Winner of the Best Scottish Heritage Media Archive award 2020 Blog

Best Scottish Heritage Media Archive Award 2020

Our Scottish heritage film archive has been awarded the Best Scottish Heritage Media Archive 2020. We have recorded and digitally archived more than 500 hours of unique Scottish heritage footage. The unique Scottish heritage film  captures aspects of life and work of a past Scotland from the late 1800s to the present day.

Diverse use of footage

This archive over 33 years has had success locally, nationally and internationally. Clips have been retailed to 13 countries worldwide. I have delivered academic papers at more than a dozen conferences discussing oor rich Scottish heritage.  I was the first academic to deliver formal university lectures in Doric and many of my academic papers were delivered world wide also in the Doric. Audiences loved that approach. So there is great scope for us all to be who we really are in real life situations.

The Scots language and the Doric dialect to the highest academic level

I have taken the Doric dialect from a position of ridicule to the highest academic acclaim with a unique PhD by public output which was done in the Doric dialect of Aberdeenshire. I remember that one of my supervisors told me that if I did not use academic terms then I would not get my PhD. I said I am not using academic terms and if for that reason I don’t get a PhD I did not care. It was to be my way or no way.

Pride in my ancestors

I can tell you that it was one of the easiest qualifications I ever got. So if you are a PhD student do not let anyone detract you from your initial vision of what higher education is for you. My use of Doric has developed from the pride I have in my ancestors. I try to develop that pride in who we are with my grandchildren. Eva and George  my grandchildren were singing Doric songs when they were 3 and 4 years old. So celebrating who we are is a constant every-day enjoyable activity.

Television programmes and educational resources

Material from the archive has featured in many television inputs. Clips are made available to all Scottish schools as validated educational resources. The archive is a source of scholarly input for researchers. Social and health care professionals also use my materials as reminiscence group inputs. Dementia and Alzheimer patients are stimulated by looking back to their past. This helps to relieve the stress for family carers for a little while. 

The Doric dialect

“ I am prood o my ancestors the ordinary folk o rural Aiberdeenshire n fit they hiv left for us. Ordinary folk aa ower the world hiv been mainly forgotten aboot. I wis determined t gee oor local ordinary folk a voice so that they could tell their ain fasinatin story. For far ower lang we, in this pairt o the country, hiv been telt that the y we spik is not proper.

Oor cultural identity

We hiv seen the Americans in the oil industry come and go n we hiv been mair inclined t try t spik like them. They are visitors t Scotland and I believe that fin in Rome de is the Romans de. We should nae choose t change oor ys t accommodate them. They came here for fit is here. Oor language his been here for thousins o years, n 240 thousin folk spik the Doric so foo wis it richt for us t tak on ither folks cultural identity.

The Doric gives us a sense o place 

Local businesses need t incourage  the ese o Doric fae the shop fleer t the board room. For far to lang we hiv kept oor ys ina naith the proverbial bushel lang eunuch. Turn it upside doon n shout about fae we are n foo good at things we are. If we dinna keep oor faith in oor identity then society gings like homogenised milk. The cream his disappeared n athing is the same.

Oor culture is worth fighting for

It his been a fare chauve getting t s point, n t tell the truth, society the day are still nae celebrating fit the ordinary folk hiv deen n still de for their communities. This award his sinilt oot my wurk n oor heritage s being o significance nae only for Scotland bit for a wider n diverse society. The 4 386 ordinary folk faa I hiv filmed, n ordinary folk aa y, deserves this recognition.

Acquisition International Magazine

The organisation that makes these awards is Acquisition International Magazine they have been awarding various categories of business awards for many years. Their motive is “to shine a spotlight on achievements of business entrepreneurs, managers, owners and company founders around the world”

Regards

Don Carney

Also kint as Dr Doric

www.scottishheritage.co.uk