P BLI H ’ U S ERS N OTE . D URI N G the 1 8 - - M r e years 93 94 95, Jakob Jakobs n , Ma . of n Cand . g the University of Cope hagen , conducted an ex haustive series of investigations into the remains of f t the old Norse language in Shetland . Some o the e sul s of are L t his enquiries embodied in these two ectures, which were cast in a popular form, and were delivered at Lerwick and other places in Shetland before the ’ a uthor s return to Denmar k . Other results of his in a ion s vestig t are contained in his Thesis entitled, Det ” n ne ed N oro Sprog paa Shetland , which was accept by the University of Copenhagen as entitling him to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy . snwxcx ur names 1 8 . L , S , 97 L I ST O F A BBRE V IAT I N O S . — I . r s r Shetland localities (quoted in pa enthesi afterwo ds, — — which are or have been in u se there) P r A ith st . A ith stin . , g , Papa Stoo Bressa a . an dstin . B r . S S , y. , g S a ndw . r . Con n in sbur . C . g g , Sandwick pa ish e t D el tin U . Un st . De . (D l ), g. , W . W s D D u n r . u . ssn ess. , o , all Fe Fetl a r W ts e t s e t . , . es , The w s id (Ai h t n ds in Fo . Sa t , Foula . s ing, g, Sand L u n n a s i ss W . L . t n . , g ne , alls) Wh h a l . W . I r t . sa . N , The No h Isles , y Roe r Roe Y. N . , No th . , Yell Ym. Mid est est . N , N ing , Yell h H er r . o h ma vin e Y . N i n . N rt . , , de a in Yell I I . I . er . cf, conf Icel , celandic w r e . l . o r . Eng , English N , No w gian l r N . d . O . O e e . esp . , sp cially , Northe n t s . Fa n r es . , Fa o e Sco , Scot i h h et l e . f i for . S . , instance , Sh tlandic “ m t s b f h k n In the co bina ion j , j , gj , j , j , and j the “ j ” letter (as in Scandinavian) has the value of an ” “ y “ English consonantal (as in yard The sound of the letter in Shetlandic (as ( i . in “ km -f of en , sheep old) is similar to that in French ' ébn bl eu eu . G a scl words as , blue, f , fire, etc , erman in , e f b auti ul , etc. As I have been prevented from the use of special ' lzonetzc m m p letters in a book of this kind , it has so eti es pr oved very difficult to convey a proper idea of the pro n u n c ia tion of a Shetlandic word by the spelling. The ‘ greatest difii cul ty has been the rendering of the l iquid “ sou nd of some of the consonants (an accompanying i m s s of . ound), e pecially l and n This liquid sound is so e times (although imperfectly) indicated by a prefixed or “ " " “ ” fi'i x ed y l l enll el l in s su f.i. He a V V . ( y , and y , ” “ ” ” kol l et t raa lfa n in h aa n bu n a nn a y , y g y , y , y " ” ta n n iks whart, y , The terminating - r (preceded by a hyphen) in Old Northern words quoted is the mark of the nominat ive singular form in words of the masculine - -= l r te - = i i. koll r ko l s r t r ster tr . gender, as , , etc CO PEN HAGEN i 897. THE OLD SHETLAND DIALECT . “ N LY 700 years ago a language called D on sk ” r tunga, or Danish tongue was spread ove e r nearly th whole north of Eu ope . It was not at all confined to Denmar k : it was spoken in Scandinavia (Denmark, Norway and Sweden), whose centre it was ; it was spoken in Iceland , Faroe, O Shetland , rkney , to a great extent in the western M a n Scottish Isles , the Isle of , and also to some Br t —in extent in i ain itself part of Scotland , especially th e th e r of in the north and along coast, in no th r r th e England and pa t of I eland , and finally along r south and east borde of the Baltic Sea . It was the Scandinavian vikings who carried the Danish tongue : so far the Norwegians and Danes went west, the Norwegians taking a more northerly, the Danes a r r t mo e southe ly direction (in Sco land , and especially A 2 THE OLD SHETLAND DIALECT . the islands north of Scotland , it was chiefly the Nor wegian s who settled ; in England it was the Danes) ; the Swedes went more to the eastward and occupied h e B . t m f. i east border of the altic Sea, and even for ed R a little kingdom in the heart of ussia. I need not here say much about how Shetland f was peopled , first by Picts, who came rom Scotland , e and th n by Norwegians, especially those who at the th r th e fl close of the 9 centu y crossed North Sea, y ing from the tyranny of King Harald Haarfa ger and s trying to find new home . It is a general belief that r th the No semen extinguished e Picts in Shetland . But it was not the custom of the Norsemen to kill — those who did not oppose t hem sword in hand a t r m any rate, they would neve have killed the wo en . d And besi es, we are not told anyt hing about the fled r r Picts having anywhe e from Shetland. The e would be far more sense in tracing the u n - Nor se looking people in some of th e more secluded dist r icts of Shetland back to the or iginal or aboriginal in h a bi t s w tants, whether Picts or not, han to Spaniard , recked s there at the time of the Spani h Armada . And among these first inhabitants we may include Laps and m Fins, who play such an i portant part in the old r Shetland legends. They we e the original inhabitants 3 THE OLD SHETLAN D DIALECT . m of Norway and Sweden , till the Norse en conquered them , and now they only occupy the north end of th e Scandinavian peninsula. Even if one or two ships of the Spanish Ar mada should have been wrecked on the Shetland coast, and even if a case t or two of inter mar r iage should have aken place, it would not have affected whole communit ies. Shetland originally belonged to Norway up t ill th e 1 r t the end of 4th century, when No way en ered t m r s s r in o a union with Den ark unde a Dani h ove eign , and Shetland as par t of Norway passed over into r me this union . As Denma k beca the leading country th e - a - of the two, fact that Shetland people now days always speak of the islands as formerly belonging to m r is for s Den a k , to be accounted in thi way. Bu t hardly a century after t he union was com l eted re r t p , the islands we handed ove to Sco land , for t su m m i r m pledged a cer ain of oney , wh ch fo ed r r M r re oi m the dow y of the P incess a ga t Den ark , who was mar r ied to King James th e Thir d of Scot land . Time will not allow me to enter upon the political s or tate of Shetland during the Norse Danish period . ffi t o r m It may be su cient state, that the fo of govern m m r r ent was de oc atic. The highest powe lay with 4 THE OLD SHETLAND DIAL ECT . Law m the Ting, which was a general asse bly of the f m La w r m people, or ing the Cou t and Parlia ent of the time and held on the plain of Tingwall . The land was held originally according to the Norse “ ” m or r udal syste , system of absolute p operty and fr ee transmission from father to son without deed of But inheritance . soon after the Islands were handed r m m ove to Scotland , the feudal syste was ore fully m r r t introduced , the syste of stipendia y p oper y, by “ ” which the udallers (udal - farmers) became tenants of landlords . To illustrate a little the spirit and customs which reigned during the Norse period of gover nment in e Shetland , and the close connection existing b tween r ma m th e Shetland and No way, I y ention story of r t is Jan Tait and the Bea . I the only histor ical m m tale which has co e down to us fro that period , and is quite in the style and spir it of the old d t .