James John (J.J.) Haldane Burgess (28 May 1862 – 16 January 1927) was a Shetland historian, poet, novelist, violinist, linguist and
socialist
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...
, a noted figure in
Shetland's cultural history. His published works include ''Rasmie's Büddie, Some Shetland Folk, Tang, The Treasure of Don Andreas, Rasmie's Kit, Rasmie's Smaa Murr'', and ''The Viking Path'', the latter being translated into German. He was one of the Shetlanders who gave assistance to
Jakob Jakobsen, in his researches into the
Norn language
Norn is an extinct North Germanic language that was spoken in the Northern Isles ( Orkney and Shetland) off the north coast of mainland Scotland and in Caithness in the far north of the Scottish mainland. After Orkney and Shetland were pledged ...
in Shetland.
Early life
Burgess was born on 28 May 1862. He was a son of
Lerwick, whose grandfather had left
Dunrossness
Dunrossness, (Old Norse: ''Dynrastarnes'' meaning "headland of the loud tide-race", referring to the noise of Sumburgh Roost) is the southernmost parish of Shetland, Scotland. Historically the name Dunrossness has usually referred to the area o ...
as a soldier during the
Napoleonic period
The Napoleonic era is a period in the history of France and Europe. It is generally classified as including the fourth and final stage of the French Revolution, the first being the National Assembly, the second being the Legislative ...
and lived in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
for a time before settling in 'da toon' as a shopkeeper.
Haldane Burgess won first place in the
Glasgow Bursary Competition. He spent four years as a teacher in
Bressay
Bressay ( sco, Bressa) is a populated island in the Shetland archipelago of Scotland.
Geography and geology
Bressay lies due south of Whalsay, west of the Isle of Noss, and north of Mousa. With an area of , it is the fifth-largest island in She ...
in order to pay for his university education. He studied
divinity
Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.[divine< ...](_blank)
at the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
, but found himself in disagreement with certain doctrines. He lost his sight in his last year of study,
took his final exams orally and returned to Lerwick. Later his promotion of socialist ideas made him a popular and radical figure. He was a major supporter of the development of the Shetland Festival
Up Helly Aa
Up Helly Aa ( ; literally "Up Holy .html" ;"title="ay/nowiki>">ay/nowiki> All") is a type of fire festival held annually from January to March in various communities in Shetland, Scotland, to mark the end of the Yule season. Each festival inv ...
. His 1894 book ''The Viking Path...'' was a major influence in creating the Viking theme of the Up Helly Aa festival. Burgess also wrote the Up Helly Aa Song (initially sung to the tune of '
John Brown's body
"John Brown's Body" (originally known as "John Brown's Song") is a United States marching song about the abolitionist John Brown. The song was popular in the Union during the American Civil War. The tune arose out of the folk hymn tradition o ...
') which is sung during the burning of the Viking longship and in village halls and schools in Shetland.
Writings
He was a linguist and a champion of
Esperanto.
[ He developed a lifelong interest in Norse culture and taught himself ]Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
, later contributing articles to journals in Norway. In his lifetime he was best known for a novel entitled ''The Viking Path – A Tale of The White Christ'' (1894), set in Shetland and Norway at the coming of Christianity. The best-known of his work now is probably his verse in dialect, as published in ''Rasmie's Büddie: poems in the Shetlandic'' (1891), which was republished in 1913, and later in 1979 with illustrations by Frank Walterson. The poem 'Scranna' is one of the acknowledged classics of Shetland literature.
Laurence I. Graham, in his essay "Shetland Literature and the idea of community" in ''Shetland’s Northern Links: Language and History'' (1996), writes that his novel ''Tang'' "... was written in the closing years of the last century. It tells the story of a young girl, Inga, and her divided love for two men: one, her devoted admirer, a steady, hard working fisherman, and the other, a newly arrived minister, young, idealistic, unsure of himself and very susceptible to feminine charm and persuasion. It also presents a picture of a small community of crofter-fishermen, their women-folk, the merchant, the teacher, the minister and the laird. Burgess brings out the darker side of this community, the hypocrisy and occasional dishonesty, the servility of some crofters towards the gentry, the malicious gossip, the petty jealousies and spitefulness within the congregation and the damage done by itinerant hot-gospellers and their infernal, illegitimate-producing revival meetings' as Hakki, the agnostic schoolmaster, calls them. The novel certainly gives an unflattering picture of what passed for religious life at this period ... The arguments between Hakki, the outspoken agnostic, and the minister and laird are among the highlights of the book and it is obvious where the author's sympathies lie. It is certainly an unusual novel for its time when the Scottish Kailyard school
The Kailyard school (1880–1914) is a proposed literary movement of Scottish fiction dating from the last decades of the 19th century.
Origin and etymology
It was first given the name in an article published April 1895 in the ''New Review'' by ...
of writing was still at its height ..."
Personal
A street in Lerwick, Haldane Burgess Crescent, is named after him. His younger brother William A. S. Burgess was also an author.
Sources
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burgess, Haldane
1862 births
1927 deaths
People from Lerwick
Shetland music
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Scottish historical novelists
Scottish linguists
Scottish poets
Scottish socialists
Cultural historians
19th-century Scottish historians
Scottish violinists
British male violinists
Scottish Esperantists
Scottish novelists