Joining me in the backroom today is the poet Christie Williamson, reading from his new collection. He's from Yell in Shetland, though now living in Glasgow. He writes both in English and in the Shetlandian dialect which another Shetland writer, Christine De Luca describes as
"Old Scots (which is related to Middle English) with a strong Norse influence. It's a waageng (aftertaste) of Norn, an extinct North Germanic language spoken in Shetland until the 18th century. It is arguably the most distinctive variant of Scots, reflecting the islands' history. Shetland and Orkney were part of the Danish-Norwegian kingdom until 1469, when they were pawned by the Danish king to the Scottish crown as part of a marriage settlement."
There is more information about Christie here:
https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poet/christie-williamson/
His latest book, launched virtually just the other day, is called Doors tae Naewye, a mix of English and Shetlandic poems, and can be bought from the Luath website. https://www.luath.co.uk/productsd/doors-tae-naewye.
Tomorrow- the ideal author, book and writing prompt for our times!
very nice poem - summerpeet shayari
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