Friday, January 25, 2019

Tae the Bard

DEBORAH CROMBIE: On (or near) January 25th, people all over the world with the tiniest Scottish connection celebrate BURNS NIGHT, commemorating the birth in 1759 of Robert Burns, Scotland's most revered poet. He was a good-looking lad, our Rabbie, if Nasmyth's portrait, below, is accurate. (The ladies certainly thought so!)

Portrait by Alexander Nasmyth in the Scottish National Gallery
Born to poor farmers in this cottage in Alloway, Ayrshire, Burns was mostly self-educated, and by the age of twenty-one was thoroughly versed in English literature, including Shakespeare, as well as philosophers such as David Hume and Adam Smith.


Burns had written his first poems by the age of fifteen. His work celebrated love, lust, humor, tenderness, and the condition of the common man. But for all the critical success of his poems and songs, Burns never rose out of poverty, and died July 21st, 1796, at only thirty-seven years old, his health damaged by years of grueling manual labor.



While most familiar to many Americans as the author of Auld Lang Syne  and To a Mouse (the inspiration for the title of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men,) Burns produced an enormous volume of work in just twenty years. As well as poems in standard English, in Scots English, and in the Scottish language, he wrote and collected hundreds of Scottish folk songs. He was also a reformer, a supporter of the poor and downtrodden, and an admirer of George Washington and the American Revolution as well as the French revolution--at least before its bloody turn.

So how do we celebrate Rabbie Burns? 

The traditional Burns Supper begins with the Selkirk Grace, the prayer attributed to Burns:
Some Folk hae meat that canna eat,
And some can eat that want it;
But we hae meat, and we can eat,
So let the Lord be Thanket!

Then a starter is presented, usually a Scotch broth or Cock-a-Leekie soup.
After that, while a piper pipes, the haggis is brought to the table, where it is slashed open dramatically as someone recites Burns' Address to a Haggis:  
His knife see rustic Labour dicht, An' cut you up wi' ready slicht.
In case you're thinking the haggis is an animal and this is a horribly bloodthirsty performance, let me reassure you--at least partially. A haggis is a traditional Scottish savory pudding made from sheep's heart, liver, and lungs, minced with oatmeal, suet, salt, and spices, encased in the sheep's stomach, then boiled.


It's traditionally served with neeps and tatties--that is, turnips and potatoes.
After the meal, one of the guests makes a speech, known as The Immortal Memory, honoring the great man. Then a toast is made to the "lassies" to acknowledge Burns' fondness for the ladies, and sometimes a female guest will reply with a toast to the "laddies."

The best part of the evening, of course, is the liberal consumption of the best Scottish whisky!


Now, I am appalled to admit that, even having lived in Scotland in the deadest of Januaries, I never attended a Burns Supper, something I profoundly regret.

I did, however, try haggis. 

Once.

I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it, either. Contrary to our perception of bland British food, haggis is actually quite spicy. (Now I have to look up what spices...) As is necessary to make it palatable, I suspect...

Alas, I will be spending this Burns Night feasting on Chinese takeaway... But maybe I'll break out my best Scottish whisky and toast Rabbie Burns with a wee dram!

REDS and readers, who's celebrated Burns Night, or tried a haggis? And who has a trace of Scots (or Burns) running in their veins? (Robert Burns fathered over a dozen children and his recorded family tree has over 900 descendants.) 

And REDS alert--the winner of Clea Simon's A Spell of Murder is Kathy Reel!



52 comments:

  1. I can’t claim any trace of Scottish ancestry, I’ve never celebrated Burns Night, and I’ve never tried haggis. However, I have enjoyed reading Robert Burns’s poems . . . .

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  2. I lived in Scotland for two years and went to two Burns dinners. One was a very small village one that was not formal at all. The other was much more formal. Quite a production. And they sat us Americans together where we learned, the hard way, that you do not smoke until the Queen was toasted. We were embarrassed terribly but we didn’t know the rules. And this was in the 80s so yes we smoked. Anywhere. But the haggis bagpipes in was grand!

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  3. I have a great deal of Scott in me (including the infamous black Mary Maxwell, who fought off an entire English assault on her castle many centuries ago) and I had heard of haggis but I've never eaten it. Or read a Burns poem, for that matter. Must remedy that ASAP! Thank you for the explanation of what haggis is. It actually sounds quite tasty.

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  4. Although I've known about Burns Nights and what haggis was made of I've never partaken of either. As for whether or not I have any Scots blood it might be possible but it would be going way further back that I have discovered.

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  5. What a pity, Debs, that you didn't get to experience a Burns Night dinner! I hope someday you can check that card.

    I've not, either, but we were invited to a Burns Night party a few years ago. I'd never heard of it, and had no idea what to expect. We got there late (my husband resists being among the first to arrive), so may have missed toasts and whatnot. However, someone had made delicious little appetizers with haggis in them. They were in a pyramid shape, with three layers: haggis, mashed potato, and mashed turnip. The woman who made them was pleased with how they turned out (probably the most attractive version of haggis there ever was), but she said they were a lot of work.

    I don't think I have a cell of Scots in me, more's the pity.

