How Much Scots Do They Speak in the Bahamas?

Robin Sabino & Mary Stephens Diamond

Auburn University

SECOL XLIII

April 6-8, 2000

Overview

•San Salvador

•Farquharson History: Clan, Family, & Personal

•Farquharson’s Dialect

•Current Dialect of San Salvador

San Salvador, Bahamas

San Salvador

Map adapted from Gail Saunders 1983. Bahamian Loyalists and Their Slaves. London: MacMillian Caribbean.

Farquharson - Clan History

•Farquharson clan recognized 1697•Renowned for military prowess• Renowned for loyalty to Scotland•Clan motto, “Fide et Fotitudine”•Ancestral home in Aberdeenshire

Farquharson - Family History

Know all men by these Presents we Charles Farquharson of the Parish of Kirriemuir and County of Forfar Francis Farquharson of Mill(t)on of Bruickly in the Parish of Glenmuick and County of Aberdeen Murray Farquharson late Captain in His Majesty’s First West India Regiment of Foot residing at Redclock and Ian Farquharson and Catherine Farquharson both of Store Haven in Parish of Fetteresso and County of Kincardine.

Ian & Catherine Farquharson

http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/sct/KCD/ParishMap.html

Francis Farquharson

http://www.urie.demon.co.uk/genuki/ABD/parishmap1.html

Charles Farquharson

http://www.dundee.ac.uk/archives/genuki/ANS/ansmap.html

Farquharson’s Personal History

• 1760 born in county Forfar• 1789 acquired four 40 acre grants on Long Island• 1795 purchased 60 acres on Watlings Island (San

Sal) from Duncan Taylor• 1803 received a grant of 200 additional acres• Served as Justice of the Peace of San Salvador• 1831-32 Farquharson’s journal of estate activities• Died 1835

Farquharson’s Dialect /I/

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /I/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F’s Journal 

English 

Abd. 

Kcd. 

Frf.

 

San Sal

chist 

>chest=  

  

  

 

[…s(t)] 

drisiling 

>drizzling=  

  

  

 

[drIzIlIn] ~ [drIzlI] 

minites 

>minutes=  

  

  

 

[mInIts] 

pigon 

>pigeon=  

  

  

 

[pIIn] 

prity 

>pretty=  

  

 

[I] 

[prIti] 

shiped 

>shipped= 

[I] ~ []   

 

[I] ~ [] 

[šIp(t)] 

skined 

>skinned=  

  

 

[I] 

[skIn(d)] 

strick 

>strike=  

  

  

 

[straik]

striped >stripped=  

  

  

 

[strIp(t)]

triming >trimming=  

  

  

 

[trImIn] ~ [trImI]

Farquharson’s Dialect /E/

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /E/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

F’s Journal  

English 

Abd. 

Kcd 

Frf.

 

San Sal 

bests 

>beasts=[i] ~ [e]

   [e] ~[e]

 [bis]~[bist]

felling ‘falling’  [a]     [a]  [f lI] ~ [f lIn]

 reff  ‘reef’   

  

    [rif]

 repeted  >repeated=

  

  

   [ripitd]  

 repeted  >repeated=

  

  

    [ripitd]  

 shep ‘sheep=   

    [i]   [šip]

 ventor  >venture=

  

  

    [vn…ž] ~ [wn…ž]

 wemon  >women=

  

    [] [womæm]

 whewls  >wheels=

    [i]  [i]   [vilz] ~ [wilz]

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /E/ Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F=s Journal

 

English 

Abd.

 

Kcd 

Frf  

San Sal

 

leat 

>late= 

[e]  

 

[e] 

[let]

 

leatly 

>lately=  

  

  

 

[letli]

 

mearly 

>merely=

  

  

  

 

[mrli]

 

pease 

>pea=   

  

[e] ~[i]

 

[piz]

 

seain 

>seine=  

  

  

 

not used

Farquharson’s Dialect /A/

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /A/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F’s Journal 

English 

Abd. 

Kcd 

Frf.

 

San Sal

 

anckle 

>ankle=  

  

  

 

[ækl] ~ [aikl]

 

bracking 

>breaking=

  

    [a] ~

[a]

 

[brekI]

 

fadom 

>fathom=

 

[a]  

  

 

[fdžm] ~ [fædžm]

 

faverable 

>favorable=

  

  

  

 

[fevrIbl] ~ [fvrIbl]

 

Farquharson 

>Ferguson=

  

  

  

  

 

Harcules 

>Hercules=

  

  

  

 

[hžrkžliz] ~ [hrkuliz]

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /A/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F=s Journal

 

English 

Abd. 

Kcd 

Frf.  

