Moray Family History Sharing

Doric Words, Terms and Phrases

 

Doric Translation

Fan I eest tae be a teuchter (still am) an wis biden in Rathven, we aye wis speerin in  the Doric an syne we flitted tae Birnie bye Elgin, it wis aa ae claith.  A thocht it wid hae been jalouse a hunnert ears syne an aa.  I wis
a wee ill-tricket quinie an wis drookit in it. Ma granpa wis born in 1859 an
I thocht I wid hae kent aboot it awa ben ma ane hoosie.
 

It wis anither story guan tae school, ye wid get clyped on if ye didna spak  English.  It wis a sair fecht fer me fer ma uncle wis the dominie an we bided wi him . They'd aye fash themsels tae win aff a me.

Aye, fine ah ken that. Ma faither wis aye efter us nae tae spik Scots. That wis in Farfar, nae in Elgin, bit it's a the ane leid.

Ah ken a suld hae said in Elgin fowk wid hae hid the Doric. But thir fowk that disnae hae ony widnae ken fit ah wis sayin.
 

Taken from a message on the Moray Mailing List - July 2004

 

See if you can translate the first section !

The dictionary will help you if you get stuck

 

 

 

 

It was another story going to school, you would bet told off if you did not speak English.  It was difficult for me as my uncle was the schoolmaster and we lived with him.  They would all try  to win after me.

Still, that was fine, I knew that.,  My father was always after us not to speak Scots.  That was in Farfar, not in Elgin, but it's all one language.

I know I should have said in Elgin people would speak  Doric. But those people that don't have any knowledge of that would not understand what I was saying.

 

 

It's a braw bricht moonlicht nicht the nicht

It is a cold bright moonlight night to night

A Scottish / English and English /Scottish dictionary can be found at http://www.scots-online.org/grammar/mnscots.htm  the dictionary can be found at the bottom of the entry page.

The proper version of this poem was published anonymously in the 1823 in the
USA and was originally credited to Clement Clarke Moore.  More recent
scholarly opinion identifies Major Henry Livingston Jr. (1748-1828) as the
author.  It should be kept in mind, however, that Christmas (December 25)
was not celebrated in the North East until 1878 (according to a note in the
Auchterless School Log Book 1873-1905).  The main holiday prior to then was
Hogmanay (New Year's Eve) and Auld Yule was recognized as Christmas Day (I
believe January 6th is the day they celebrated).       
Gordon Troup


'TWAS 'E NICHT AFORE CHRISTMAS
 

 

The Lords Prayer

Oor Faither in Heiven Hallowt be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be dune, on the Yird as in Heiven. Gie us oor beid for this incomin day, Forfie us the wrangs we hae wrocht, as we hae forgien the wrangs we hae dree'd  an say-us-na sairlie, but sauf us frae the ill-ane, and Thine be the kingdom , the Pooer and the Glory nooan firivver. 

Amen

 

A few words are listed below but at this it  is limited in its size -  you can add to at anytime

English Doric

Animals bed

lair

Bagpipes - beginners pipe

chanter

Baker

batchie, baxter

Barn

bern, granzie

Bed

lair

Bladcksmith

burnewin (burn the wind)

Boat (flat bottomed)

scowe

Boat - small undecked, two masted fishing boat

yowl

Boot

buit

Box or chest

kist

Boy

loun

Bread

breid, bridth, breadth

Bread roll

bap

Bridge

brig

Brother

brither

Brother in law

guid-brither

Burial

Birrial

Butcher

flesher

Cabbage

bowe-kail, cabbitch, kail

Cabbage knife

kail-gullie

Calves

caur

Car

caur

Ceiling (sloping)

camceil

Chancel in a church

queir

Chicken

chookie, poullie (young chicken)

Choir

queir

Church

Kirk,

Church officer

beadle

Church collection box

ladle

Churchyard

kirkyaird

Cloth, to dress

kirtle

Coffin

widden jacket, mort kist

Cold

cauld, braw, oorit,

Cold - severe

mort cold, snell

Copse

shaw

Cowshed

byre

Dryed

wizzen

Embroider

floorish

Equipment

graithin, muntin, turse

Fall

dyst, faw, sclatch (heavy fall)

Father

dad, faither, paw

Farm servant

hynd

Field

loanin, pairk,

Fish basket

creel

Fish trap

cruive (trap across a river)

Flourish

floorish

Flower (bloom)

flouer, bluim

Fold (cattle)

fauld

Folk, people

fowk

Food

farin (fr flour), fuid,

Girl

girl

Goat

gait

Golf

gowf

Gossop

kimmer

Grave plot

lair

Hamlet

cottoun

Happy

fain, fond, cantie, seilie,

Harm, injure, hurt

skaithe

Heather

ling

Honey

hinnie

House, home, holding

haudin

House

hoose

Husband

hain, guid-man

I

aye

 

 

Kettle

snippie,

Killed

kilt

Kilt (the)

feile-beag (gaelic)

Lake

loch (there is only one lake in Scotland)

Language

laid

Light

licht

Living

leevin

Life-like, bright, clear, lively

vieve

Lord (landowner)

laird

Lord save us (an exclamation)

losh

Lore (as in folk lore)

lair

Milk

milk, draw

Minister's house

Manse

Money (silver)

siller

Moss or lichen

fog

Mother

mammie, mither

Mother (god mother)

kimmer

Mountain

ben, muntain

Oven

uin

Pasture (unploughed)

lea

People, folk

fowk

Porridge

gruel, brose, parritch

Potato

tattie

Railway

railwey

Roof

ruif

Roof gutter

rone

Roofing

riggin

Salmon

saumon, the dukes fish, gray saumon, grilse (young salmon), kelt (spawned salmon), parr (young salmon) candavaig

Servant to do rough work

slaister

Servant - paid wages

fee

Servant - liveried

flunkie

Sew, darn or rough mend

ranter

Sheep - 2 year old sheep

wedder

Sheep, ewe

yowe

Sheep, young

hog

Shoe

shae

Soldier

sodger

Soldier - in a highland regiment

kiltie

Soup

broth

Sow - seeds

shew

Speak

spik

Splinter, chip or sliver of wood

spail

Stride

lamp

These, those

Thir

Town

toon

Trout fishing (by hand)

guddle

Trousers

trews, breeks, troosers, breekums

Trout

finnock, troot, yallae fin, bottom lier (see trout)

Turnip (or swede)

neep, baggie, tumshie (swade)

Upstairs, upthere

upby

Urge (on)

egg (on)

Village, hamlet

clachan

Walk

kevel, raik,

Walk - clumsily or unsteady

wauchie, toit

Water

watter

Wife

guid-wife, wifie

Withered

wizzen

Whisky

baurley-bree

Wood

wid

Work

wark, wirk

Work (a days)

darg

Work (occasionalor small)

jog

Work clumsily

sclyte

Gordon Troup has found the following useful when translating to Doric


Johnny Gibb of Gushetneuk
The Laird of Drammochdyle
Rural Life in Victorian Aberdeenshire
Buchan Claik
At the Back of Bennachie
A Doric Dictionary
Teach Yourself Doric
Speak o' the North East
 

© carol sklinar 2004

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