Лингвострановедческий материал по теме: The History and Culture of Scotland. Cultural-specific Vocabulary and Realias in the Scottish Language.
учебно-методический материал по английскому языку на тему
Вашему вниманию представлен лингвострановедческий материал по теме: The History and Culture of Scotland. Cultural-specific Vocabulary and Realias in the Scottish Language.
В данной разработке всесторонне рассматривается культура, традиции, история, язык страны, а также такое понятие, как реалии.
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The History and Culture of Scotland.
Cultural-specific Vocabulary
and
Realias in the Scottish Language
CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1. Geography of Scotland:
1.1.1. Geographical position.
1.1.2. Lakes and rivers.
1.1.3. Animal life.
1.1.4. Cities: Glasgow and Edinburgh.
1.2. Scots and Scottish names.
1.3. Scottish language.
1.4. Famous people in Scottish history:
1.4.1. Robert Bruce
1.4.2. William Wallace
1.4.3. Mary Queen of Scots
1.4.4. Prince Charles Stewart
1.4.5. Alexander Bell
1.4.6. Alexander Fleming
1.4.7. Robert Burns
1.4.8. Walter Scott
1.4.9. Robert Stevenson
1.5. Scottish Culture:
1.5.1. Flag of Scotland
1.5.2. Scottish emblem.
1.5.3. Clans and tartans
1.5.4. Septs
1.5.5. The kilt
1.5.6. Bagpipes: - ancient origin
- spread and development
- types of bagpipes
1.6. Sports and Recreation:
1.6.1. Rugby
1.6.2. Golf
1.6.3. Tossing the caber
1.6.4. Throwing the hammer
1.6.5. The Highland Games
1.7. Customs and Traditions:
1.7.1. Yuletide. Customs of old Scotland
1.7.2. Hogmanay
1.7.3. Christmas: - Black Bun
-Caliieach
- The Candlermas Bull
- Candle light
- First Footers
1.7.4. New Year’s Eve
1.7.5. St. Andrew’s Day
1.7.6. Burn’s Night
1.7.7. Scottish Wedding
1.7.8. The Military Tattoo
1.8. Scotland Today
Conclusion
Chapter 2
2.1. The Classification of realias.
2.2. The part of the lesson.
2.3. Appendix: the pictures.
Introduction
Our project deals with the history and culture of Scotland. The main aim of our work is to show this beautiful country, different realias and the peculiarities of the Scottish nation, language, customs and traditions. We intend to represent the Scottish culture, but for that we need to give some definitions of such words as realia, culture and language, cultural study. So, we begin with the explanation of the word language. There are numerous definitions of this notion, but we dwelt on the most full and appropriate for a clear understanding of the function of this notion. As we know, it’s impossible to separate language from culture of the country and from other spheres of people’s life. Any language serves for the communication between people, it reflexes ideas, notions, believes and peculiarities of culture. The development of language depends on the development of the country itself, so we can see that language is an inseparable part of the culture and we can draw parallelise between them.
Language – a system of communication consisting of a set of small parts and a set of rules which decide the ways in which these parts can be combined to produce message that have meaning. Human language consists of words that are usually spoken or written. It is a system of sounds and written symbols used by the people of a particular country. Language is also used to refer to other means of communication such as sign language, computer language and animal language.
As you know with the help of languages we can fulfil the communicative function. So we can see that language and communication are inseparably linked with each other.
Communication – 1) act of imparting; information given; intercourse. 2) is the activity or process of giving information to other people or living things.
Communications – are the system and processes that are used by communicate or broadcast information. It is also the way which people use to form relationships with each other and understand each other’s feelings.
Every country has its own culture, in which we can find lots of realias and words which can’t be translated into another language because there are no equivalents for them in the world. Our task consists in describing and explaining these phenomena. So let’s give the definition of the culture.
Culture – 1) culture or a culture consists of the ideas, customs and art that are produced or shared by a particular society
2) culture is a particular society or civilization, especially one considered in relation to its ideas, its art, or its way of life. It is imply the customs, beliefs, art, music, and all the other products of human thought made by a particular group of people of a particular time.
As for the notion realia it’s necessary to explain its meaning.
Realia – is a name of material wealth objects, historical events, state institutions, the names of national ad folklore heroes, mythological creatures which are characteristic for only certain nation and people.
When we compare two languages the words designating these phenomena are attributed to cultural-specific vocabulary.
Cultural-specific vocabulary imply the words serving for expression notions, which are absent in the vocabulary of other cultures and as a rule are not translated into other languages in one word, they have not equivalents beyond the language to which they belong.
We should also mention such notion as cultural study which is aimed at the study not only cultural aspects but also at the relation between language’s legacy and country’s peculiarities. It’s always difficult for the foreign people to understand and appreciate another country and the task of cultural study is to make accessible understanding of realias. We can defy cultural study as the study of the country’s culture simultaneously with the study of the language itself. The subject of cultural study is culture and how it is expressed in the language.
So, having explained all the necessary definitions concerning our work, we proceed to the acquaintance with this beautiful country named Scotland and her peculiarities. We would like to begin our work with the words of famous Scottish poet Robert Burns:
My heart’s in the Highlands, my heart is not here;
My heart’s in the highlands a-chasing the deer
A-chasing the wild deer and following the roe;
My heart’s in the Highlands wherever I go.
Farewell to the Highlands, farewell to the North,
The birthplace of valour, the country of worth;
Wherever I wander, wherever I rove;
The hills of the Highlands forever I love.
Farewell to the mountains high covered with snow;
Farewell to the straths and green valleys below;
Farewell to the forests and wild-hanging woods;
Farewell to the torrents and loud pouring floods.
