Whaur yon broken brig hings owre;
Whaur yon water maks nae soun’;
Babylon blaws by in stour:
Gang doun wi’ a sang, gang doun…
—“Song”, by William Soutar (1898–1943)
published in William Soutar: Collected Works vol. 1 (Tippermuir Books, 2024)
https://tippermuirbooks.co.uk/product/william-soutar-collected-works-vols-1-2/
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #Scots #Scotslanguage #WilliamSoutar
Fear not the boasts which wound:
Fear not the threats which bind:
Always on broken ground
The seeds fall from the mind…
—William Soutar, “In the Time of Tyrants”
6/6
https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/time-tyrants/
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #20thcentury #WilliamSoutar #tyrants #tyrrany #authoritarian
“these books demand new critical attention and a reappraisal of this poet’s achievement”
—Prof Alan Riach, on the new Collected Works of William Soutar, published in March 2025 by Tippermuir Books
5/6
https://tippermuirbooks.co.uk/product/william-soutar-collected-works-vols-1-2/
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #20thcentury #WilliamSoutar #Scots #Scotslanguage
Whaur yon broken brig hings owre;
Whaur yon water maks nae soun’;
Babylon blaws by in stour:
Gang doun wi’ a sang, gang doun…
—William Soutar, “Song”
4/6
https://allpoetry.com/poem/12085915-Song-by-William-Soutar
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #20thcentury #WilliamSoutar #Scots #Scotslanguage
…Man sall tak wings;
And, as a bird, flee owre the wa’ o’ the world
To bigg his nest in the braid breast
O’ Cassiopeia
Or whaur the galaxy hings like a watergaw
Lippen on nae sin…
—William Soutar, “Apotheosis” – a poetical science-fiction extravaganza
3/6
https://asls.org.uk/publications/books/volumes/a-kist-o-skinlan-things/
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #20thcentury #WilliamSoutar #Scots #Scotslanguage #sciencefiction #scifi
“…some of his poems conjure a tranced, hyperaware state at once microscopic and cosmic. He could do lyrical, musical, poignant, folksy, humorous…”
—Ajay Close on how William Soutar was written out of history
2/6
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #20thcentury #WilliamSoutar #Scots #Scotslanguage
Nae man wha loves the lawland tongue
But warsles wi’ the thocht—
There are mair sangs that bide unsung
Nor a’ that hae been wrocht…
—“The Makar”, by William Soutar (1898–1943) – born #OTD, 28 April
A 🎂 🧵
1/6
https://asls.org.uk/publications/books/volumes/a-kist-o-skinlan-things/
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #20thcentury #WilliamSoutar #Scots #Scotslanguage
William Soutar Poetry Walk
27 April, Perth – free (booking essential)
Iain Mackintosh & Elliott Boyle of the Friends of William Soutar Society will lead a leisurely walk around Perth to discover William Soutar’s inspirations & celebrate the 127th anniversary of his birth.
The walk, which is suitable for wheelchair users, takes around two hours.
https://www.perthshireboxoffice.com/whats-on/william-soutar-poetry-walk
#Scottish #literature #poet #poetry #Perth #Scots #Scotslanguage #WilliamSoutar
Ayont the linn; ayont the linn,
Whaur gowdan wags the gorse,
A gowk gaed cryin’: “Come ye in:
I’ve fairins in my purse…”
—William Soutar, “The Gowk”
in Collected Published Poetry, @tippermuirbooks.bsky.social 2024
April Fool’s Day is Huntigowk Day in Scotland (“gowk” is a cuckoo &, by extension, a foolish person)
https://tippermuirbooks.co.uk/product/william-soutar-collected-works-vols-1-2/
#Scottish #literature #poem #poetry #20thcentury #Scots #Scotslanguage #WilliamSoutar
Perth’s Poet, William Soutar
23 Feb, Auchterarder – free
Paul S. Philippou, editor-in-chief of William Soutar: Collected Works, will showcase the lyric gift – in both Scots & English – of the Perth-born poet William Soutar, a major figure of the 20th-century Scottish literary renaissance
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/learn-about-perths-poet-william-soutar-tickets-1231766850809
#Scottish #literature #poetry #Scots #Scotslanguage #Perth #Perthshire #WilliamSoutar #20thCentury
Assoc for Scottish Literature
