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Scottish and Welsh Humor

By Don L. F. Nilsenand Alleen Pace Nilsen

WARNING ABOUT SCOTTISH HUMOR, TABOOS, AND CENSORSHIP

In selecting examples of Scottish humor we have tried to be edgy, but not offensive, but consider the following:

CENSORSHIP FROM THE RIGHT: Blasphemy, Obscenity, Profanity, Swear Words, Vulgarity, Mention of Body Parts, and Body Functions

CENSORSHIP FROM THE LEFT (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS): Age, Disabilities, Gender, Ethnicity, Belief System, and all other marginalizations.

Ethnic humor tends to be in the vernacular. It is colloquial, and ungrammatical and unpretentious, but it is also often “vulgar” because it is in the language of the common people (compare “Vulgar Latin”).

We’ve tried not to use offensive examples, and we hope we have succeeded, but remember that what is not offensive to one person might be very offensive to another person. We apologize in advance if any of our examples are offensive.

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Scots have short arms and long pockets.

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Some Scottish-Kilt Humor

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Frankie Boyle

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Rob Brydon: A Welsh Comedian

Rob Brydon “On Giving Birth”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=comedian+rob+brydon&view=detail&mid=BD5450E125F719FA6D07BD5450E125F719FA6D07&FORM=VIRE

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Robert Burns (1759-1796)• Bobbie Burns is the author of “Auld Lang

Syne.”

• Bobbie Burns is also the poet of “eating, drinking and wenching.”

• I hae been blythe wi’ comrades dear;• I hae been merry drinking;• I hae been joyfu’ gath’rin gear;• I hae been happy thinking.

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• But a’ the pleasures e’er I saw• Tho’ three times double’d fairly• That happy night was worth them

a’,• Among the rigs o’ barley.

Steve Coogan, A Welsh Comedian

Steve Coogan a.k.a. Alan Partridge:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+steve+coogan&view=detail&mid=C5FF108930765A8D62A3C5FF108930765A8D62A3&FORM=VIRE

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Tommy Cooper: A Welsh Comedian

Tommy Cooper:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+tommy+cooper+comedian&view=detail&mid=6360DB6B8CA28464DFC86360DB6B8CA28464DFC8&FORM=VIRE

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Christie Davies, A Welsh Author

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Lee Evans, A Welsh Comedian

Lee Evans:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+lee+evans&view=detail&mid=AD146960081B715264E5AD146960081B715264E5&FORM=VIRE

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Craig Ferguson

Craig Ferguson on the “Stephen Colbert Show”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+craig+ferguson&view=detail&mid=95D4509E1D2C015BD06B95D4509E1D2C015BD06B&FORM=VIRE

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Tina Fey (Her father was half Scottish)

Tina Fey on “The David Letterman Show”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+tina+fey&view=detail&mid=F803403809F733AD01BEF803403809F733AD01BE&FORM=VIRE

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Rhod Gilbert, A Welsh Comedian

Rhod Gilbert “Luggage Problems”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+rhod+gilbert&view=detail&mid=F47AA6E4CAADD13DCA1DF47AA6E4CAADD13DCA1D&FORM=VIRE

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Tom Hay

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Ruth Jones, A Welsh Comedian

Ruth Jones and James Cordan:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+ruth+jones&&view=detail&mid=4351CDC7D60626A68AA34351CDC7D60626A68AA3&rvsmid=FA6EA4B2C8EA44338BF6FA6EA4B2C8EA44338BF6&fsscr=0&FORM=VDFSRV

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Terry Jones, A Welsh ComedianA Member of the Monte Python Group

Terry Jones and His Monte Python Sketches:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+comedian+terry+jones&&view=detail&mid=0D86AB7616660A8382DA0D86AB7616660A8382DA&rvsmid=AF52FA0EB76147B28E4EAF52FA0EB76147B28E4E&fsscr=0&FORM=VDFSRV

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Lloyd Langford, A Welsh Comedian

Lloyd Langford on the “Ask Rhod Gilbert Show”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+lloyd+langford&view=detail&mid=69D46D32D504A0EBE2DC69D46D32D504A0EBE2DC&FORM=VIRE

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Jay Leno (His mother was from Scotland)

Jay Leno on the “David Letterman Show”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+jay+leno+comedy&&view=detail&mid=86FFD2D14CE2E9AC6F2986FFD2D14CE2E9AC6F29&rvsmid=1B1753419D01A5C3CBF11B1753419D01A5C3CBF1&fsscr=0&FORM=VDFSRV

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Gladys Morgan

Gladys Morgan “The Welsh Queen of Comedy”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+gladys+morgan&view=detail&mid=9A19797E6D9BD23B3F1E9A19797E6D9BD23B3F1E&FORM=VIRE

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Hugh Morrison

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Desi Northup

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John C. Reilly (His father was of Scottish and Irish Descent)

John C. Reilly and Will Farrell in “Step Brothers”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=john+c.+reilly+youtube+humor&&view=detail&mid=0457D0D31103FDF5581C0457D0D31103FDF5581C&rvsmid=D30B9997B4DDA86A0E28D30B9997B4DDA86A0E28&fsscr=0&FORM=VDFSRV

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Mickey Rooney (His father was Scottish born)

Mickey Rooney and Milton Berle “Canned Humor”:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVJ-fplYJr8

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Sir Walter Scott (1771-1831)• Sir Walter Scott Scott wrote