My heart’s in the Highlands, my heart its not here;
My heart’s in the Highlands a-chasing the deer,
A-chasing the wild deer and following the roe;
My heart’s in the Highlands wherever I go.
Adieu for a while, I can never forget thee,
The land of my fathers, the soil of the free,
I sigh for the hour that shall bid me retrace
The path of my childhood, my own native place.
Chapter 1
1.1. Geography of Scotland
1.1.1. Geographical position
The northernmost part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain is Scotland, a land of great beauty and character. The total area of the country is 78,783 square kilometres. It is a third of the land mass of Britain. The Cheviot Hills mark the boundary between England and Scotland.
Scotland is bounded west and north by the Atlantic Ocean and by the North Sea to the east. The mainland coast is 3,906 km long and there are 790 islands of which 697 are uninhabited. Scotland is also as close to Norway as it is to Scotland, and 500 years ago it was part of Norway. The north and west are commonly referred to as ‘the Highlands and the Islands’.
The population of Scotland is under 10 per cent of the British population. It is just over five million people. The least density populated area in Scotland is the county of Surtherland with an average of two people per square kilometre. This compares with more than 3,500 people per sq in the city of Glasgow. Scotland is often cold and grey. It rains a lot. But many visitors love this country very much. They love the beautiful empty hills of the north. They love the sea and the islands. They love the big cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow. They love the people. The country is special and Scottish people are special too: warm and friendly, and funny.
In terms of physical geography Scotland can be divided into the southern Uplands, which never rise to more than about two thousand five hundred feet; the central lowlands, which include the valleys of the rivers Tay, Clyde and Forth; and the northern highlands which are themselves divided by the Great Glen running from Fort William to Inverness. In this areas are the tallest peaks, the highest of which is Ben Nevis (4,406 ft high – about 1, 342m) in the Grampian Mountains.
Highland Scotland is mountainous and wild. It’s one of the most colourful and picturesque areas in Britain. In winter the mountains slopes are white with snow. In summer they are purple with the colour of heather plants growing on them. There are thousands of red deer living on Highland’s mountains that grow long thick coats in winter.
1.1.2. Lakes and Rivers
Scotland is well known for her beautiful large lakes (called lochs) with mountains round them Scottish lochs are long and narrow. The most famous is Lock Ness, because of the mystery of the Loch Ness monster. It is thirty-five kilometres long. The water of the lake is dark and always very cold. And Loch ness is full of fish. Who have not heard if the monster ‘Nessie’? Some people said that it had a giraffe-like neck, a very small head and a great dark grey body. One of the theories about the monster is that these animals lived in the lake to produce their young in it. After volcanic action in this area, some of them could not come back to the North Sea and stayed in Loch Ness. They continued to live there.
The lake has become a great tourist attraction, bringing a lot of money to the region. Alan Ross, a London artist, has made a sculpture, ‘Nessie’ reproducing the Loch Ness monster. It was towed through London on its way to the Scottish lake. The cement and steel monster is about 50 feet long, 13 feet high and 14 feet tall.
There are many rivers in Scotland, but they are not long. The longest and most important Scottish river is the Clyde. Scottish rivers are good for two things: fishing and Scotch whisky. Whisky is made from water and barley. The method hasn’t been changed for hundreds of years. The blending of Scotch whisky produced in Highland distilleries is extremely important in Scotland’s export trade. The word whisky comes from the Gaelic uisge-beatha – the water of life. There are over one hundred distilleries in Scotland making it, and every whisky is different. There are distilleries everywhere in Scotland – some near Edinburgh and Glasgow in the south, one on Skye, and two in the Orkneys in the north. There are six on the small island of Islay. Visitors of Edinburgh can visit the Scotch whisky heritage centre near the castle. But don’t drink too much: whisky is very strong!
Fishing means work for some people, for others it means sport. Scotland’s deep lochs are full of large fish, but the biggest fish are the famous Scottish salmon, and they are found in the rivers.
Scotland’s high mountains, fast rivers and deep lochs are popular with sportsmen of all types. The Highland games are sometimes called the Scottish Olympics. These games are not only sporting competitions, because music is as important as sport there.
1.1.3. Animal Life
For its size, Scotland is rich in animal life. Herds of red deer graze in the remote glens, and their population is estimated at about 300,000. Although formerly a woodland species, they are now found mainly on higher ground, but roe deer still inhabit the woods, along with fallow deer, both introduced species, in some areas. Foxes and badgers are widespread, and the number of wildcats is thought to be increasing. Rabbits were earlier decimated by the disease of myxomatosis but are now recovering to earlier numbers. Pine marten, otters and mountain ad brown hares are among other wild mammals. A few ospreys nest in Scotland, and golden eagles, buzzards, peregrine falcons, and kestrels are the most notable of resident birds of prey. The red grouse, the Scottish subspecies of the willow grouse, has long been hunted for sport. Other species of grouse include the ptarmigan found only at higher attitudes, and the large capercailye, reintroduced into Scottish pinewoods. Large number of seabirds, such as fulmars, guillemots, and various types of gull, breed on cliffs and on the isolated rocks around the magnificent costs.
Scotland has a temperate climate, milder than might be expected from its latitude. It influenced by the Gulf Stream from the North Atlantic.
1.1.4. Cities: Glasgow and Edinburgh
Edinburgh has long been recognized as the capital of Scotland, in spite being second in size to Glasgow, which began to overtake Edinburgh in population with the Industrial Revolution. While Glasgow led the development of heavy industry, Edinburgh remained the country’s political and cultural centre. Edinburgh is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. For its picturesque views it is often called ‘The Athens of the North’. This distinction is partly an accident of nature, for the city is built upon jumble of hills ad valleys; however, during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the natural geography was enhanced by the works of a succession of distinguished Georgian and Victorian architects.
