Westering Home

"Westering Home" is a traditional Scottish folk song that was written by Hugh S. Roberton in the 1920s. The lyrics of the song talk about the Scottish Island of Islay. It was subsequently adopted as the slow march of the Royal Navy.

It runs as follows:

"Ilk" means each. "Canty" means neat or trim. "Couthy" means homely, simple, unpretentious. "Islay" is pronounced "Isla".

The tune is a modified version of the traditional "The Muckin o Geordie's Byre", with the time signature changed from 6/8 to 3/4, and the rhythm slightly altered. Roberton appropriated this form of the melody from a Gaelic song with lyrics relating to nostalgia for Skye in the trenches of the First World War, one of several entitled Eilean mo Chrìdh'. Its English title Isle of my Heart features in Roberton’s lyric.^[1][2][3]

• Entry at the Scottish Poetry Library

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