Evocative Gaelic And Scots Words Inspiring My Fantasy Books

If you’ve read Fireside Fairy Tales or excerpts of my writing on Instagram, you might have spotted some Gaelic words. And lots of Scots.

My native tongue has fascinated me since childhood. Though a quiet child I always loved family gatherings where I could listen in on my grandparents, aunts, and uncles, captivated by the rhythm and expression of their speech. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was soaking up two distinct languages – Scots and English.

My interest in Gaelic developed later. I grew up in Perthshire and while no one in my family spoke Gaelic, we’re surrounded by Gaelic place names which lurk patiently and quietly in the hills until it’s time to open a map.

I’m also lucky enough to be from a town with a strong Traveller community, whose own language, called ‘the cant’, slinked into our vocabulary.

Though it seemed perfectly normal to me growing up, I feel thankful to have been born to a place with such a rich cultural mix. I feel that any form of bilingualism, whether you’re fluent in the languages or not, offers you different lenses through which to see the world.

Every Tuesday night I head to the pub, a heavily annotated and dog-eared copy of Grannaidh Afraga (a Gaelic kids’ book) under my arm, to meet with a Gaelic conversation group. Our group is a mix of learners (like myself) and fluent speakers. As well as ambling through Grannaidh Afraga we learn words for birds and trees and discover the meaning behind local surnames, hills, and rivers. Each week it feels like I head home with a different pair of eyes, through which I see a new layer of Scotland to examine and appreciate.

For example, last week I learned that blue tit in Gaelic is ‘wee, blue-headed old woman’. Now I can’t help but see blue tits as little grannies in blue headscarves bustling about the hedgerows.

I know many of you have an interest in Gaelic, so I thought it would be fun to write a post about the Gaelic and Scots in my books. This isn’t a language lesson, more an ode to two languages that continuously provide me with a fountain of inspiration and deep sense of belonging.

Firstly, what’s the difference between Scots and Scottish Gaelic?

For a start, they’re two different languages.

It’s very important to note that Scots is a language, not a dialect of English. Words like blether (natter), baffies (slippers), goud spink (goldfinch) and coorie (nestle) have a unique character and rich linguistic history not found in Standard English.

Part of the richness of the Scots language comes from its varied borrowings. Common Scots words like bairn (child), kirk (church) and flit (move) come from Norse. Old English words that have fallen out of use in Standard English, like eldritch (supernatural), are still used today in Scotland, perhaps on gale-ridden, Hallowe-en nights! And Edinburgh’s narrow vennels (alleys) and street party celebrations at Hogmanay (the last day of the year) bear the trace of Old French.

Perhaps three of the most-used words in Scots - ceilidh, whisky, and loch – come directly from Gaelic.

Scottish Gaelic or Gàidhlìg (Gah-lick) is a Goidelic language. Goidelic and Brythonic are two separate branches of Celtic languages spoken in the UK.

Scottish Gaelic is closely related to Gaeilge (Irish) and Manx but diverges from the Brythonic languages of Breton, Welsh, and Cornish. Gaelic was dominant in Scotland for many years but compounding factors like the Highland Clearances, the First World War and concerted government effort to remove the “rude speech of a barbarous people” from Scotland have led to a devastating decline.

Gaelic looks and sounds very different to Scots, although, as a learner I’ve found that the grammar, idioms, and pronunciation share some similarities. Gaelic bears little to no resemblance to English.

For example, to say “I’m hungry” in Scottish Gaelic is “Tha an t-acras orm.”

This literally means, “A hunger is on me.”

We use this expression in Scots phrases, too. E.g. “I’ve got a right hunger on me” for “I’m starving”.

How many people in Scotland speak Gaelic?

Just over 57,000 people in Scotland speak Gaelic (based on 2011 census data, I don’t believe the 2021 census data is available yet).

Gaelic is often romanticised in novels and TV programmes like Outlander. Therefore, it might surprise those living outside Scotland to find that many Scots don’t see Gaelic this way.

For many years Gaelic has been ignored, mocked, and grumbled over. You’ll always find resistance from some quarters as to why the Scottish Government funds bilingual road signs (even though Gaelic was likely there before the road!).