Evidence that Stone Ages settlers lived in Edinburgh has been found on Calton Hill, Arthur’s seat and Castlehill. Some historical believe that this volcanic hill was a stronghold as early as 600 BC.
One tribe who definitely made their mark were a group of Nothumbrians, whose 7th –century king Edwin, is thought to have given his name to the castle and town. ‘Burgh’ is a Scottish word for borough (a small town).
Nowadays Edinburgh is the centre of the Scottish Parliament (opened in 1999) and Administration. It is a busy modern city, but history is everywhere.
At the top of the highest hill in the city is Edinburgh Castle. It was the home to Scotland’s royal family until the year 1603 when King James 6 of Scotland became King of England as well and went south to live in London. Dominating Edinburgh, the Castle played a key role in Scotland’s history until the middle of the 18th century. It was attacked for the last time in 1745 when the city, but nit the castle, fell to Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Jacobite army. In the Crown Room, adjoing Edinburgh Castle are displayed the Scottish Regalia: the three most important pieces, known as the Honours of Scotland. They are Crown, the Sceptre and the Sword of State.
After the 1707 Treaty of union between Scotland and England the honours were locked away in the crown room and the doors were walled up. 111 tears later, the honours were rediscovered and immediately displayed to the public. Displayed with the crown jewels is the Stone of destiny, returned to Scotland after 700 years in England.
Edinburgh castle boasts having the giant siege gun Mons Meg in its military collection. Mons Meg (or simply ‘Mons’) was made at Mons (in present-day Belgium) in 1449. It was at the leading edge of artillery technology at the time it weights 6040 kilogrammers and its firing gunstones weight 150 kilogrammes. It soon saw action against the English. But it great weight made it ponderously slow to drag around – it could only make 5 km a day. By the middle of the 16th century it was retired from military service and restricted to firing salutes from the Castle ramparts. It was returned to the castle in 1829.
Every citizen in Edinburgh checks his watch by the Time Gun which is fired in Edinburgh Castle at one p.m. every day except Sundays since 1861. [5, 56]
A lot of people from the world over are attracted by a number of festive occasions held in the city each year in late August and early September the Edinburgh international Festival of music and drama is held there. Since 1947 this festival is being held annually. It attracts many tourists and participants from different countries of the world. The emblem of the Edinburgh International Festival is a thistle, which is also the emblem of the country. Hundreds of concerts and shows, known as the Edinburgh fringe are not part of the official festival, but they are very popular because contain new and exciting ideas.
Edinburgh hosts a science festival as well. It is also becoming popular. Edinburgh has recently launched the Scottish International Children’s Festival for three – till fourteen -year-old.
The ultra-modern Meadowbank Sport centre was built to meet the commonwealth Games held in Edinburgh in 1970. The dynamic Earth exhibition centre tells the geological story of Scotland and the world in a series of displays. Its appropriate background is Salisbury Crags, part of the remains of an extinct volcano.
The famous road in Edinburgh is called the Royal Mile. Several f the Royal Miles buildings open to visitors. Lady stairs House, built in 1622, contains a museum dedicated to Scotland’s greatest literary figures, Sir Walter Scott, Robert Burns and Robert Louis Stevenson.
The Palace of Holyroodhouse is a royal residence. James 4 made Holyroodhouse a royal palace when Edinburgh became Scotland’s capital at the end of the 15th century. Mary Queen of Scots lived there for six years of her reign. Now Holyroodhouse is a second home for the British king and queen who usually visit Edinburgh in summer.
The creator of the detective Sherlock Holmes, the writer Arthur Conan Doyle, and the author of historical novels and poetry, Walter Scott were born in Edinburgh. Edinburgh University, founded in 1582, is famous for its medical faculty. Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of penicillin, got his education at the University of Edinburgh. The greatest mathematician and physicist, James Maxwell, whose birthplace is also Scotland, was educated at Edinburgh University as well.
In 1822 George 4 became the first monarch to visit Edinburgh for almost 200 years. It was Sir Walter Scott who organized the visit. His memorial towers above Princes Street Gardens. It is 200 ft high and has inches containing statues of 64 characters from W. Scott’s works.
There is an unusual monument on Edinburgh. It is to a dog who watched over his master’s grave at Greyfriars Kirk for 14 years. This monument was erected to immortalize the devotion of a dog to his master even after his master’s death. People called this minuet ‘Greyfriars Bobby’.
Glasgow, Scotland’s most populous city and third larges in the British Isles, stands at the lowest bridging point on the river Clyde. Glasgow is famous for cotton manufactures, the world’s largest carpet factory, engineering, including the making of ship’s boilers. Glasgow is the largest cultural centre as well. Two universities are located in the city.
The city on the Clyde estuary was founded by St. Mungo who built a small church on the site of the present cathedral in 534. The place was called Glas cau (celtic for ‘Green Place’) and the settlement took the same name.
The centre of Glasgow is George Square which was laid out at the end of the 18th century. It was named after George 3. The square probably has mire statues than any other square in Scotland. The statues include those of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, Sir Walter Scott, Robert Burns, James Watt, Sir Robert Peel, the soldier sir John Moore.
St. Giles’ Cathedral.
If Edinburgh castle has been at the centre of Scottish life for 9 centures, St. Giles’ cathedral, the High Kirk of Edinburgh has been the religious heart of Scotland for ever longer. In 854 there was a church. It belonged to Lindisfarne, where Columba’s monks first brought the Gospel from Iona. in 1150, the monks of St. Giles were farming lands round about and a bigger church was built by the end of the century. The first parish church of Edinburgh was dedicated to St. Guiles, a saint popular in France. It was probably due to the Auld alliance of Scotland and France against the common enemy of England.
