There are three main observations we would like to make about the language employed in the Scottish romances. First, Gaelic terms, which occasionally appear in the texts, are most commonly presented in italics and with their meanings elucidated by the context in which they occur. Secondly, deviant 'Scots' spellings of common words are used to establish the nationality of the characters; however, the implementation of Scots language in these novels is idiosyncratic rather than systematic [...]
The third linguistic convention is the use of archaic terms to generate a sense of historicity and generate a period atmosphere. (357-358)