San Sal

 

pomato 

>palmetto=

  

  

  

 

[palmato] ~ [pa(l)mto]

 

pastor/pastor 

>pasture’  

  

  

 

[past ž] ~ [pæst ž]

 rack  

>rake=  

  

  

 

[riek]

 rack  

>rock=  

  

  

 

[rk]

 shad  

>shed=  

  

  

 

[šd] 

vassel 

>vessel=  

  

  

 

[vsl] 

wrack 

>wreck= 

[a]  

 

[a] ~ []

 

--

Farquharson’s Dialect /O/

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /O/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F’s Journal 

English 

Abd. 

Kcd 

Frf.

 

San Sal

 

altho 

>although=

  

  

  

 

 [aldo]~[ldo]~[alo]

 

bon 

>bone=  

  

 

[i] 

 [bn]

 

brock 

>broke= 

[U]  

 

[] ~ [U]

 

[brok]

 

foll 

>foal= 

[o]  

 

[o] ~[o]

 

[f l] ~ [fol]

 

gon 

>gone=  

  

 

[e] ~ []

 

[gn]

 

of 

>off= [] ~ [a]

  

 

[]  

 [f]

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /O/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F’s Journal 

English 

Abd.

 

Kcd.

 

Frf.

 

San Sal

 

pomato 

>palmetto=

  

  

  

 

[palmato] ~ [pa(l)mto]

 

rowe 

>row=  

  

  

 

 [rau]

 

spock 

‘spoke(n)’  

  

 

[]

 

[spok]

 

showing 

‘showing’ 

[o] 

[o] 

[o] 

 [šowin] ~  [šowi]

 

throw 

‘through’  

  

    [ru]~[tru]

 

threw ‘through’

  

  

     [ru]~[tru]

Farquharson’s Dialect /U/

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /U/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F=s Journal

 

English 

Abd. 

Kcd. 

Frf.

 

San Sal

 

bruse 

>bruise’ 

[I] ~ [i] ~ [u]

 

[i] 

[ø] ~[I] ~ [œ]

 

[bruz] ~ [brus]

 

crue 

>crew=  

 

[u]  

 

 [kru]

 

foules 

>fowls= 

[U] ~ [u]

 

[iu]~ [(j)u]

 

[U] ~ [u]

 

[fauls]

 

shours 

>showers’=

  

 

[u] 

[u] 

[šauwz]

Farquharson’s Dialect /^/

Italics = Linguistic Atlas of Scotland /^/Non-italics = The English Dialect Grammar

 

F=s Journal

 

English 

Abd. 

Kcd 

Frf.

 

San Sal

 

cups 

>coops=  

  

  

 

[kžb]~[kžp] 

 

cuting 

>cutting=

  

  

 

[ž] 

[kžtI] 

duble 

>double=

  

  

  

 

 [džbl]

 

dum 

>dumb=  

  

  

 

 [džm]

 

futer >future=  

   

  

 

 [fju…ž] ~ [fjužr]

 

super 

>supper=  

  

 

[ž] [sžpž] ~ [sžpžr]

 

enterupted 

>interrupted=

  

  

    [Intžržp] ~ [Intžržptd]

BibliographyCraton, Michael and Saunders, Gail. 1992. Islanders in the Stream: A History of the

Bahamian People, Volume I. Athens: University of Georgia Press.----. 1991. On Slavery’s Margins: The Farquharson Estate, San Salvador, Bahamas. Slavery

and Abolition 12:2:49-72.Farquharson, Charles; McDonald, Ormond (ed.). 1957. A Relic of Slavery: Farquharson’s

Journal for 1831-32. Nassau: The Deans Peggs Research Fund. Gerace, Kathy. 1982. “Three Loyalist Plantations.” Florida Anthropologist 35:4:216-22 Holm, John and Shilling, Allison. 1982. Dictionary of Bahamian English. Cold Springs,

NY: Lexik House.Holm, John. 1980. “African Features in White Bahamian English.” English World-Wide 1:

45-65.----. On the Relationship of Gullah and Bahamian. American Speech 58.4:303-318.Saunders, Gail. 1983. Bahamian Loyalists and Their Slaves. London: Mcmillan Publishers. Mather, J. H. and Speitel, H. H. 1986. The Linguistic Atlas of Scotland, Volume III.

London: Croom Helm. Warrack, Alexander. 1965. Scots Dictionary: Serving as a Glossary for Ramsay,

Fergusson, Burns, Scott, Galt, minor poets, kailyard novelists, and a host of other writers of the Scottish tongue. University of Alabama Press.

Wright, Joseph. 1968. The English Dialect Grammar. Oxford: University of Oxford Press.