St. Giles’ Cathedral is one of the most historic and romantic buildings in Scotland, founded in 1100s, this church has witnessed executions, riots and celebrations. Its famous crown spire has dominated Edinbergh’s skyline for over 500 years. Scotland was a catholic nation until the reformation in the mid-16th century.
John Knox, the fiery ‘Trumpeter of God’, who preached against popery, brought St. Giles into great prominence. Knox’s aim was to create a reformed Church of Scotland, to banish ‘popery’, to strengthen democracy and to set up a system of comprehensive education. The religious transition was to take 130 years of struggle to achieve.
Many of the famous Scots are commemorated in the church, including R. Burns, and R.L. Stevenson.
The Giles is famous for its Thistle chapel, which is home to the order of the Thistle and honours some of the greatest Scots of the last 300 years. This exquisite little room will take one’s breath away. Its magnificent carvings and stonework evoke the ancient origins of the order and will amaze anyone with a wealth of details associated with Scotland, for example, the angel that plays the bagpipe.
1. 2. Scots and Scottish Names
People who live in Scotland are Scots. They are also called Scottish or Scotsmen. Scotsmen will be rather annoyed if you call them Englishman. A lot of Scottish family names begin with Mac or Mc – like Macdonald, MacMilian or McHale. ‘Mac’ means ‘son of’ and people with this name usually feel they belong to the same family or clan. Campbell or Cameron is other common surnames. Common boy’s names are Anus, Donald or Duncan, and girl’s are Morag, Fiona or Jean. And Jock is a popular Scottish name for John or Jack. A lot of people in England call any Scotsman ‘Jock’ even if his name is Peter or David. (Remember Russian Ivan or German ‘Fritz’).
A Scotsman’s traditional clothes are socks, shoes, a kilt, a tie, a jacket and a bonnet. Some people in the north of Scotland wear a kilt every day. But in other parts of the country most Scottish people wear just the same as the English Scottish people like to dance very much. They say that they dance better than English people. Glasgow has more dancing schools than any other European city.
By the way, the Scots are very sociable people. They like to spend their free time together, drinking coffee or scotch and talking. Scottish people are fond of singing at the national festivals in chorus, at the fairs and in the parks. Most of Scotsmen are optimists. They don’t lose their heart and smile in spite of all difficulties. The people living in Scotland are called the Scottish, Scotsmen or Scots.
1.3. Scottish Language
Scottish people speak English although some speak Scottish Gaelic. Gaelic, the Celtic language brought from Ireland by the Scots, is now spoken by a small minority mainly in the Western Isles and Western Highlands, with pockets elsewhere, especially in Glasgow. Although it now faces a strong possibility of extinction, interest in Gaelic as increased in recent years, and its literature flourishes as never before. Scots was originally a form of Old English that diverge from southern forms of the language in the Middle ages, becoming a separate national tongue by the 15th century; political and other factors notably union with England, caused English gradually to be adopted as the official and standard language, but Scots survives in the dialects of the lowland areas, in a vigorous tradition of poetry and drama ad in aspects of the English spoken by most Scots. Both Gaelic and Scots are recorded and supported by major works of scholarship, the linguistic survey of Scotland (1975-86); The Scottish national dictionary (1931-76); A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (1931); and The historical dictionary of Scottish Gaelic, begun in 1966. About 60,000 people speak Gaelic today.
Scottish people speak English but with their own accent. For example, when a Scotsman uses the word ‘arm’ he says ‘a-r-m’ so that you can hear the sound [r]. Everyone speaks English but some words are different:
bairn – child
laddie – boy
lassie – girl
wee – small
Bonnie – beautiful
Aye - yes
Sassenach – English
Dram – glass of whisky
Hogmanay – 31 December
English people say that Scottish people don’t like to spend money. Scottish people say that they like spending money on their friends and visitors – not on themselves. The Scottish people are very clever and simple, and they also have a natural sense of humour.
1.4. Famous People in the Scottish History
1.4.1 Robert Bruce
There are many great people in the history of Scotland who became famous thank to their exploits and discoveries. So let us represent some of them. It is very important for the full understanding of the Scottish history and culture, for the understanding of the nation itself. One of the most distinguished kings in the history of Scotland was Robert Bruce (1274 -1329) who joined William Wallace trying to take power from the English in Scotland. They fought for their freedom. With Robert Bruce as their leader the Scots fought one battle after another against the English, but was defeated every time. At last Robert Bruce had to hide in a cave. He was losing all hope.
A legend says that one day he was thinking of his battles when he saw a spider. The spider was making a web. Bruce thought, ’I was defeated six times and I am ready to stop fighting. Will the spider stop making his web if I destroy it six times?’ Six times did Bruce destroy the spider’s web. The spider started a seventh web and at last finished it. Then Bruce dicided to follow the spider’s example. He decided to free his country from the English again. He gathered a new army and in 1314 King Robert the Bruce defeated an English army of superior strength at the battle of Bannockburn, near Stirling. Robert the Bruce in 1296 swore fealty to Edward 1 of England, but the following year he joined the struggle for national independence. This Robert Bruce’s victory secured Scotland’s independence. By the treaty of Northampton (1338) England recognized Scotland as an independent country.
In 1306 Robert Bruce was declared the king of Scotland and he was crowned as Robert 1. He was the king of Scotland from 1306 till his death (in 1329). England recognized him as King of Scotland only in 1328. Robert spent the remainder of his life in his castle at Cardross and died there, perhaps of leprosy. After Robert Bruce’s death his son, David 2, ruled Scotland from 1329 to 1371.
‘Bruce at Bannockburn’ is one of the best poems by Burns. It is the poet’s call to his people to keep the freedom-loving spirit of their fathers. Burns tells us about Bruce’s heroic deeds and the courage of Scottish nation in the fight for their freedom.
