Taboo words and redheads outlawed at sea.
Track Information
Original Track ID
SA1958.188.4
Original Tape ID
Summary
Taboo words and redheads outlawed at sea.
Fishermen were formerly very superstitious, and had many taboo words not to be used at sea. Peter Manson's father went to the fishing at the Broch [Fraserburgh] as a young man, and any boy seeking a berth would be turned away if he had red hair, which was considered the height of bad luck.
Examples of taboo terms and the sea words used instead:
cat: scaavin or fittin,
the moon: da licht (still used sometimes),
knife: skean (something like the Highland pronunciation),
minister: da upstander,
kirk: benny hoose.
Yonsi (hen) was used anywhere, land or sea, as was rakki (dog).
Item Notes
Foula 'skean' corresponds to the General Scots word (from the Gaelic). Elsewhere in Shetland the form 'skunie' (with unexplained vowel) is usual. The terms 'yonsi' and 'rakki' are listed as sea-taboo terms in 'The Scottish National Dictionary'. Like many of these terms they are of Norn origin: Norn lingered longest in sea usage.
See:
'The Scottish National Dictionary' (available online [[http://www.dsl.ac.uk/dsl/]], accessed 19 January 2009)
Recording Location
County - Shetland
Parish - Walls and Sandness
Island - Foula
Item Location
County - Shetland
Parish - Walls and Sandness
Island - Foula
Language
English, Scots, Norn
Genre
Collection
Source Type
Reel to reel
Audio Quality
Fair