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    1. When I was looking for a photo of haggis last night, I saw some done that way. Much less intimidating than the whole beastie!

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  6. I have been so curious about this for years! I cannot imagine… It must be hilarious, because the people I know who have been to them are quite devoted. Haggis? No... Hard no. But I loved this description of everything, Debs!

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  7. I have not tried haggis. I have no desire too, either.

    As an English major in college, Burns loomed big in my poetry class and the class on Romance authors (I think it's the Romantic period, my memory is foggy).

    I think Chinese and Scottish whiskey is the ticket, Debs. :)

    Mary/Liz

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    1. Burns influenced all the Romantics, including Wordsworthand Tennyson. And Walter Scott gushed over him quite sweetly.

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    2. Sorry about that. On my phone this morning and it has a mind of own...

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    3. That's right. We studied Burns in my Romance authors class because of the influence. That's why I've got them together.

      Mary/Liz

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  8. Amazing, Robbie Burns lived for such a short time and has had such an outsized legacy. I have tried haggis, in fact in a restaurant in Scotland that looked a lot like that little house you posted, Debs. It was... fine. I like blood pudding and head cheese and some kinds of tripe, so the ingredients don't put me off. I seem to remember it tasting very oat-y.

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  9. One of my favorite Robbie Burns poems To A Louse: On Seeing One On A Lady's Bonnet, At Church -- its lasts stanza begins: "O wad some Power the giftie gie us
    To see oursels as ithers see us!"

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    1. Hallie One of my favorite quotes. Words to live by!

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  10. My mother was a McDonald and proud of it. One of my cousins married a man who was also of Scottish descent and their rehearsal dinner was like a Burns dinner, with pipes and haggis but the toasts were to the bride and groom with plenty of whiskey for all. We all wore our tartans to the wedding where the male members of the wedding party were in kilts and the bride wore a gown of a silk McDonald tartan skirt with the lace top from her late mother's wedding gown. There were pipers for the recessional. It was glorious.

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  11. McKinlay here...ye dinnae git more Scottish than that, lassie. ;-) We even have our own tartan! That being said, I’ve never attended a Burns dinner or tried haggis - now it’s on my bucket list! Great post, Debs! I loved it!

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    1. Ah, The Scots! I'm a Lamont on my side and a McPherson by marriage! Both my great-grandfathers were Scots newly arrived in America. I've mentioned in previous post that I'm moved to tears by the bagpipes. My son frequently wears both his dress kilt and his working kilt. As to haggis... never been served it, which is fortunate, because I'm with Hank, a hard no.

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    2. Opps, didn't mean that to publish as a "reply to Jenn". Early morning here and just a few sips into the first coffee of the day.

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    3. It's not that bad, Lyda, really. And I do love the pipes, too. They give me chills.

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    4. The Maxwell tartan is a very handsome red and green one. Both my sons have Maxwell neckties

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  12. I said yesterday to my half Scots daughter, tomorrow is Robert Burns birthday, and she said, 'Who's Robert Burns?" Didnae tell her faither!

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  13. Buchanan is a Scots name and I own (and wear) several scarves and a shirt in Buchanan tartan, even though it not the most attractive of the lot. I've not tried haggis but I have celebrated Burns Night. Next time across the pond we plan to spend time in Scotland as well as Ireland, home of my maternal ancestors.

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    1. The Crombies (ex husband's family) are an offshoot of Macdonalds, if I remember correctly. But no Crombie tartan, alas. There is a little village called Crombie near Edinburgh.

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  14. Robert Burns, yes! Haggis, no. And part of my Irish ancestors originally came from Scotland--love the pipes (and the kilts!). Cheers!

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  15. I’ve tried haggis once at a Scottish dinner in Edinburgh. I wasn’t crazy about it.

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  16. We need Catriona here to give us the lowdown on haggis and burns bight!

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  17. When visiting friends of a dear friend in England, they were celebrating Scottish Independence Day (I think) and served haggis. They wouldn't tell me what it was or let me see it until I tried some, (and the friend's wife kept telling me that she'd be glad to make me something else!) -- but it really wasn't that bad -- very oatmeal-y ~

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  18. Although I will eat almost anything put in front of me, I have never had a desire to try haggis! As an English major, I studied Robert Burns, but I had no idea about Burns Nights. Sounds like fun! (Debs, your daughter really never heard of him?!)

    Beginning in the fall and up until about a month ago I noticed a kilt-wearing man walking a dog down the street from me. He may be new in the neighborhood, or maybe recently discovered he has Scots heritage? Anyway, I haven’t noticed him lately but maybe he stopped wearing the kilt when it got really cold out? I also fantasize that maybe he’s a college professor with a specialty in Robert Burns!

    And not a drop of Scots blood in me!

    DebRo

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  19. While visiting Scotland in 2008, I decided to try whisky and haggis. So in an Inverness pub I tasted both but the haggis was in a stuffed chicken breast. It was OK because surrounded with other tastes.
    Your post is very interesting Deborah. I knew that Robert Burns was a Scottish poet but being from a French Canadian upbringing, I've never read his work or about him.

