelligible within their groups, and mostly so even between the groups. Uniting all of these is the standardized form, ''{{lang|snon|Hàrsudhraèsc}}'', literally meaning "High Scots Norse". ("high" as in "exalted")
+Scots Norse has roughly eleven [[w:dialect|dialects]] that form the language's two [[w:dialect continuum|dialect continuums]], these are called [[Western Scots Norse|Veastèghsc]] ("Western") and [[Eastern Scots Norse|Èstèghsc]] ("Eastern") Scots Norse respectively, these are further divided into specific dialects, which can be viewed within the articles themselves. Uniting all of these dialects is the [[w:standard language|standard variety]], called ''Hàsudhraèghsc'', literally "High [[w:Suðreyjar|Suðreyjar]]-ish". All [[w:variety (linguistics)|varieties]] of Scots Norse are written using the [[w:Latin script|Latin script]], employing [[w:Gaelic Type|Gaelic Type]] or [[w:Insular Script|Insular]] as the [[w:script|hand]], this acts as a notable exception to the general notion that Gaelic Type and Insular only survive for ornamental or historical usages, as they are still the primary hand used for Scots Norse.
+==Classification==
+Scots Norse has long been a difficulty for linguists to classify, as it shows clear signs of being a mixed language, though the extent of this has been and still is heavily debated and questioned. As well as the general lack of speakers of Scots Norse, it is hard to determine whether Scots Norse stands as a creole or not, thus the general consensus among modern linguists to class it under ''Gaelo-Nordic'' till enough research has been done to reclassify it under a more appropriate position, potentially as a Scottish-Norse creole.
+The difficulty in classifying Scots Norse comes largely down to the morphology and phonology, where it is closer to the modern Gaelic languages than the other Nordic languages, having lost most inflection while simultaneously gaining a simple system of preposition inflections from heavily reduced pronouns.
-Scots Norse is hard to classify type-wise, as it shows signs of [[w:creolization|creolization]], but not to the extent where it could typically be classed as a [[w:creole|creole]], this leads to the branching from Insular West Norse into so-called "Gaelo-Nordic", characterized by the partial creolization of [[w:Old West Norse|Old West Norse]] with [[w:Middle Irish|Middle Irish]] and Scots Gaelic. Regardless how it is classed, Scots Norse is with no doubt some kind of [[w:mixed language|mixed language]].
 ==History==
 ===Pre-Modern===
-Scots Norse originates in the mid to late 13th century, around the time Suðreyjar was handed over to Scotland with the [[w:Treaty of Perth|Treaty of Perth]]. Though the language would continue to be largely unchanged from the Old Norse of the 12th century, 1266AD is often used as a dividing date between Old Norse and the earliest forms of Scots Norse. While 1266 is a relatively arbitrary date, it serves its purpose as a convenient divide between two stages, as following the Treaty of Perth, the Hebrides would gain a much larger population of [[w:Gaelic|Gaelic]] and [[w:English|English]] speakers (At this point still Middle Irish and [[w:Middle English|Middle English]]), and from roughly 1450AD onward, Scots Norse would be increasingly influenced by Scots Gaelic and, to a lesser extent, Scots.
+Scots Norse originates in the mid to late 13th century, around the time Suðreyjar was handed over to [[w:Scotland|Scotland]] with the [[w:Treaty of Perth|Treaty of Perth]]. Though the language would continue to be largely unchanged from the Old Norse of the 12th century, 1266AD is often used as a dividing date between Old Norse and the earliest forms of Scots Norse. While 1266 is a relatively arbitrary date, it serves its purpose as a convenient divide between two stages, as following the Treaty of Perth, the Hebrides would gain a much larger population of Gaelic and English speakers (At this point still [[w:Middle Irish|Middle Irish]] and [[w:Middle English|Middle English]]), and from roughly 1450AD onward, Scots Norse would be increasingly influenced by Scots Gaelic and, to a lesser extent, Scots.
-Having been spoken throughout Suðreyjar, Scots Norse had a dialect within the [[w:Isle of Man|Isle of Man]] (Scots Norse {{lang|snon|{{term|Monaègharr}}}}). Little is known about Manx Norse ({{lang|snon|{{term|Monaèsc}}}}), as it is very poorly recorded, the most extensive description being a short document from around 1500AD that contains a list of about 150 words (see ''[[the Noreine speche fra Man]]''), with a very poor description of the pronunciations. Though from this description we can gather that Manx Norse still had the [[w:dental fricative|dental fricatives]] that had been lost in other dialects (merging with t/d), we get this from the description "... these [th and dh] are like that of the Saxons' beloved þ."
+Having been spoken throughout all of Suðreyjar, Scots Norse once had a dialect within the [[w:Isle of Man|Isle of Man]] (Scots Norse {{lang|snon|{{term|Monaègharr}}}}). Little is known about Manx Scots Norse ({{lang|snon|{{term|Monaèsc}}}}), as it is very poorly recorded, the most extensive description being a short document from around 1500AD that contains a list of about 150 words (see ''[[the Noreine speche fra Man]]''), with a very poor description of the pronunciations. Though from this description we can gather that it still had the original [[w:dental fricative|dental fricatives]] that had been lost in other dialects (merging with t/d), we get this from the description "... these [th and dh] are like that of the Saxons' beloved þ."
-Following the treaty of Perth, the usage of Norse began declining significantly, with evidence it was nearly extinct by 1550. A small revitalization occured in the mid 18th century when several of the last native speakers (at the time, Scots Norse had no more than 150 remaining speakers) gathered together to document the language so it could be taught to children. This effort was mostly effective, leading to the first noticeable rise in speaker count since it began declining. By the 1880's, there would be upwards of 1,500 native speakers, a majority of them young.
+Following the treaty of Perth, the usage of Norse began declining significantly, with evidence it was nearly extinct by 1550. A small revitalization occurred in the mid 18th century when several of the last native speakers (having had no more than 150 remaining speakers) gathered together to document the language so it could be taught to children. This effort was mostly effective, leading to the first noticeable rise in speaker count since it began declining. By the 1880's, there would be upwards of 1,500 native speakers, a majority of them young.
 ===Modern===
-Modern Scots Norse is typically classed as critically endangered due to how few speakers it has, having no more than 2,500 native speakers as of 2020, and virtually all of them live in the Hebrides, making it extremely limited.
+Modern Scots Norse is typically classed as critically endangered due to how few speakers it has, having no more than 2,500 native speakers as of 2020, and virtually all of them live in the Hebrides, making its usage extremely limited.
 Since the early 1990's, Scots Norse has gained a small but dedicated community of linguists that are determined to further document it and make resources more readily available. As of 2018, an online course has been published that goes over Standard Scots Norse, and it has been continually updated since then, improving the quality and extent of the contents, having started out as a rather barebones description of the phonology, orthography, and rudimentary grammar.