James Fenton: Ulster-Scots poet dies aged 89

Ulster-Scots poet James Fenton, described as the language's "greatest exponent", has died at the age of 89.

The Hamely Tongue, his record of spoken Ulster-Scots, has come to be regarded as the language's definitive lexicon.

His Ulster-Scots poetry collections, published in the 2000s, went on to receive international acclaim.

Frank Ferguson of Ulster University said Mr Fenton's contribution to the language is one "of towering significance".

"It is unparalleled," Dr Ferguson, research director of English language and literature at the university, told BBC News NI.

"Jim, as well as being a poet, was a preserver of the language. His work cannot be underestimated in terms of its significance".

The poet and linguist, Dr Fergsuon added, was "the greatest exponent of the Ulster-Scots language."

As a person, he said, the poet and retired school teacher, "had an incredible modesty, both humble and reserved".

Born in June 1931, James Fenton grew up on the family farm a few miles south of Ballymoney, County Antrim.

He had been privately collating the Ulster-Scots language from his younger years, but it was not until 1995 that the first edition of The Hamely Tongue was published.

It was, he would profess, his labour of love.

The Hamely Tongue, he would say, came from a desire to "compile an authentic, comprehensive record of a living language: its vocabulary, idiom, characteristic turns of phrase and modes of expression, its aphorisms and its humour".