It has a long and complicated history with England, with which it was merged in 1707 to form the United Kingdom. Millions of people across the world are descended from The Great Clans of Scotland. In 1746 a Scottish rebellion was defeated at the Battle of Culloden, and the Scottish clan system was almost destroyed. The clan system of Scotland has ancient origins in the Celtic, Norman-French and Norse traditions, and can be traced back to a time when people lived off the land, and border disputes were a common occurrence. The Scottish New Year is known as Hogmanay and both New Year's Eve and New Year's Day were also known as Daft Days. Each clan was ruled by a chief, and the members of a clan claimed descent from a common ancestor. Scottish surnames. Oil Painting by Robert Gibb. Scottish traditions have their roots deep-set in history, and the Highland Games have been around for over a thousand years, perhaps even longer. There are many interesting traditions in Scotland that often combine Celtic heritage with religious influences. Find traditionally Scottish cultural events at VisitScotland.com. Find out more about kilts and tartan at VisitScotland.com. The culture of Scotland refers to the patterns of human activity and symbolism associated with Scotland and the Scottish people.Some elements of Scottish culture, such as its separate national church, are protected in law, as agreed in the Treaty of Union and other instruments. Selkirk's is particularly well known, remembering as it does the Battle of Flodden in June 1488, but there are similar festivities (on differing dates) in Langholm, Lauder, Peebles, Annan, Linlithgow and Sanquhar. Woman's Claim of Right Group. Many years ago the ruggedness of the land led to the separation of the Highlanders into small groups called clans. Kilts are one of the most iconic items associated with Scotland. When a clan grew and prospered they needed more fertile land to grow their food and raise their livestock in order to feed their people, especially during the long and often harsh winters. The tradition of eloping to Gretna Green dates back to 1754 when Lord Hardwicke’s marriage act meant that the marriage age remained at 18 in England and Wales but did not apply to Scotland. A chieftain was selected to be the leader of each clan and there were many feuds and much competition between them. They are vibrant, living things, constantly growing and evolving, and every generation adds the thumbprint of its own particular Scottish culture to the whole. Old Scottish Wedding Traditions. Many of the features of Scottish clans that are known and celebrated now are actually relatively recent reinventions. Since the best land was always already claimed by someone else, any clan expansion would need either diplomacy or force of arms; marriages and alliances worked, but violent confrontation was also common. A ceremony of Riding the Marches or boundaries is traditional in a number of locations around Scotland, and the tradition has still survived particularly in the Scottish Borders. They will help you in creating the perfect wedding celebration or just make for some fun reading of the way things use to be! The origins of the clan system are ancient, historians suggesting they date back at least 1000 years — long before Scotland was a nation. Take, for example, the 60 Highland Games that still take place all across Scotland annually - those are a uniquely Scottish mix of culture, sports, music and community. Learn about Scottish traditions. Rather than fighting against the crown, Scottish-raised regiments were sent around the globe, taking their tartans, kilts, pipes and warrior culture with them. Find out more about Scotland's food and drink at VisitScotland.com. The clan historian – a seanchaidh – recited the genealogy of the Chief at some point in the funeral proceedings, often espousing heroic exploits – pipers played. N… Clan tourism is now big business, with thousands of members of the Scottish diaspora – Scots who emigrated and their descendants – visiting their homeland each year to trace their ancestry. Enter your e-mail address and receive information about promotions & discounts. Scotland's oldest and largest online Scottish heritage store, all authentic goods locally made in traditional quality. Clan chiefs may have been landlords, for example,with extended branches (septs) of the clan as their tenants, aswell as family members who have married outwith the family name.Although clan members were more likely to be direct bloodrelations, the clan system also depends upon the idea of loyalty tothe chief. Edinburgh: Johnston and Bacon. Its capital is Edinburgh. Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery. The first Monday in January is a holiday and is refered to as Handsel Monday. Or take food, for example. Tartan is a fabric made up of different coloured horizontal and vertical stripes on a coloured background. A Diverse Assembly: The Debate on a Scottish Parliament , 1998. The Victorians, and Queen Victoria herself, did much to encourage a romantic Highland ideal, essentially reinventing the idea of the clan to fit the ideas of empire and Union. However, kilts are much more than something men wear to weddings, ceilidhs or Highland games – they are a historic piece of clothing which have stood the test of time. Within living memory, for example, it was considered ill-advised and rude to play the bagpipe tune “The Campbells are Coming” in Wick. The Clans, Septs & Regiments of the Scottish Highlands (8th ed.). Popular culture continues to portray clan life or aspects of Highland history, not always with complete accuracy, in film and TV such as Highlander, Outlander, Brave, Game of Thrones and others. Wearing the MacDonald tartan - and displaying the MacDonald Clan Crest - is always a proud occasion for Nerida Barnsley. The word itself comes from the Scots Gaelic for offspring: “clann”. At its simplest a clan is an extended family, kinship ties binding closely, different branches of the same family tree, different surnames linked through a common shared history. We all know the stereotypical notions of traditional Scottish fare - haggis, porridge and whisky. • Adam, Frank; Innes of Learney, Thomas (1970). Today's games are at the same time, both similar and dissimilar, from the original Clan contests which are at the roots of these games. Historically, each clan was led by a chief, someone in charge who would be expected to watch