Thankfully the tide seems to be turning. At 18 I desperately wanted to learn Gaelic. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any local provision for Gaelic learners at that time (unless I moved to the islands). Fast forward to 2022 and we have Duolingo, Speak Gaelic, a wider availability of courses and more Gaelic medium schools.

More importantly, we have a shift in perception. When I tell people I’m a Scottish Gaelic learner I’m now met with positive curiosity instead of dismissive mockery.

Why do I use Scots and Scottish Gaelic in my fantasy books?

At school, I quickly realised that certain words were for home and others for school.

Teachers often referred to Scots words as ‘slang’, an uncouth and inferior way of speaking compared to ‘proper English’. Somehow it was wrong to answer “Aye” instead of yes. And Gaelic wasn’t mentioned at all! Even though we’re surrounded by place names like Glen Shee (the fairy glen) and Dunkeld (fort of the Caledonians).

I sometimes wonder, if I’d known the Gaelic root of places on my doorstep would I have found my place in the world sooner?

I feel very strongly that people are inextricably linked to land and language and that to take either away severs an ancient connection. I believe this broken connection leads to a hollowing of the soul.

That sounds like I wandered the streets like a revenant, which is a bit extreme. But prior to learning Gaelic, discovering more about my home environment and engaging with my native culture, which is deeply connected to the seasons, I certainly felt adrift. I felt anxious and sometimes struggled to see the point or beauty in life. I felt I had to work extra hard to find meaning in life.

Every Gaelic word I learn is a small joy. Sometimes I feel I am uncovering a language that was lost to me, rather than learning a new one.

I include lots of Scots and Gaelic in my stories because it feels natural to me. But for a long time, the things that felt natural weren’t in step with the social values of my peers. A slow approach, living seasonally, and embracing your native tongue and old traditions, weren’t the marks of a modern, progressive individual.

As a fantasy author, I’m allowed to make things up, but I do agree with the writer’s adage ‘write what you know’. A language isn’t simply a means of communication but how we perceive the world around us, therefore when I root my stories in a Scottish perspective, I find that my characters and settings come to life. It’s fantasy, yes, but rooted in childhood memories and everyday experiences (or an even older ancestral memory).

I hope that’s given you a wee insight into the history and unique richness of Scotland’s languages. Below are some of my favourite Scots and Gaelic words that I like to sneak into my fantasy novels!

Scots Words

These are some of my favourite Scots words and idioms that either crop up in my books or I’m looking for the opportunity to use! I feel such a fondness for these phrases having grown up with many of them.

Baffies – slippers

Black as the Earl of Hell’s waistcoat – usually used to describe a very dark night. I love the blend of humour and horror, which is often needed when describing the Scottish climate

Brenge – to lunge recklessly

Clamjamfry – a cacophonous rabble. I used it as a collective noun for drunk poets in ‘The Muse’ (Fireside Fairy Tales)

Clipe – a grass or tell-tale. Clipes are particularly frowned upon in Scottish classrooms, at least where I grew up.

Ettling – being over-eager or impatient. In The Duke With Opals For Eyes (read for free here), Mary ‘ettles’ for a second story before Granny’s done telling the first. I believe ‘ettle’ comes from the Travellers.

Eldritch – uncanny or supernatural. It literally means ‘elf kingdom’. I’m sure I’ve used this word more than once in Fireside Magic!

Flyting – a contest between two poets in the form of verse. It boils down to who can insult the other in the most poetic fashion! The garrulous poets in ‘The Muse’ recall a time when flytings between famous poets were common in the Scottish literary scene

Fleg – a fright or scare.

Flit – move i.e. move house. When I hear folk say they’re “flitting hoose” it always conjures a lovely image in my mind of bats finding a new roost!

Flochter – the beating of wings. A beautiful old Scots word, I wish I could remember where I heard it. I didn’t grow up with it, so I must have read it somewhere!

Howff – a meeting place or haunt

Loup – jump. I think this word is evocative when describing a wild animal loping across a field or your heart ‘louping’ in your chest if you’re scared

Oxter – armpit. Need I say more? It’s such a great word!

Peerie – small. This is a Shetlandic word, therefore not one I grew up with, but I use it a lot in my tales!

