James Stout Angus

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James Stout Angus (20 September 1830 – 26 December 1923) was a Scottish writer from Shetland.

Life
Angus was born at Catfirth Haa in the parish of Nesting, Shetland. His family had long connections to Catfirth, and the lands there were owned by the Angus family for many decades. He learned from a local schoolmaster, Robert Laing, helped his schoolmaster uncle for a time, and then worked in trades as a housewright or joiner. He also worked as a ship’s carpenter and sailed on emigrant and East Indian ships. After he married, he settled in Lerwick and ran a successful housewright business at 6 Commercial Street.

Writing and works
Angus began publishing poetry in the 1870s. He is credited with writing the first truly original poem in the Shetland dialect, in the poem “Eels” (1877). In 1910, at the age of 80, he published Etymological Glossary of Some Shetland Placenames, inspired by Jakob Jakobsen. Four years later he published Glossary of the Shetland Dialect. His poetry was later collected in Echoes in Klingrahool, which was reprinted twice.

Reception
Angus was praised as a gifted natural poet who wrote in the old Shetland tongue with depth and honesty. His work is noted by writers and scholars of Shetland literature.

See also
Articles by Laurence I. Graham in The New Shetlander and by Karen Eunson in The New Shetlander discuss related topics.

External links
The Shetland Museum has a photo related to Catfirth and Klingrahool, connected to James Stout Angus.

Overview
James Stout Angus is remembered as a key Shetland writer who captured the language and life of his homeland in poetry and dialect glossaries.