Did ballads originate in England or Scotland?

Question

Ballads meaning the poetry, not the songs.

Answer 1

The word `ballad' has mutated over the centuries. If you find the word `ballad' in a pre-1600 source, it is unlikely to be referring to a song that we would consider a ballad today. In the fifteenth century the word referred to a song meant to accompany a dance.The traditional ballad has been described as "the only form of medieval vernacular poetry which has continously survived."
The ballads we can trace are the ones that someone wrote down, or we wouldn't be able to trace them. We can make guesses as to whether they existed in the oral tradition before they were written down, but we can rarely be sure. Nor can we know the extent to which those who recorded them embellished them in the process.
So, sorry for the loooong answer, the truth is..its anyones guess as to where they originated. They could actually be from somewhere else entirely, and have been brought with settlers to the region.

Answer 2

I think neither. Consider the ancient story-telling in Egypt or Israel and the other original civilizations. There is even poetry in the Holy Bible.

Answer 3

In the human condition, I think. Weren't there Greek city-staes with bards long before the Isles were truly settled?
Hasn't there been special speech nearly since speech began?

Answer 4

I don't think anyone really knows the answer to that-Good question though!