Plester – if you’re ‘plestering’ you’re doing something in a messy or untidy fashion, and taking your time doing it! I’m at my most plester-prone 5 minutes before having to leave the house for an appointment

Shoogle – shake gently. The mother in ‘Seal Baby’ (Fireside Fairy Tales) shoogles the baby to sleep, for example. I also love the phrase “Your coat is on a shoogly peg”, which is often said to someone as a last warning. I think it originally applied to a worker who was on their last chance before getting the sack!

Sleekit – sly or underhanded. I quite enjoy writing ‘sleekit’, weasly characters. The first that springs to mind is Alice, the noblewoman in “A Traveller’s Curse” (Fireside Fairy Tales), who uses underhanded tactics to get maintain her position as a storyteller.

Scottish Gaelic Words

The main way Gaelic influences my fantasy stories is through its inseparable link to the land. While individual words don’t show up as much as Scots words, Gaelic’s specific and varied stock of nature words provides me with endless symbolism and atmosphere.

Did you know that Gaelic has over one hundred words for hill or mountain?

Beinn (‘ben’) is the most common word for a big hill. A hill can be mòr (big), beag (small), àrd (tall), riabach (speckled) or maol (bald). Coire (corrie) and bealach, meaning pass, are also common hill features. If you’ve enjoyed hillwalking in Scotland you might have noticed the difference between a  Meall  (a rounded, lumpy hill) and sgùrr (a high, pointed peak). Another common hill words is càrn (commonly seen as càirn), meaning a heap of stones and creag.

 I find that the Gaelic colour palette perfectly expresses the mutable shades present in our natural world. Gaelic colours always inspire me to dig deeper into my settings! Ruadh is the russetty shade of autumnal bracken or a fox’s pelt, while dearg ranges from arterial red to heather. Glas denotes a greyish-green colour while gorm – blue - is interchangeable with green. Odhar is a dun or sallow colour and there is a clutch of words for white (bàn, fionn or geal). These beautiful shades are also handy when thinking about characters eye or hair colours.

Then there’s the poetic animal names. An cailleach-oidche, for owl, translates to ‘the old woman of the night’. This phrase appears often in “The Coming of Brìde”, a short novel found in Fireside Magic, where owls are associated with The Cailleach, Scotland’s winter hag.

Another evocative translation is found in capercaille, a giant woodland grouse. The name in Gaelic literally means ‘the horse of the woods’. This might be because of the noise they make when they’re ‘on the lek’, the performance males undergo each year to attract females.

For a deep-dive into Scottish Gaelic’s special connection with the land I highly recommend John Murray’s Reading the Gaelic Landscape.

Gaelic Fairy Words

Now, I can’t end this blog post without mentioning the fairies, can I?

Fairies are known in Scotland as ‘the guid folk’ but it’s well-known that Scottish fairies aren’t cute or whimsical. At best mischievous, at worst murderous, calling them ‘the good folk’ seems like a sensible euphemism in order to not incur their wrath.

As a fairy in my novel The Children of the Mist cautions, “If guid neighbour you call me, then guid neighbour I will be.”

The word for fairy in Gaelic is sìth, pronounced ‘shee’. You’ve probably heard of the Scottish word ‘seelie’ meaning good, to describe benevolent fairies. ‘Unseelie’ fairies are dangerous and best avoided. According to the old beliefs the sìth were a supernatural race of ancient beings that dwelt beneath the Scottish hills.

You can find traces of this belief all over Scotland. I’ve already mentioned Glen Shee, near where I live, but there’s also Schiehallion, one of Scotland’s most famous mountains. Its name translates to ‘The Fairy Hill of the Caledonians’. There’s rumoured to be a cave network deep within the hill, and wanderers who stumble into its eldritch vaults are never seen again. This lore about Schiehallion inspired the whimsical ‘Fairy Words’, which appears in Fireside Fairy Tales. And I’m also intrigued by Sìdhean Sluaigh (fairy hill of the host) in Argyll.

If, like me, you’re ever inspired to seek out ‘the guid folk’, my blog post 5 Scottish Fairies And Where To Find Them might interest you!

I hope you enjoyed this foray into Scots and Scottish Gaelic. As a writer and nature lover I feel very lucky to have found several lifetime’s worth of inspiration in my country’s languages 🤍.