The broad Doric Scots I spoke as a child is, like a lot of regional linguistic variations in the UK, notoriously impenetrable to outsiders but I've never heard it described as anything other than a dialect.
e.g. I might have enquired of a visitor when I was a wee loonie "Far div ye bide?" - "Where do you stay?"
e.g. I might have enquired of a visitor when I was a wee loonie "Far div ye bide?" - "Where do you stay?"