Florence Marian McNeill, (26 March 1885 – 22 February 1973) was a Scottish folklorist,

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

, editor,

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

and

political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...

. She is best known for writing ''The Silver Bough'' (not to be confused with '' The Golden Bough''), a four-volume study of Scottish folklore; also ''The Scots Kitchen'' and ''Scots Cellar: Its Traditions and Lore with Old-time Recipes''.

Biography

McNeill was born in Holm, Orkney on 26 March 1885 to Jessie Janet Dewar and the Reverend Daniel McNeill, a minister of the Free Kirk in Orkney. Dewar was originally from

Fochabers Fochabers (; gd, Fachabair or Fothabair) is a village in the Parish of Bellie, in Moray, Scotland, east of the cathedral city of Elgin and located on the east bank of the River Spey. 1,728 people live in the village, which enjoys a rich musi ...

, and Rev. McNeill was from

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

, and was minister of Holm for nearly fifty years. Marian was the eighth of twelve children, and was nicknamed "Floss" by her family and friends. Her sister Mary Lauchline McNeill became a doctor, and a

and served in the World War One Scottish Women's Hospital. She was educated at Kirkwall Burgh School, where she was friends with poet

Edwin Muir Edwin Muir CBE (15 May 1887 – 3 January 1959) was a Scottish poet, novelist and translator. Born on a farm in Deerness, a parish of Orkney, Scotland, he is remembered for his deeply felt and vivid poetry written in plain language and w ...

. In 1912 she graduated from the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

with an MA. For the next year, she taught English in France and Germany. She returned to the UK in 1913 and worked initially as an organiser for the Scottish Federation of Women's Suffrage Societies, and later as secretary for the Association for Moral and Social Hygiene in London where she remained until 1917. At the end of the

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, she lived in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

for a while. After that, she moved back to Edinburgh and started work as a researcher for the

Scottish National Dictionary The ''Scottish National Dictionary'' (''SND'') was published by the Scottish National Dictionary Association (SNDA) from 1931 to 1976 and documents the Modern (Lowland) Scots language. The original editor, William Grant, was the driving force b ...

, and by 1929 she had become principal assistant on the project. In the years between the First and Second World Wars she became involved in the revival of Scottish literature and culture known as the

Scottish Renaissance The Scottish Renaissance ( gd, Ath-bheòthachadh na h-Alba; sco, Scots Renaissance) was a mainly literary movement of the early to mid-20th century that can be seen as the Scottish version of modernism. It is sometimes referred to as the Scot ...

. She is well known as the author of ''The Scots Kitchen'', published in 1929. This encyclopaedic work covers the essentials and diversity of Scotland's culinary heritage, including many historical and literary references. Recipes include Forfar bridies,

Cock-a-leekie soup Cock-a-leekie soup is a Scottish soup dish consisting of leeks and peppered chicken stock, often thickened with rice, or sometimes barley. The original recipe added prunes during cooking, and traditionalists still garnish with a julienne of p ...

and porridge. She was one of the founder members of the Scottish National Party, along with her brother Duncan MacNeill, and later became its vice president. A smaller work, equally well researched is her ''Iona: A History of the Island''. Noting the "much detail" which characterised works on the subject already in existence in 1920, a "modest handbook" was nowhere to be found; a deficiency she set about rectifying. In 1932, she wrote her only novel, ''The Road Home''. From 1957 onwards she published a four volume study of Scottish National Festivals, ''The Silver Bough'', echoing Frazer's title '' The Golden Bough''. This treasury of Scottish folklore and folk belief covers both the principal national festivals as well as many local ones and was the result of a lifetime of research. In 2008

British Youth Music Theatre British Youth Music Theatre (BYMT), formerly Youth Music Theatre UK, is a UK-based national performing arts organisation founded in December 2003. BYMT provides music theatre training to young people aged 11–21 and a stepping stone to drama ...

adapted the work for a stage production at the

Aberdeen International Youth Festival Aberdeen International Youth Festival was a festival of performing arts and one of Scotland's major international cultural events, which ran from 1981 to 2017. Each year the festival brought over 1000 young people in performing arts companies ...

. Scottish composer Gerard McBurney collaborated with Scottish poet

Iain Finlay Macleod Iain Finlay Macleod (born 1973) is a Scottish writer from Adabrock, Ness, Isle of Lewis. He lives on the Isle of Skye. Macleod's first full-length play was called "Homers" and was produced by the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh in 2002, directed by P ...

, director Kath Burlinson and choreographer Struan Leslie on the adaptation. In 1962 McNeill was awarded an MBE for services to Scottish culture. She died in Edinburgh on 22 February 1973.

Bibliography

* McNeill, F. Marian (1957–1968). ''The Silver Bough: a Four Volume Study of the National and Local Festivals of Scotland'', Vol. 1–4. William MacLellan, Glasgow. Paperback edition, ** Volume I Scottish Folk-Lore and Folk-Belief ** Volume II A Calendar of Scottish National Festivals, Candlemas to Harvest Home ** Volume III A Calendar of Scottish National Festivals, Halloween to Yule ** Volume IV the Local Festivals of Scotland * ''Iona: A History of the Island''. Hardback Blackie & Son. 1st Edition 1920, 2nd Edition 1935, 3rd Edition 1946, Later updates * With F J Wakefield '' An Inquiry in Ten Towns in England and Wales into the Protection of Minor Girls'' (1916) * ''The Road Home'' (1932)

Cookery books

* (2004) * ''The Book of Breakfasts'' (1932) * ''Recommended Recipes'' (1948) * ''The Scots Cellar, Its Traditions and Lore'' (1956) * ''Recipes from Scotland'' (1946)

References

External links

F McNeill on About Orkney

Saltire society page
{{DEFAULTSORT:McNeill, F. Marian 1885 births 1973 deaths Scottish folklorists Scottish Renaissance People from Orkney Scottish novelists Edwardian era 19th-century Scottish people 20th-century British writers 20th-century British women writers 20th-century Scottish writers 20th-century Scottish women writers Women food writers Members of the Order of the British Empire Alumni of the University of Glasgow Scottish women activists Scottish activists Scottish suffragettes Scottish National Party politicians Scottish nationalists Women folklorists