On the right road for language and culture

by Jim Millar,Director of Language & Education

MY father regularly used a saying that said, "Any road's the right road for someone who doesn't know where he's going."  It was usually directed at someone who didn't seem to know either what he wanted or how to go about getting it.  I'm pleased to say that these words of wisdom do not apply to the Agency's approach to establishing clearly the needs of the Ulster-Scots community.

 Derek Reaney, the Agency's  Development Officer for the west of  Ulster, officially opened the first of the 2006 series of  "Road Shows" on February 7.  Held in a hotel function room in Ballybofey and Stranorlar in Co Donegal, this event was well attended and, as is the case with most good evenings in that part of the world, it continued on for a brave while.
 
 Similar type events are scheduled across the whole of Ulster into March.  The 2006 "Road Shows" will be completed at the end of this month. 

 The format of these "foregaitherins" is to a certain extent set by the wee presentations that board employees need to engage in to "get the discussion going", but it isn't too long before formality gives way to less rigid ways of operating.  In the end there seems to be a healthy mix of both the formal and informal, but with a great amount of the latter and a bit less of the former. 

 This series of meetings between those who work at the Agency and those who are engaged in a wide range of Ulster-Scots activities is a smashing opportunity for all concerned.  It is a chance for individuals and groups to express their point of view in regard to what is important in their Ulster-Scots programmes. 

 At the same time, these "collogues" are vital for the Agency as they positively help to determine what needs to be done and the extent to which Agency support is getting to where it is most needed. 

 The "Road Shows" also go a long way to help shape the future direction that the Agency will take in regard to its four strategic themes, namely culture, language, education and public awareness.  It's not necessary that participants should have an interest in all of these issues; indeed most who attend these occasions generally have a specific interest in just one aspect of Ulster-Scots language or culture.

 This might mean either a limited interest in creative Ulster-Scots writing or in the playing of an Ulster-Scots musical instrument.  These particular enthusiasms or indeed any other form of Ulster-Scots activity are sufficient to warrant your attendance at these events. 

 What's important here is that as many people as possible are able to express their point of view.  That way, decisions that the Agency will make in regard to funding priorities etc, are more likely to reflect an overall opinion rather than those of a few individuals.  Having said all that, its not all about making your point and asserting influence.  These occasions have the potential to be a good night's crack. 

 Anyone who attends these road shows and has a common interest in some Ulster-Scots activity is generally bound to "bump intae" some "oul friens" and to meet some new ones too.  At a recent "Road Show" I was lucky enough to meet  a "wheen o boadies at A knowed" and also to be introduced to a fine old gentleman who I had heard of by reputation, but had never actually spoken to. 

 As an example of someone who has managed to retain much of his Ulster-Scots speech, [not to mention humour] Samuel Fletcher from Glenmaquinn in Letterkenny, Co Donegal is a gem.

 Over a couple of cups of tea and a number of interruptions to talk with others, I learned of Sam's continuing interest in a way of speaking that was definitely not standard English but that was never the less the accepted tool for communication between friends and neighbours throughout the Laggan.  

 He was also able to easily recognise that as he has grown older, this form of speech has disappeared almost completely from certain areas of Co Donegal.  He told me that he wasn't sure what he could do about this. 

 After a further few moments Sam produced a crumpled piece of paper from his jacket and he presented it to me.  It was a poem that he had written and he mentioned to me that he had a "wheen mair ithers" back at home.  He read it out and suggested that if I wanted to, I could hang on to it.  "Copy it out again and change some of the spellings if you want to,"   Would you mind if I put into the Ulster-Scot newspaper?  ÔPut it into the paper if you think it might interest anyone,Õ  he said with a grin. So here it is, with one or two alterations in spellings that Samuel thought might help with understanding.

A widnae be blythe tae turn aboot, tae set up a cless tae teach the Scooder.
But still aboot amang his aa, it haes tae rest oan some-boadies shooder.
But the wan will naw, kens yit the ither, an ye weel may think at A'm a blether,
But fowks pass oan an time gans bye, an we cud loas the hale thing aa the gither
An A widnae lik tae stan fawr beck an alloo the lik o thon tae happen.
We shud get wee hemmers, aye an aa, an noo and then tak up the nappin,
Tae pave the road, the road hard bye, the road that keeps her still a chappin,
An maybe then an maybe naw, the thaing at maist A fear,
It widnae be allooed tae happen.

 I suspect that you don't really need to be a literature "buff" to enjoy Samuel's wee piece of verse.  I enjoy the sound of the descriptive words that he has used here, but I also find value in the recognition of the message that he is attempting to give the reader.  It's a nice piece of writing and perhaps more valuable than Samuel was prepared that night to give himself credit for and it's not that often that we see these words used by those who are involved in current creative writing in Ulster-Scots.  
However, what I find most intriguing [and somewhat encouraging also] is the plea that Samuel is making here.  A plea that says lets all do something together to prevent the loss of this way of speaking. 

 Interestingly, I heard a similar message, given by the internationally renowned linguist, Professor David Crystal, when he recently gave a language paper in Dublin Castle. 

 Speaking on the subject of endangered languages, he suggested that minority languages are constantly under threat from more culturally dominant languages such as English. 

 Simply put, his message was that stopping the decline of any minority language is the final responsibility of the community that would normally be expected to make use of the language. Crystal explained that minority language revival was generally a fourth generation thing, that involved those who had become totally assimilated with a dominant language such as English and who had begun to question why their traditional way of speaking had been allowed to disappear.  

 I'm not sure that Professor Crystal actually made mention of our Ulster-Scot "Road Shows", or, indeed, if he referred to Ulster-Scots in any way during the time that he captivated his audience.  However, I can't help thinking that Samuel Fletcher and David Crystal have said the same thing to me, but in quite different ways. 

 Both of these fine men have made me think more about what we might do together to encourage others to enjoy the native form of speech that we refer to as Ulster-Scots.

 See you at the "Road Show"!