Scots, who have with Wallace bled,
Scots whom Bruce has often led,
Welcome to your glory bed,
Or to victory!
……………..
By opression’s woes and pains!
By your sons in servile chains!
We will drain our dearest veins,
But they shall be free!
Lay the proud usurpers low!
Tyrants fall in every foe!
Liberty’s in every blow! –
Let us do, or die!
1.4.2. William Wallace
In the memory of Scottish nation William Wallace (1272 – 1305) remained as a national hero who fought for his people’s rights and welfare. He was a proud and brave Scottish soldier, is famous as a national hero of Scotland for his bravery, love to his dear country, hatred to the enemies. He was a man of great size and great strength. He could influence thousands of people and rouse them for the battle with the power of his burning words. With the force of forty thousand men Wallace together with Robert Bruce, who had joined him, defeated the whole English army at Stirling Bridge in 1297. But the joy of the victory did not last long. King Edward 1 returned to Scotland and managed to defeat Wallace together with his nearly fifteen thousand men. Wallace could not do anything else but come into Stirling and set fire to the town trying not to give the English any chance to get help there. William Wallace escaped and began to live in the Highland glens where nothing could break him and lower his courage. He was going to renew his attacks against the English but somebody betrayed him. He was caught and founded guilty as traitor. He was executed having been dragged at the tails of horses, beheaded and quartered.
William Wallace, a soldier of Scotland, will surely be remembered, as Charles Dickens said, ‘while there are songs and stories in the English tongue; and Scotland will hold him dear while her lakes and mountains last’.
The film ‘Brave heart’ (1995) was made about William Wallace.
But religious conflict existed within Scotland and between Scotland and England as well. This conflict was fuelled by the Protestant reforms sweeping across northern Europe. An act of reformation (1560) ensured the supremacy of the protestant faith in Scotland.
1.4.3. Mary Queen of Scots
One of the most famous queens in Scottish history was Mary Queen of Scots, a devout roman catholic was beheaded by her Protestant cousin, Queen Elizabeth 1 of England and Scotland by becoming monarch of both realms in 1603. The all her life Mary was involved in religious and political struggles. Mary queen of Scots had been brought up in France, and returned to Scotland in1651. She was a Catholic in a country that was becoming more and more Protestant.
Mary made many mistakes in her life. The first real one was her marriage to Henry Lord Darnley in 1565. He was handsome and ambitious but at the same time vain, self-indulgent and weak. Their love did not last. Darnley became suspicious of Mary’s Italian secretary, David Rizzio. On 9th march 1566, while Mary and her friends were having supper at Holyrood house, Darnley and his friends broke into the dining room, dragged Rizzio outside and stabbed him to death. The spot where this took place can still be seen today. Mary continued to live an unhappy life and was exiled for many years in England.
She had three husbands before she was twenty-four. Many Scots said they did not want her to be queen. Mary asked the English Queen Elizabeth put her in prison for nineteen years. Mary’s son, James Stuart became king of Scotland. Later, when Queen Elizabeth died without children he became king James 1 of England too. Then in 1707, the two countries became Great Britain.
1.4.4. Prince Bonnie
Let us mention one else famous king of Scotland, whom people in Scotland loved very much, Prince Charles Edward Stewart. In 1707 a special treaty united the governments of Scotland and England. The protestant church replaced the Catholic Church as the ruling church in Scotland.
However, many people who lived in the Highlands and Western Isles did no welcome this change. They still supported the grandson of the catholic james2, who had been exiled in 1688. His name was Prince Charles Edward Stewart and he was known as Bonnie Prince Charlie because he was young and handsome (‘bonnie’ means ‘good-looking’). Charlie spent twenty years in Rome preparing to win back the crown of Great Britain for his father and himself, and then returned to Scotland. The Highlanders were very proud that he still spoke Gaelic, and wore the traditional tartan kilt. In 1745, he landed in the Western isles, and then with 2,500 men, he marched south to Perth, Stirling and Edinburgh. There, on 17th September, his father was proclaimed king of Scotland and England. Four days later the Jacobites defeated the English army at Prestonpans.
On the 1st November Charlie led his men as far south as derby in England. However not as many Jacobite supporters joined them in England as they had hoped, and Charlie decided to retreat. The Jacobites returned to Scotland and defeated yet another English army at Falkirk on 17th January, 1746. By April of that year, however, the duke of Cumberland had built up a huge army of 9,000 protestant soldiers from England and Europe. On 16th April they met Charlie’s army of 5,000 tired and hungry men in the wind and the rain at Culloden. There were a terrible and bloody battle and Jacobites were defeated.
Charlie wandered in exile in the Scottish highlands and in Europe. There was a reward of 30,000 for his capture but the highlanders, though poor, never betrayed the man they loved so much.
After the rebellion of 1745, the Highlanders were forbidden to carry weapons, to speak their own language, Gaelic, or wear their own dress. Much of their land was sold by the British government.
A lot of poems and songs were dedicated to the famous people in Scotland For example, the song ‘Rise and Follow Charlie’ tells us about Scot’s devotion and love for their king.
The McCalmans are one of Scotland’s most popular folk groups. As well as singing, they play a variety of instruments between them. The guitar is of course one of the most important, but they also play mandolin and the penny whistle. Although these whistles cost more than a penny nowadays, you can still buy them for a very small amount of money! ‘Rise and follow Charlie!’ is the title of one of the most popular songs the McCalmans sing. It dates from the time of the Jacobite rebellions when Scotland fought her last battle against the English.
There are many songs like the McCalmans’ ‘Rise and follow Charlie’ that tell Charlie’s sad story. The most famous one is known all over the world.