– Ivanhoe– The Heart of Midlothian– Rob Roy and – Quentin Durward

Paul Whitehouse, A Welsh Comedian

Paul Whitehouse, “Smile”:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+paul+whitehouse&view=detail&mid=D0045751B49AC996EF47D0045751B49AC996EF47&FORM=VIRE

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Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894)

• Robert Louis Stevenson wrote– Treasure Island and– Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

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Scots Go To Ireland

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Scottish Highlands & Lowlands

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Scottish Words in America

Place NamesAberdeen Edinburgh Glasgow Mc… Nova Scotia (Canada)

bonnieganghaggasladdielasslochweewhisky (fr. Uisce beatha: “water of life”)

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Scottish PronunciationsNo Great English Vowel Shift:about the housebone, stonehow now brown cow.light, night, right

Retention of OE /x/:loch, night, right, fought

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Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary• Because England does not have a language

academy (like the “acadamie française”) we use dictionaries to settle language issues.

• The rise of dictionaries correlates with the rise of the Middle Class.

• Up through Webster’s II with labels like “vulgar,” “colloquial,” “slang,” “argot,” “jargon,” “Southern” etc.

• But now there’s Webster’s III with no labels

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Johnson’s Dictionary & The Battle of Culloden

• Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary determined spellings, analogies, structures, meanings and significances.

• 1746 was the year that Johnson’s dictionary was published.

• 1746 was the year that the Jakobean Duke of Cumberland defeated Bonnie Prince Charlie at the Battle of Culloden.

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After the Battle of Culloden (1746) Highland Scottish Culture was Outlawed

Outlawed:Carrying of firearmsHurling of TaborsPlaying of bag pipesSpeaking of Scots Gaelic Wearing of kilts & tartans

So the teuchters fled to:IrelandAmericaAustraliaNew ZealandAfrica

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Scots Migrate to Northern Ireland

• 200,000 Scots migrated to Northern Ireland.

• In turn, some two million of their descendants migrated to America during the 18th, 19th and the early part of the 20th Centuries.

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Scots-Irish Go to America

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The Guid Scots Tongue• The Scottish language in Scotland, in Ulster (Ireland), in Nova

Scotia (Canada) and Boston and Philadelphia (United States) was distinct:

• “Bone” and “stone” were pronounced “bane” and “stane.”• “Soft” “leave,” “bath,” “top” and “sick” were pronounced

“saft,” “lea’,” “tap,” and “seek.”• “How now brown cow” would be pronounced “Hoo noo broon

coo.”

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Many Scots-Irish Migrate to America

• By 1776 (the year of America’s independence) almost half of Ulster had crossed the Atlantic.

• In the United States, one out every seven colonists was Scots-Irish.

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Scots-Irish in America• The Scots-Irish immigrants in Boston tended to

be intolerant, violent, unruly and poverty stricken, so they weren’t too welcome.

• They moved South to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

• In 1760, Benjamin Franklin estimated that 1/3 of Philadelphia was English, 1/3 was German, and 1/3 was Scots-Irish.

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Scots-Irish Move West Through the Cumberland Gap

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Scots-Irish Further Migration• Most of the Scots-Irish kept going South towards the

Appalachian Mountains and on through the Cumberland Gap.

• They were on the American frontier and bore the brunt of Indian hostilities.

• They settled in the Southwestern frontier.

• They tended to be fierce, clannish and unruly.

• They wore coonskin caps, carried Kentucky rifles, and were really fond of whiskey.

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• The Scots-Irish were ferocious Indian fighters, great boasters, and compulsive storytellers. They had a keen ear for a striking phrase.

• Some of them made it all of the way west to Texas. Probably the most famous of them was Davy Crockett at the Alamo, who was part real, and part legend. Crockett described himself as…

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• “…fresh from the backwoods, half-horse, half-alligator, a little touched with snapping turtle, can wade the Mississippi, leap the Ohio, ride a streak of lightning, slide down a honey locust and not get scratched.”

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The Hillbillies• The Scotch-Irish Hillbillies made stills and

brewed “moonshine.” They used words like “afeared,” “damnedest,” “chaw u’ tabacker,” “hex,” “plum right” or “plum crazy.” And they’re great story tellers.

• They ate “bonny-clabber” (curdled sour milk) and “flannel-cake (a thin wheat cake). They provided English with the expression “you-all.” And when they called the cows home at night they used the Old-English “sūcan” meaning “suck.”

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• The Hillbillies said “tharr,” “barr,” and Herr” for “there,” “bear,” and “here.”

• They dropped their final –g, and used the Old-English “on” in front of –ing words, like “a-huntin, and a-fishin.” They also used the Old-English form of “it,” which was “hit.”

• These features are throughout the Southwest, but are most prominent in West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and the Ozarks.

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Hillbilly Culture Becomes Mainstream

• Today about twenty million people (10 % of Americans) claim Scots-Irish ancestry.

• The Scots-Irish ballads are currently imitated and reproduced throughout the United States.

• Dolly Parton, Pat Boone, Kenny Rogers and Willie Nelson are four of these ballad singers.

• Blue-Collar TV (Bill Engvall and Jeff Foxworthy, etc.) also are great “Hillbilly” story tellers

• It is possible to see reruns of a sitcom called “The Beverly Hillbillies.” It is about some hillbillies who struck oil and moved to Beverly Hills in California.

Don Nilsen as a Scottsmanin a Ferguson Kilt

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