Scottish Traveller Tales: Lives Shaped Through Stories

The Travelling People of Scotland are the traditionally nomadic minority group known also by the derogatory term tinkers. Using fifteen years of field research, author Donald Braid takes readers into the special world of the Travelling People through words, stories, and songs.

Traveling along the high roads and byways of Scotland, they have established a distinct identity and mode of life for themselves that preserves centuries-old cultural beliefs. Oral storytelling is one of their outstanding cultural contributions and it is centrally important in their lives. For their skills as storytellers, as well as ballad singers, Travellers are internationally recognized as having one of the richest storytelling traditions of the world.

Duncan Williamson, one of their best-known storytellers, was fascinated by this art from an early age and dedicated himself to maintaining the wisdom of Traveller culture by learning as many stories as possible. While this book focuses on a number of in