Cowan, Edward J. 1944–

(Edward James Cowan)

PERSONAL:

Born February 15, 1944, in Edinburgh, Scotland; son of William Edward (a civil servant) and Margaret Cowan; married Alison Dawson (a preschool educator), December 14, 1963; children: Karen Jane, Morna Helen, David Edward. Education: University of Edinburgh, M.A., 1967. Politics: Socialist.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Glasgow, Scotland. Office—Crichton Campus, University of Glasgow, Rutherford McCowan Bldgs., Dumfries, DG1 4ZL, Scotland. E-mail—information@crichton.gla.ac.uk

CAREER:

University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, lecturer in Scottish history, 1967-79; University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, associate professor of history, 1979-93; University of Glasgow, Scotland, professor of Scottish history, 1993—.

MEMBER:

Scottish Society for Northern Studies (president, 1972-75), Scottish History Society (member of council, 1974-79).

AWARDS, HONORS:

Award from Scottish Arts Council, 1977, for Montrose: For Covenant and King.

WRITINGS:

Montrose: For Covenant and King, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1977.

The Historical Highlands: A Guide to Reading, Edinburgh University Press (Edinburgh, Scotland), 1977.

(Editor) The People's Past: Scottish Folk in Scottish History, Polygon Books, 1980.

(Editor, with Douglas Gifford) The Polar Twins, John Donald Publishers (Edinburgh, Scotland), 1999.

(Editor) The Ballad in Scottish History, Tuckwell Press (East Linton, East Lothian, Scotland), 2000.

(Editor, with R. Andrew McDonald) Alba: Celtic Scotland in the Middle Ages, Tuckwell Press (East Linton, East Lothian, Scotland), 2000.

(With Richard Finlay and William Paul) Scotland since 1688: Struggle for a Nation, Cima Books (London, England), 2000.

(With Lizanne Henderson) Scottish Fairy Belief: A History, Tuckwell Press (East Linton, East Lothian, Scotland), 2001.

(Editor, with Richard J. Finlay) Scottish History: The Power of the Past, Edinburgh University Press (Edinburgh, Scotland), 2002.

"For Freedom Alone": The Declaration of Arbroath, 1320, Tuckwell Press (East Linton, East Lothian, Scotland), 2003.

(Editor) The Wallace Book, John Donald (Edinburgh, Scotland), 2007.

(Editor, with M. Paterson) Folk in Print: Scotland's Chapbook Heritage, Birlinn (Edinburgh, Scotland), 2007.

Editor of East Lothian Transactions, 1970-78; coeditor of Scottish Tradition.

SIDELIGHTS:

Edward J. Cowan, professor of Scottish history at the University of Glasgow, has written and edited many books on Scotland's political, military, and social history. Among the volumes he has edited on populist themes is The People's Past: Scottish Folk in Scottish History. This book, which focuses on music, covers the evolution of border ballads; the influence of Calvinism on oral tradition; bagpipes and their role in Scottish identity; and the revival of the folksong tradition in Scotland. Cowan also edited The Ballad in Scottish History, which focuses more specifically on the rich ballad tradition that includes songs like "Sir Patrick Spens" and "The Bonny Earl of Moray." Reviewing the book in Folk Music Journal, Sigrid Rieuwerts observed: "As Edward Cowan points out, … the historian is concerned with what a particular ballad/story, selected from all the hundreds in circulation, tells us about the people and the circumstances of the time which preserved it…. the value of such material is here conclusively demonstrated. By not limiting this collection to the question of historicity, that is to say to the ballad as Scottish history, Edward Cowan has indeed reclaimed the ground." Rieuwerts concluded by recommending The Ballad in Scottish History as essential reading for anyone interested in history.

Scottish History: The Power of the Past, which Cowan edited with Richard J. Finlay, received similar praise. The volume covers subjects such as Scottish nation-building myths, the Scottish Reformation, Queen Victoria's interest in Scotland, and gender in Scottish radical politics. According to Albion contributor Gordon Desbrisay, "there are no weak links in this engaging, cogently argued, and challenging collection, which will surely inspire further research and debate on Scotland's protean past."

Cowan explores a fascinating vein of folk history in Scottish Fairy Belief: A History, written with Lizanne Henderson. The book argues that Scots in the early modern period believed in fairies, and used this belief as both escapist fantasy and as a means of understanding their own society. Drawing on ballads, folk tales, and other materials, Cowan and Henderson provide an overview and analysis of the subject that Albion reviewer Julian Goodare recommended highly, observing that "scholars interested in early modern folklore, witchcraft, religion, or science will learn much from it."

Cowan once wrote: "I am dedicated to Scotland and Scottish history. I am now carrying the banner in the New World. My special interests are folk song and culture, oral and traditional history, also the North American vision of ‘plastic Scotland.’ I am interested in popularizing history in the best sense, accommodating the search for roots, taking history to the people and people to history. History must be alive or we must bury the corpse."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Albion, March 22, 2003, Julian Goodare, review of Scottish Fairy Belief: A History, p. 180; March 22, 2004, Darlene M. Hall, review of "For Freedom Alone": The Declaration of Arbroath, 1320, p. 184; March 22, 2004, Gordon Desbrisay, review of Scottish History: The Power of the Past, p. 189.

Folk Music Journal, January 1, 2005, Sigrid Rieuwerts, review of The Ballad in Scottish History, p. 653.

Historian, January 1, 2004, Michael Brown, review of "For Freedom Alone," p. 865.

ONLINE

University of Glasgow, Department of History Web site, http://www.gla.ac.uk/ (April 23, 2008), Edward J. Cowan faculty profile.