My Bonnie Is over the Ocean!
My Bonnie is over the ocean,
My Bonnie is over the sea,
My Bonnie is over the ocean,
Oh, bring back my Bonnie to me.
Chorus: Bring back, bring back,
Bring back my bonnie to me, to me.
Last night as I lay on my pillow,
Last night as I lay on my bed,
Last night as I lay on my pillow,
I dreamed that my bonnie was dead.
1.4.5. Alexander Graham Bell (1847 -1922) was the famous Scottish inventor. When he was young he wanted to be a musician or a teacher of deaf people. Alexander was born in Scotland. His mother was a painter and a musician. His father was a well-known teacher, who developed a system that he called ‘visible speech’. He used it to teach deaf people to speak. When Alexander was a young boy, he and his two brothers helped their father give demonstrations of the system for doctors and teachers.
In 1863, when Alexander was only sixteen, he became a teacher in a boy’s school in Scotland. He liked teaching there but he still wanted to teach deaf people. He read all the books about sound that he could find, and started to work on some of his own experiments.
In 1868, a terrible thing happened to the bell family. Alexander’s two brothers died of tuberculosis. Alexander also became ill, and the whole family moved to Canada. There he continued his experiments with sound, but they were not very successful.
At the age of twenty-five, Alexander was able to open his own school after he had been offered a job at the school for the deaf in Boston, Massqchusetts, USA.
About this time bell became interested in finding a way to send the human voice through the electric wire. He was sponsored by his children’s parents and began to work. He found an assistant, Tom Watson, who knew a lot about building electric machines. They worked together on building a machine for people’s talking to one another over long distances, but soon, when they were working on a new transmitter, Alexander spilled some acid on himself. Tom Watson, who was alone in another room, heard Alexander’s voice that was coming through a wire to a receiver on the table! The voice was saying, ’Come here, Mr. Watson! I want you!’
The spilled acid was forgotten when Tom and Alexander realized that their talking machine worked.
On the important day, January 25, 1915, Mr Watson was in San Francisco and Mr. Bell in New York City. They were to demonstrate their invention. Everyone expected to hear a serious, scientific speech. But the words that Mr. Bell chose to say were ‘come here Mr. Watson! I want you!’
1.4.6. Alexander Fleming (1881 – 1955) came from a Scottish family of farmers. He was born in august 1881, at Lochfield, the youngest of eight children.
He did his research work at St. Mary’s Hospital under Sir Almroth Wright, pioneer of vaccine therapy, and became interested in bacterial drugs. After military service, during which he was able to make further studies of the problems of infection and use of antiseptics, Fleming returned to laboratory work. He was interested in antibacterial substances which would be non-toxic to animal tissues. The first fruit of his search was the discovery of the lysozyme. His epochal discovery in 1928, of the antibacterial powers of the mould from which penincillin is derived was a great triumph. He found that a liquid mould culture, which he named penicillin, prevented growth of staphylococci.
He died on the 11th of March, 1955 in London, and was buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral. He is known as the ‘father of antibiotics’. The two letters ‘A.F.’ on a flagstone show where he lies.
1.4.7. Robert Burns (1759 – 1796) was born in an old clay cottage at Alloway, about two miles south of Ayrshire. There were seven children in the family and Robert was the eldest. Robert had great thirst for knowledge. From his teacher he acquired some French and Latin and also a fondness for Shakespeare. From his younger years burns had an intimate knowledge of Scottish folk songs and the works of Scottish poets.
Robert began to work very early. At thirteen he was out in the fields all day helping his father, at fifteen he did most of the work on the farm. He became a farmer too.
The young poet felt deeply the injustice of the world. His protest against inequality found vent in his poems which easily won the hearts of common people appealing to their human dignity and instilling in them belief in their own strength.
In his poems burns glorified a healthy, joyous and clever Scotch peasant. Whenever we speak of Scotland, the name of Scotland’s bard Robert Burns is always there, as the ever-living symbol of that country.
1.4.8 Walter Scott (1771 – 1832), known as a great master of the historical novel, was born in Edinburgh. As a schoolboy he knew by heart the works by Shakespeare and Homer. Scott’s famous works Bob Roy, Ivanhoe, Old Mortality, Border Minstrelsy and many others are widely read in our days.
1.4.9. Robert Louis Stevenson 91850 – 1894), known for his stories and books of adventure. He was born in Edinburgh on November 13, 1850 and died at Samoa on December 3.His first book kidnapped was published in 186, when he was only 16. R.L. Stevenson is especially known for his famous book Treasure Island (1883). His books ‘The black Arrow, Catriona, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ and othersare also well-known all over the world.
Archibald Cronin (1896 – 1981), a well-known British novelist, was born in Scotland. He received his education at Glasgow University and became a doctor but later he devoted himself to writing. his novels’ The Stars Look Down, The Citadel, The Keys of the Kingdom, Green Years’ are very popular with readers the world over.
Scotland is also the birthplace of such men as James clerk Maxwell, a great mathematician and physicist. John Logie Baird, who made the first television, was Scottish too.
1.5. Scottish Culture
1.5.1. Flag of Scotland
The flag of Scotland features a white saltire, a crux decussate (X-shaped cross) representing the cross of the Christian martyr saint Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland, on a blue field. It is often known as the saltire or the Saint Andrew’s cross. In heraldic language, it may be blazoned Azure, a saltire argent.