over those in his care, as well as make the final decision on any important matters — such as feuding. Dry Clean Only. The sovereign simply receives the new clan. Scotland's new elite of super-chefs like Gordon Ramsay, Nick Nairn and Andrew Fairlie are taking the country's incredible natural produce - our beef, venison and seafood – and elevating them to Michelin starred levels. For example, before the 1745 uprising clan members mostly wore a much larger kilt, the “philamhor”, or “great kilt”; which was a long length of cloth acting as hood, cloak, kilt and blanket all in one. × But have you experienced the breath-taking reality of a hundred pipers skirling in uplifting unison? Everybody knows the cliché of the piper on the shortbread tin. The internet has aided clan members to plan events and gatherings, no matter where they are. 13 of the most famous Scottish clans and their castles Few things capture the romance of Scotland's history more than the stories of the clans of the Highlands. There’s a lot more to it than just wearing a kilt! There was never any requirement for clans to all be from the same blood-related family, however, with adoption of a chief’s surname common by those living on clan lands, for example. Or that the kilt is making a comeback on the catwalk as designers like Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood and Glasgow's own Jonathan Saunders take traditional Scottish dress to places the clan chiefs never dreamed of. Beyond the clan connections, the origins of other Scottish surnames are varied, but equally fascinating. The Gaelic connection can be seen in names such as Craig (from the Gaelic creag, which means crag or rocks) and Cameron (from cam and sròn (camshròin: crooked nose). History of the Scottish Clan System. Even before Bonnie Prince Charlie’s defeat at Culloden, however, change in the way clan chiefs governed was already under way, with a move towards land-ownership, rather than people-stewardship. It originated in the Highlands of Scotland, with the first mention of tartan being made in 1538. Scottish tradition began about A.D. 1000 with the clan, a group of people with a common ancestry and a common name. In Scottish traditions, it's the family and eventually an allied family or group of families, related by blood or not, who decide to became a clan (or a sept), in a derbhfine or family convention. Learn about the quirky Scottish good luck rituals and romantic customs you can incorporate into your own ceremony, from those which have become common in weddings around the world to obscure time-honoured traditions that are still followed in small corners of Scotland. A serape (similar to a ruana) is a wonderful way for a lady to keep warm, and to wear your Scottish tartan to formal or informal events. Clan origins lie in the social and political status of a givenarea of Scotland. Tartans, tweeds, cashmere, knitwear, and much more Scottish Clans- A mark of tradition and culture! Origin… This isn't an image from Scotland's cultural past: it happens every August at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo and on Glasgow Green. In many ways this Act and the ethnic cleansing it encouraged succeeded in their intent, after it was repealed 36 years later Highland and clan culture had altered irrecoverably. The Scottish flag is blue with a white saltire, and represents the cross of Saint Andrew The clans were the main political system in Scotland until the time of the battle of Culloden in 1746, when the Jacobite rebellion was crushed by the royal troops of King George II. Each clan had its own colourful pattern for weaving cloth and these patterns are called a tartan. Thanks to its romantic wedding traditions, the Scottish village of Gretna Green is one of the most popular wedding destinations in the world. For example, before the 1745 uprising clan members mostly wore a much larger kilt, the “philamhor”, or “great kilt”; which was a long length of cloth acting as … However, Scottish traditions are not something sterile under glass and steel in a cold museum. The Scottish system of heraldry reaches back to the Middle Ages but it is alive and flourishing today. Have you always wanted to have a traditional Scottish wedding? After the Act was repealed this was replaced with the more modern kilt, whose weavers began to take advantage of more modern and brighter dyes than the muted colours used previously. The traditional Burns Supper, Hogmanay and St Andrews Day celebrations are still very much a part of Scottish culture but the Scots are now joined on these special days by Scots at heart across the globe. Scotland has been handing down its traditions for close to a thousand years now, since the earliest days of the clans in the 12th century. The last major battle to take place on British soil, Culloden was perhaps the most devastating event to ever overtake Scotland with most of the Scottish soldiers not surviving the fight.The defeat at Culloden meant that Scotland was once again under the control of the English. In Scotland New Year's Eve is called Hogomanay or Night of the Candle. Today, the resurgence in clan identity owes much to descendants of those removed from Scotland during the ‘Clearances or the families who followed the Scottish regiments to settle in far-flung locations. ... Scottish Traditions. ——. The members of a clan are like a family in Scotland and thus the simple word clan means a family with a clan chief at the head. There are speakers of Gaelic in Canada, Highland Games in Kuala Lumpur, and many hundreds of thousands of Campbells, MacGregors, MacDonalds, Sutherlands and Sinclairs, for example, around the globe. Scotland’s heraldic tradition and laws influence many aspects of the Scottish clan system, including as mentioned above, helping to determine which ‘clans’ have chiefs and who those individuals are and will be. Scottish traditions also offer some interesting charms for luck that are still used to this day… In the Scottish borders, people believed that hiding a sprig of white heather subtly within the bride’s bouquet would bring good luck and happiness to the marriage. A Century of the Scottish People , 1830–1950, 1987. Many were either killed or transported away from their historical lands, which were then given to supporters of the Crown, the wearing of the plaid and kilt, playing of the pipes, carrying of arms, speaking Gaelic, and gatherings for games were all banned under the Act of Proscription.