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Clourin

Dialect
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

“Clourin’” is a Scots Dialect word meaning striking, banging, or knocking loudly; in the poem, it describes children hitting doors with kale stalks during Hallowe’en festivities.

Detailed Definition
“Clourin’” is the present participle of the Scots verb “clour,” meaning to hit, knock, beat, or strike with force. It can refer to a physical blow or to making a loud knocking sound. In Violet Jacob’s poem, the word evokes the noisy, playful energy of children celebrating Hallowe’en by battering doors with “runts o’ kail,” or stalks of kale.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Violet Jacob’s Hallowe’en, the speaker describes traditional Scottish Hallowe’en mischief: “There’s bairns wi’ guizards at their tail Clourin’ the doors wi’ runts o’ kail,” Here, “clourin’” means banging or striking the doors. The children, followed by “guizards” (people in costume or disguise), use kale stalks to make a noisy disturbance as part of the holiday revelry.
Additional Notes
“Clour” is a Scots Dialect term and may also mean to give someone a blow or to hit something sharply. The word’s sound contributes to the poem’s lively atmosphere: “clourin’” suggests a hard, noisy action rather than a gentle tap. “Runts o’ kail” means the tough stalks or stems of kale. Their use in the poem reflects older Scottish Hallowe’en customs involving seasonal vegetables, disguises, games, and harmless pranks. Related Scots expressions include “clour on the head,” meaning to strike someone on the head, and “a clour,” meaning a blow.
Also Known As
Beating Striking Buffeting Blows
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