17 November 2010, Starts: 17:00

Discovering Cape Breton Folklore: Humourous Nickname Usage

Talk by Dr Richard Mackinnon, Cape Breton University, Canada

Dornoch Room, Ross House, Dornoch

Part of UHI Centre for History Seminar Series. Please contact Iain MacInnes if you intend to attend, so that he has some idea of numbers.

Description:
Nicknames are a widespread feature of Cape Breton Island's contemporary oral tradition. In this paper I discuss Cape Breton nicknames in generaland then focus on some specific humorous names from the former industrial communities of Cape Breton Island. By examining how these names were generated I hope to demonstrate a sense of the function of these small but pithy items of tradition in contemporary Cape Breton folk culture.

NOTE: This talk will be delivered by videoconference live from Canada. The main point of meeting will be the usual place - Dornoch Room, Ross House, Dornoch, at 5pm - but if anyone
wishes to VC in to the session from another location they are free to do so, AS LONG as they inform Iain MacInnes in sufficient time to get the connection set up through the VC Master.