My son and I are SO EXCITED to see the Movie Brave!
I thought I would share with you a
GLOSSARY 
of terms and words to make to movie 
easier to understand!

A story set in Scotland would be jiggery pokery without its share of Scottish 
words and phrases. And crivens, “Brave” has plenty! But it would all be for 
naught unless accompanied by a proper glossary, so here goes…

Indigenous, native

v  Taught to filmmakers by Emma Thompson (voice of Queen Elinor), 
who used it to describe “Brave’s” Castle Dunbroch because it appears 
to have grown right out of the earth.


BLUE WODE

A blue dye extracted from a cabbage-type plant used by inhabitants of 
ancient Scotland to paint their bodies

v  Lord MacGuffin and Young MacGuffin paint their bodies in blue wode
 to proclaim that they are ready for battle at any moment.

BRAE

Hill

BUNCH OF GALOOTS

Many fools

·         galoot = clumsy, oafish person



CARNYX

A Celtic trumpet with a bell shaped like a boar’s head. Held vertically so 
it can be heard in large crowds, a carnyx was used during wartime to 
send troops into battle.

v  In “Brave,” it signals the start of the Highland Games.

CRIVENS, YOU’RE FIERCE

Wow! You’re cool or ferocious or tough!

·         crivens = expression of surprise or shock

DANCING TATTY BOGLE

·         tatty = shabby, cheap

·         bogle, boggle or bogill = ghost or folkloric being

DORIC

A dialect from the Aberdeenshire region in Scotland

v  Elgin native Kevin McKidd (voice of MacGuffin and Young MacGuffin), 
who learned Doric from his grandfather, proposed to filmmakers for 
Young MacGuffin to speak the incomprehensible dialect in “Brave.”

DREADFUL COLLYWOBBLES

Unwanted stomachache or a bad case of the nerves

·         collywobbles = upset stomach; intestinal disturbances or a
 feeling of apprehension

FOR NAUGHT

For no reason

FINISH WHAT HE GUDDLED IN THE FIRST PLACE

Fix, clean up or otherwise remedy something that’s been horribly mishandled.

·         guddle = make a mess of it

GAMY SPELL

An unfortunate bit of magic

·         gamy = bad

GLEN

Small, narrow, secluded valley

GOOGLY OLD HAG

Outlandish, unattractive senior

·         googly = strange, odd

GIANT HAVING A JIGGER IN THE BLUEBELLS

Similar to Dancing Tatty Bogle, something that’s absurd or fantastical
HAGGIS

Though some will joke that a haggis is a small animal native to Scotland, 
it is actually a traditional Scottish pudding made with sheep’s heart, 
liver and lungs, encased in a sheep’s stomach and cooked for several hours. 
Often served with “neeps and tatties” (turnips and potatoes).



HIGHLAND GAMES

Festivals that celebrate Scottish and Celtic culture and heritage, especially
that of the Scottish Highlands. Includes competitions in piping and drumming, 
dancing, archery, caber tossing, stone put and other Scottish athletics, 
plus entertainment and exhibits.

Nonsense

JINGS CRIVENS HELP MA BOAB

Oh my!

Exclamation of bewilderment or exasperation

KILT

A pleated and draped tartan fabric garment worn by Scottish men

v  During the production of “Brave” director Mark Andrews and several
 animators wore kilts to work on Fridays—dubbed Kilt Fridays—to get
in the spirit of Scotland and the film’s characters.

LASS

Girl

LAD

Boy



LOCH

Lake

MANKY DOGS

Unsavory person or being

·         manky = dirty, worthless or in bad taste

MICHTY ME

Wow! Holy cow!

An exclamation of surprise, shock or being overwhelmed

NUMPTY

Useless individual

NUT ‘EM

Head-butt ‘em

SCAFFY WITCH

A tricky or slick being with magical powers

·         scaffy = trickster

SCARED SIMPERIN’ JACKANAPES

Belittling description of a goofy and unworthy opponent

·         simpering = silly smile

·         jackanape =  an insulting reference to a monkey or ape; a braggart; 
a mischievous child


SCUTTLE THE VIKING LONGSHIPS

Sink Viking ships by making holes in the bottom

STUFF HER GOB

Eat with abandon

·         gob = mouth

TARTAN

A specially designed woven fabric that identifies a clan. 
April 6th is National Tartan Day in the United States.

TOSSING CABERS

A test of strength and skill seen in Highland Games in which the competitor 
raises a pole vertically with the small end down, and then throws it

·         Caber = a long, tapered section of a tree trunk

TUMSHIE

Turnip… or foolish person. Or both.

WEE

Small



WE’LL BILE YUR HEED WAE DUMPLIN’ BREED; T
AE MAKE AN URSINE STEW

·         bile yer heed (boil your head) = don’t be ridiculous. Also used as an 
exclamation if someone is doing something stupid and it’s annoying

v  In “Brave” King Fergus sings what he’ll do to the demon bear Mor’du when 
he catches him to avenge his lost leg. Not only will he boil his head, 
but he’ll add dumplings to make a bear stew.

WILL O’ THE WISPS

Ghostly lights or small blue spirits that lead the way to treasure or doom.

v  In “Brave,” the will o’ the wisps lead Merida to change her fate.



ABOUT THE MOVIE:

Set in the rugged and mysterious Highlands of Scotland, 
Disney•Pixar’s “Brave” 
follows the heroic journey of Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald), 
a skilled archer and headstrong daughter of
 King Fergus (voice of Billy Connolly) and 
Queen Elinor (voice of Emma Thompson). 
Determined to change her fate, Merida defies an age-old custom
 sacred to the unruly and uproarious lords of the land: 
massive Lord MacGuffin (voice of Kevin McKidd), 
surly Lord Macintosh (voice of Craig Ferguson) and 
cantankerous Lord Dingwall (voice of Robbie Coltrane), 
unleashing chaos in the kingdom. When she turns to an 
eccentric Witch (voice of Julie Walters), she is granted an ill-fated wish 
and the ensuing peril forces Merida to harness all of her resources
—including her mischievous triplet brothers—to undo a beastly curse and discover 
the meaning of true bravery. 
Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman, 
and produced by Katherine Sarafian, “Brave” is a grand adventure
 full of heart,memorable characters and signature Pixar. 

Opens on June 22, 2012, in Disney Digital 3D™ in select theaters.




! Have a Fabulous Day ! – Jenny at Dapperhouse