The Scottish flag is one of the oldest flags in the world, traditionally dating back to the 9th century, and is the oldest national flag still in modern use (the oldest state flag is Denmark’s Dannebrog). According to legend, king Oengus (2) (or King Angus) led the Picts and Scots in battle against the angles under king Aethelstan of East Anglia. King Angus and his men were surrounded and he prayed for deliverance. During the night saint Andrew, who was martyred on a diagonal cross, appeared to Angus and assured him of victory. On the morrow a white saltire against the background of a blue sky appeared o both sides. The Picts and Scots were heartened by this but the angles lost confidence and were defeated. The Saltire has been the Scottish flag ever since.
St. Andew is the patron saint of Scotland. He was a New Testament apostle who was martyred on an X-shaped cross. His feast-day is 30 November. On this day some Scotsmen wear a thistle in the buttonhole.
The flag of Presbyterian Church differs a little bit from that of Scotland. It is also St Andrew’s cross but with a little addition: it has a burning bush centered, which signifies Presbyterianism. The symbol comes from the motto of the presbytarian church, nec tamen consumebatur (neither was it consumed) referring the bush that burnt, but was not consumed, so will be the church that will last for ever.
Evidence of the use of the saltire’s uses dates somewhat later. In 1385 the Parlament of Scotland decreed that Scottish soldiers should wear the saltire as a distinguishing mark. The earliest surviving Scottish flag consisting solely of the salire dates from 1503: a white cross on a red background. By 1540 the legend of King Angus had been altered to include the vision of the crux decussate against a blue sky. Thereafter the saltire, in its present form, became the national flag of Scotland.
At various times colours as light as sky blue or as dark navy have been used (a selection apparently motivated by which colour of blue dye was cheapest at the time), although recent versions have largely converged on the official recommendation of Pantone 300. In 2003 a committee of the Scottish Parliament proposed that the Scottish Executive (Scottish Government) adopt this colour as a standard. It is worth nothing that this blue is of a lighter shade than the pantone 280 of the Union Flag). The flag proportion is not fixed but is generally taken as 5:3 or 3:2, the former being preferred. The cross should have a width of 1/5 the height of the flag.
The Scottish Saltire and field is one of the components of the Union Flag. A reversed version (blue saltire on a white field) is to be found in the naval jack of Russia used before and after the Soviet Union (Saint Andrew is also a patron saint of Russia). Additionally, the blue Saltire on white design is featured on the Coat of arms of Nova Scotia, Canada and its flag (Nova Scotia was originally a Scottish colony), but the blue used for nova Scotia is generally a light blue. The Spanish island of Tenerife and the Colombian island of Sanandres also use the Saltire on their flags.
1.5.2. Scottish Emblem
The thistle is the national emblem of Scotland. Why did the Scottish people choose thorny plant as the national emblem of their country? The answer is interesting, and it can be found in the history of Scotland. The people of that country choose the thistle as their national emblem because it saved their land from foreign invaders many years ago.
People say that during a surprise night attack by the invaders the Scottish soldiers were awakened by the shouts of the invaders as their bare feet touched the thorns of the thistles in the field they were crossing.
This, of course, was a good reason to choose the thistle as a national emblem!
1.5.3. Clans and Tartans
The Gaelic word ‘clan’ means ‘family’ or ‘descendants’ and the great clans of the 16th and 17th centuries were indeed very similar to enormous families, ruled by powerful chiefs. A clan is a powerful group whose core comprises a number of families derived from or accepted as being derived from, a common ancestor. Almost without exception, that core is accompanied by a further number of dependent and associated families who have either sought the protection of the clan at some point in history or have been tenants or vassals of its chief. That chief is owed allegiance by all members of the clan, but ancient tradition nevertheless states that ‘the clan is above the chief’. Althoug Gaelic has been supplanted by English in the lowlands of Scotland for nearly a thousand years, it is an acceptable convention to refer to the great lowland families, like the Douglases, as clans, although the heads of certain families, such as Bruce, prefer not use the term. Allegiance was generally given to a father’s clan, but Celtic tradition includes a strong element of descent through, and loyalty to, a mother’s line. In reality, the chief of a clan would ‘ingather’ any stranger, of whatever family, who possessed suitable skills, maintained his allegiance and, if required, adopted the clan surname.
Sometimes there were fierce battles between different clans but nowadays the McDonalds and the Mckenzies, the Campbells and the Landsays all live in peace with each other.
The wearing of tartans or coloured checks was common in the highlands before the defeat by the English in 1745.Originally, the tartan was work as a single piece of cloth, drawn in all the waist and thrown over the shoulders. The kilt did not become popular until the beginning of the 18th century.
Each clan has its own tartan and, since the first international gathering of the clans in 1972, many people have become interested in traditional form of Scottish dress. Tartans are now part of international fashion. However, many visitors to Scotland are keen to find out if they have historical connections with any particular clan so that proudly wear the correct tartan.
Originally the Scottish tartan was a distinction of rank of position. It was not identified by weave but by the number of colours in the weave. If only one colour was used it depicted a servant, two a farmer rank, three, an officer rank, five, a chieftain, six for a poet, and seven for a chief. Eventually, clans or families adopted their own tartan, using a range of animal and earth colours which were frequently secret, only known to the weavers of the islands. They included yellows, blue, whites, greens, browns, reds, black, and purple. Some say that a keen eye can identify the colour with a particular island, almost like a wine taster can identify the year and the vineyard. Seven different types of tartans.
- Chief’s Dress Sett: worn by the chief and members of his family.
- The Clan Tartan: worn by members of the clan.
- The Hunting tartan: Fall colours worn by members of the clan.
- Mourning Setts: selfexplanitory.
- District Setts: regional, worn by anyone in that region.
- The woman Sett: usually black and white colours.
- The Royal Sett: The Royal Stewart, a free tartan which can be worn by anyone.
