Scottish ballads - Emily B. Lyle

Scotland's ballads represent one of the high-water marks of Scottish
literature and are famous as superb expressions of oral culture,
reflecting a world of magic, deep passion and history transformed into
legend.

This selection includes more than eighty of the finest
ballads, together with an introduction, notes and glosses. The versions
come from the last three centuries-from the time of Burns and Scott, who
were among the earliest collectors, up to the present day.

Although
the ballads are anonymous in a way, the singers themselves determine
the versions we have, by a process of selection, interpretation and
refashioning. Wherever possible, this edition includes the names of the
singers, many of whom were women.

An internationally recognised
ballad scholar, Emily Lyle is a research fellow at the School of
Scottish Studies in the University of Edinburgh, and is general editor
of The Grieg-Duncan Folk song Collection.