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  20. My mother's family were McEacherons, and we can trace our ancestry back to Archibald McEacheron and his brother Donald, who came to America in 1720 as part of a settlement led by a Captain Alistair Campbell. (McEacheron, as you might imagine, has been spelled in a LOT of different ways in this country, but if you have some variation of it, we're related!) My grandmother, Mary McEacheron, married a man of German descent, but up till then, it was ALL Scots and Scots-Irish who settled in the same part of upstate New York.

    Ross and I honeymooned in the Highlands, and we did indeed eat haggis, at an amazing 4-star restaurant in a converted crofters cottage on the Isle of Skye. It was very rich and spicy - different from other things I'd eaten, but something I could definitely have gotten used to. The blend of organ meats and filler is just another kind of sausage, really.

    Despite always wanting to, I've never attended a Burns Night. If someone wants to invite me, please do!

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    1. Julia, maybe we should have a cross-country Burns Night party next year! I'll bet you can order haggis on the internet. And you're right, it is just a fat sausage.

      I would love to go back to Skye--haven't been there since I lived in Scotland. It's just stunning.

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  21. For fans of Outlander, here's Scottish star Sam Heughan reading Burns in these little animations of famous Burns' poems. https://www.scotland.org/features/sam-heughan-brings-burns-poetry-to-life

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  22. Love the starz series of the Outlander! Yes, I have tried haggis and did not like it. Yes, I am 1/4 Scottish. My grandmother was born in Scotland.

    Wondering how we know that Robert Burns has 900 descendants? Is there a family tree? I wonder if Burke's peerage would have his family tree even though Burns was born into poverty. I am amazed that he had time to be self educated when I recall that children were already working in factories. Perhaps it is different in Scotland? I was thinking of England.

    Diana

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    1. this was my third attempt at writing a comment. this is much shorter than the two comments that I tried here!

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    2. So sorry, Diana! No idea why Blogger is misbehaving for you.

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    3. Diana, the Burns genealogy is quite complicated by the commonness of the surname, and the fact that so many of his children were illegitimate. Here's an interesting piece from The Scotsman. https://www.scotsman.com/news/could-you-be-related-to-robert-burns-1-4343676

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    4. Deborah, thanks! I think the Internet connection is acting up!

      Diana

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  23. When we were in Scotland my husband ordered a fried haggis ball for an appetizer. It was about the size of a baseball and I don't think it was the traditional haggis. I tried a taste and it was good. I'm not much of a fan of British sausages, but then I'm not that wild about ours either! My paternal grandmother was a Huston so I definitely have Scots in my ancestry. I loved Scotland when we were there. You know how you're automatically comfortable in some places you visit? I felt that there and in Ireland. Now my mother's families were Rawlings and Hamptons; I know they were in England but I've never traced them to see where else they lived. Mom swore her Rawlings grandfather spoke with a trace of a burr. I love the cadence of Rabbie Burns' poems but cannot understand them to save my life. I'd go to a Burns dinner if invited. There's always the whisky!

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  24. I attended high school in Scotland in the 70s, where we were taught all the Scottish country dances. In my final year we did have a Burns Supper, which was excellent. We had some talented kids who did the readings. In fact one of them went on to be President of the Burns Society in London! We didn't have whisky, of course, for that one but I did attend a couple of others at college (also in Scotland) where we learned that whisky indeed helps the haggis go down!

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  25. Clan Elliott here. I have never been to Scotland unfortunately. Don't think I could "stomach" haggis. I am waiting patiently for Gemma and Duncan.

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  26. I've not celebrated Burns Night or had haggis, which I would try, but I'm not very optimistic! Scotland is on my "must visit" list, and in the meantime, there is a wonderful photographer on Instagram who posts the most gorgeous photos of Scotland (and Iceland). Check out @jack_anstey if you need a fix!

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    1. Done, Ingrid. That's all I need is more pretty pictures to look at on Instagram...

      But you must definitely put Scotland on your bucket list!

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    2. Ingrid, I'm headed to that Instagram account now! Thanks!

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  27. I had haggis and Scotch whiskey when I was in Scotland. Liked the haggis better than the scotch!

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    1. I think appreciation of good single malt whisky might be a learned thing. When I was a child my parents drank inexpensive blended scotch and I disliked even the smell of it. But when I started researching Now May You Weep (the book set in Speyside) I stayed at a lovely B&B where the owners introduced me to a lot of different whiskies. Then I toured distilleries, too. I did learn to enjoy many different varieties but I'm a real lightweight when it comes to the amount imbibed!

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  28. So sorry I've been out all day, but I knew the post today was about Rabbie Burns, so I had to read it when I finally got sit down tonight. I have a fondness for Burns because 1) he's Scottish 2) he seems such a romantic, and 3) oh, yes, because I like his poetry. I don't know that I could try the haggis, although I'd like to think that if I finally get to Scotland one of these days, I can work up the courage to take a bite. Thanks for a great post, Debs. Oh, and I'm thrilled to have won Clea Simon's A Spell of Murder! Who do I send my address to?

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  29. Great post! I do have some Scottish blood, but I think I'll celebrate Burns Night by reading some of his poetry and drinking some whisky-- and just skip the haggis!

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