Scots Language Awards 2023: Angela Gilmour

Weel duin tae Angela Gilmour wha hae bin nominatit in Scots Speaker o the Year in the Scots Language Awards. Vote now!

The Scots Language Awards are in the Johstone Toon Ha, Johnstone on 16th September at 7pm. Tickets fir the ceremony are available tae buy here: https://handsup.link/SLA-BuyTickets.

We askit Angela Gilmour o Angela Gilmour thae speirins.

Tell us aboot yersel or yer ootfit.
I am the managing director of LIFT D&G, a not-for-profit community group in Dumfries and Galloway. We started in 2016 to challenge the preconceived views held about the community, after the Index of Multiple Deprivation identified our area as being one of the most deprived in Scotland.

We are committed to creating positive change within Lochside and North West Dumfries, and aim to achieve sustainable regeneration, and address a range of social, cultural, and economic issues. We believe that postcode does not define a person, and that everyone has the right to succeed and thrive no matter what.

Whit wis it got ye involvit wi the Scots leid?
When I started the community group, I started meeting people who were involved with funding, local politics and the council. I felt like I came across as "common" or unintelligent, and approached my board to provide me with training on how to speak "properly." My board ensured me that the way I spoke was true and authentic to me and the area I live in, and to speak differently would be an injustice to myself and the people I aim to support in my work. It is for this reason I proudly speak the way I was brought up to speak – in Scots.

Why dae ye feel it is important tae use Scots in everyday life?
When I spoke to my board about getting some training to speak "proper", one of my trustees who is knowledgable about Scots language told me that the removal of Scots language in Scotland was down to a change in education, and it has taken away a massive part of our culture. As a child I was told to talk "proper" at school, but I was only speaking the way my parents did, and their parents before then. It is for this reason I continue to speak Scots everyday – to stay connected to my own upbringing, but also to keep the tradition and language alive.

Dae ye hae a favourite Scots phrase or saying?
Whit's fur ye'll no go by ye

Is there a Scots speaker who inspires you?
Susi Briggs is a local Scots speaker who inspire me. Susi grew up in the same neighbourhood as me, we went to school together, and she speaks just like me. Susi is proudly and confidently a Scots speaker, and she is a real inspiration to the toon and to those who are learning Scots and/or trying to keep it alive.

Do you hear Scots spoken regularly in your local area? Have you noticed any changes over time?
In my neighbourhood, everyone speaks Scots. Everyone speaks the way that I do, because we are Scottish!

Ony particlar career heighlichts
Building a successful community organisation for a place that was never supposed to thrive, and the awards we've won in our time.

Wha’s yer plans fir the days aheid?
Tae continue daeing what am daeing and keeping Lochside on the map.

The Scots Language Awards are in the Johnstone Toon Ha, Johnstone on 16th September at 7pm. Tickets are available to buy here: https://handsup.link/SLA-BuyTickets There wull be some grand entertainmint oan the nicht tae, includin a recital fae Renfrewshire’s poet laureate Shaun Moore,wha wis appointit as the region’s Tannahill Makar last year. talks fae weel regairdit Scots scrievers Cat Cochrane an Shane Strachan, alang wi musical performances fae celebratit multi-instumentalist brithers Euan and Lewis McLaughlin, an sangster Iona Fyfe.

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