George Malcolm Laws

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George Malcolm Laws
Born(1919-01-04)January 4, 1919
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
DiedAugust 1, 1994(1994-08-01) (aged 75)
Montgomery, Pennsylvania
Occupation(s)folklorist, professor

George Malcolm Laws (January 4, 1919 – August 1, 1994) was a scholar of traditional British and American folk song.[1][2]

He was best known for his collection of

system of coding ballads; one letter of the alphabet, followed by 2 numbers. For example, "Laws A01" is "Brave Wolfe" also known as "Bold Wolfe" or "The Battle of Quebec". There is no immediately obvious logic, but a broad pattern appears: the letter A is for military songs, the letter D is for nautical songs, the letter F is for murder, and so on. The system is limited to 26 x 99 = 2576 distinct labels, and so tends to bring together similar songs. It is a useful adjunct to Child numbers. He includes many songs that Child
excluded, and of course, new ones that were found after Child died.

Examples of Laws numbers

  • Laws A01 – Brave Wolfe
  • Laws A02 – Major Andrews Execution
  • Laws A03 – Stately Southerner
  • Laws A04 – Paul Jones
  • Laws A05 – James Bird
  • Laws A06 – Constitution and the Guerriere
  • Laws A07 – Battle of New Orleans
  • Laws A08 – Texas Rangers
  • Laws A09 – Manassa Junction
  • Laws A11 – Battle of Shiloh Hill
  • Laws A12 – Battle of Elkhorn Tavern

The letters A to H are for native American ballads.

  • B
  • F Murder Ballads

The letters J to Q are for "American Ballads from British Broadsides". 290 British ballads are indexed.[3]

  • J War ballads
  • K Ballads of sailors and the sea
  • L Ballads of crime and criminals
  • M Ballads of family opposition to lovers
  • N Ballads of lovers' disguises and tricks
  • O Ballads of faithful lovers
  • Laws O03 –
    The Foggy Dew
  • Laws O35 –
    The Trees They Grow So High
  • Laws O36 – Polly Vaughn
  • P Unfaithful lovers
  • Q Humorous and miscellaneous

Bibliography

  • Native American Balladry (1950, revised 1964)
  • American Balladry from British Broadsides (1957)
  • American Ballads from British Broadsides: A guide for students and collectors of traditional song (1957)
  • The British Literary Ballad: A Study in Poetic Imitation (1972)

See also

References

  1. ^ "G Malcolm Laws". Family Search. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  2. ^ "Guide to the G. Malcolm Laws, Jr. papers, 1943–1978". Utah State University. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
  3. ISBN 9780754662303
    .

External links
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