There has been quite a revival of interest in the Scots language,
also known as Lallans, in recent years.  For many years, Scots, like
Gaelic, was forbidden to be spoken in schools.  Speaking Scots was, and
is still, viewed by many as a mark of lower socio-economic standing.

	Some of the major Web sites related to the Scots language are:

1) Lowlands-L   


Scots Language [Lowlands-L]

   This Web site primarily offers information on how to sign up for
the Lowlands-L listserv dedicated to a number of languages originating
from the lowlands area of Europe -- Scots, English, Dutch, Flemish, etc.

2) Scuil Wab    


Scuil Wab

[Scottish National Dictionary Association]

   Web site of the Scottish National Dictionary Association.  Contains
a wealth of information on the Scots language.

3) Aiberdeen Univairsitie Scots Leid Quorum    


Aiberdeen Univairsitie Scots Leid Quorum

[Aberdeen University: re the Scots language]



   Web site of an organization at Aberdeen University dedicated to the
preservation and promotion of 
the Scots language.


	There are probably few people who speak strictly Scots today.
Most mix Scots words with English (and some of the words are identical
in the two languages anyway).  I've heard people speak Scots.  It's
so strange.  It sounds like English but then you realize that you 
cannot understand any of the content-bearing words.  I once boarded
a bus near the Royal Mile in Edinburgh.  A young man was in the middle
of a complicated story.  He talked non-stop for 20 minutes and, while
I clearly heard every word he said, I only understood pronouns,
conjuctions, and other relatively meaningless words.  At one point
he said, "The jeans were in the wash," and I decided he might be
relating a story about a tenant-landlord dispute.  As I neared my
stop, the young man's companion broke his silence.  "Well,"  he said,
"I guess he'll just have to contract it out then."  ??!!

Stephanie Steely