Postgraduate Course: History of Scots MSc (LASC11181)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The course examines the emergence, structure and status of Scots from its earliest beginnings to c.1900. |
| Course description |
The course will study the emergence, structure and status of Scots from its earliest beginnings to c.1900. For each major stage in the language's development, the course will: (i) survey the socio-historical context; (ii) identify the major structural changes; (iii) consider theories of linguistic change. Students will additionally learn to read and analyse selected Older and early Modern Scots texts and to interpret Scottish place-names and other commonly-used Scottish terms. As the course progresses, there will be opportunity for some small-group discussions and interactive analyses of Older Scots texts.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2024/25, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 33,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
163 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Mid-term assignment (short-answer) - 0%«br /»
An end-of-course essay, chosen from a list provided by the lecturer, to assess engagement with the literature on the status of Older Scots: 3,000 words, 100% |
| Feedback |
Ongoing feedback to students during lectures and seminars;
Advice on assessed coursework throughout the course;
Detailed marker comments on assessed coursework;
A Q&A session on essay topics;
The first assignment is formative for PG students, and will be followed by a feedback session which will feed forward to the assessed coursework; the formative assessment will entail text data analysis, which will then be a required element for the final essay. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Identify linguistic features in Older Scots texts
- Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the effects of socio-political history on the development of Scots
- Engage in advanced critical evaluation and discussion concerning the status of Older Scots
- Use Older Scots data as evidence in linguistic argumentation and analysis
- Interpret Scottish place-names and other commonly-used Scottish terms
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Reading List
Görlach, M. 2002. A Textual History of Scots. Heidelberg: C. Winter.
Jones, C. (ed.) 1997. The Edinburgh History of the Scots Language. Edinburgh: EdinburghUniversity Press.
Macafee, C. & A.J. Aitken. 2002. A History of Scots to 1700. [Online at: www.dsl.ac.uk/about-scots/history-of-scots/]
McColl Millar, R. 2020. A Sociolinguistic History of Scotland. Edinburgh: EUP.
McColl Millar, R. 2023. A History of the Scots Language. Oxford: OUP.
Smith, J. 2012. Older Scots: A Linguistic Reader. Scottish Text Society: Edinburgh |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Scots,linguistics,history,language,medieval |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Lisa Gotthard
Tel:
Email: l.gotthard@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Sasha Wood
Tel:
Email: swood310@ed.ac.uk |
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