The April meeting of the Howe o’ the Mearns Heritage Club discussed the problems facing our local dialect. From the relatively static agricultural population of the Howe in the 1950s and 60s we have moved to an oil and gas economy bringing new residents, not only from the corners of the UK but from all over the globe.
Doric has been exported to oilfields around the world but the impact of BBC and American English and the changes in lifestyle have taken away much of the old vocabulary. Receiving zero tuition in our our lingo means that we have difficulty both reading and writing it.
All is not lost, however, and poetry, short stories and even whole books are still available in the local library.
Where can you learn Doric? Thainstone Mart perhaps, or more locally hae a wordie wi yer al’er neebers!
Heritage Club meets once a month in the Burgh Buildings, Laurencekirk. To find out more contact Mike Robson at michaelrobson47@gmail.com
A fun example of the Doric dialect!