1.5.4. Septs
The clan systems developed in the Middle Ages, and grew rapidly into a strongly traditional family tree relationship, still quite powerful. The year 1672 saw the clans officially recognized under decree of the lord Lyon King of Arms, when broad-based family organizations in the lowlands and border country were called ‘names’, while those in the Highlands became ‘Clans’. Good maps can be obtained in Scotland showing the various domains, while any tailor of distinction can show you relevant tartans. Many Britons are deeply envious of this clan connections, and try very hard to establish ancestral relationships entitling them to wear the tartans. No doubt with a partial eye on the export market in cloth, authorities have devised ‘Septs’, which are names possibly connected with clans in bygone days, perhaps as prisoners or as servants and holders of these names may officially wear the tartan of their adopted clan. Clan chieftains of today do not all live in Scotland, nor do they all have the same name as their Clan. A Sept is a family name which can be related to a clan or larger family for various reasons: Either through marriage or by seeking protection from a larger and more powerful neighbouring clan or family. Many names which are recorded as Septs have since become clans in their own right and many can be related to more than one clan.
1.5.5. The Kilt
Today’s Highland dress is distinctive, smart, martial, formal and known wide as Scotland’s national costume. However like the tartan itself the origins of the kilt are surrounded by a degree of controversy.
The Highlander of old (pre-1746) would often have worn the feileadh mor, Gaelic for a large piece of woollen tartan material wrapped round the body, belted at the waist and pinned over the shoulder. It no doubt also served as a blanket while campaigning – the word ‘plaid’ is the Gaelic plaide meaning blanket. A sensible garment which could give warmth or be worn lose with sword arm free. Origins may lie with the ancient Roman or Celtic tunic. In fact both recent highlanders and ancient celts also worn tight trousers- truis. These were particularly popular on horseback!
The Great Kilt a single piece of wool approximately twelve yards long. It was used as primary clothing, coat, raincoat, and tent to those who wore it. Scotland is a country of much ground water. Before there were roads, travel usually involved wading in a lot of ground water. One theory is that most of the clothing was made of wool. Therefore water would rise in the clothing due to capillary action. As a result, wearing trousers would result in one being wet from head to toe.
Heavy woollen hose that were worn with the kilt kept the legs warm and the gap between the tops of the hose and the bottom of the kilt kept the water from rising higher than the tops of the woollen hose. The result was being warmer and drier. The small kilt (8yards) reportedly was invented by the military to be more convenient.
Exactly when the fealeadh beg (filibeg), the tailored version worn from waist to knee, came into existence is open to debate. One suggestion is that an Englishman in charge of an iron smelter at Invergarry around 1730, Thomas Rawlinson, suggested that his workforce would fare better at their work if the dispensed with the upper part if their garment and worn what we would describe as a kilt. The word ‘kilt’ itself, although not Gaelic, is probably older. A Scandinavian or old English root from a verb meaning ‘to hitch up and fold a garment’ seems most likely.
Today’s kilt can be worn, particularly by pipers, with a plaid – a long piece of tartan wrapped round the upper body which, along with the kilt, are a modern version of the full feileadth mor of past times.
After the battle of Culloden in 1746, traditional highland dress was banned along with tartan from 1746-82. However Highland regiments were being formed in the government army and most of these adopted the kilt and a tartan as part of their uniform. From this martial background comes the style of today’s Highland Dress.
When George 4 visited Edinburgh in 1822, Full Highland Dress was worn by almost everybody including King George himself thanks to the efforts of Sir Walter Scott. The kilt became quite definitely the distinctive national dress of Scotland. Why wear a kilt?
‘The kilt is the finest national dress in the world and should be preserved as such.’
Andrew MacThomas of Finegard
19th Hereditary chief of clan Mac-
Thomas, Edinburgh, October1978
‘The kilt is perfectly normal dress for a man of Scotland ancestry or conections, and anyone who feels differently is simply displaying his ignorance’
J. Charles Thompson.
‘Once you’ve worn the kilt – the world is never quite the same to you’
WebMaster.
1.5.6. Bagpipes
Ancient origin.
Although the early history of the bagpipe is still unclear, it seems likely the instrument was first developed in pre-Christian times. It seems likely it was developed from an instrument similar to a hornpipe or shawm and coexisted with them. Indeed in several different piping traditions today the bagpipe is played alongside a shawn-like instrument, in Brittany, Catolania, and Istria. Where or when a bag was first attached to one of these instruments is likely to remain a mystery. However, although the Aramaic word sum-pon-yah, appearing in Daniel 3:5, 10, and 15, has been translated ‘dulcimer’ (a stringed instrument) and ‘symphony’, modern bible translations generally render the expression as ‘bagpipe’ (Leiden 1958, p.1103). The earliest secular reference to a bagpipe occurs around 400BC, when Aristophones, the Athenian poet jibed that the pipers of Thebes (an enemy of Athens) blew pipes made of dogskin with chanters made of bone. Several hundred years later, Suetonius described the Roman Emperor Nero as a player of the tibia utricularius. Nero is reported to have said he would play them in public as a penance for not winning a poetry contest. The Romans may well have spread the pipes through the Roman Empire, but there is still little evidence for this.
Spread and development.
The dark Ages have left us practically nothing regarding bagpipes or their position in societies. Prior to the 12th century, only a few Pictish and Irish stone carvings record the continued existence of bagpipes during this time. When they were first introduced to the British Isles is debatable. Findings of statuettes of bagpipes in Roma era archeological digs in England could indicate a diffusion of the bag technology from that vector. Ireland has references going back at least to the Middle ages, as well as the stone carvings previously mentioned which date back to the 8th century. An explosion of popularity seems to have occurred from around the 12th century; the tune used by Robert burns for ‘Scots Wha Hae’, ‘Hey Tutti Taiti’, is traditionally said to have been the tune played as Robert the Bruce’s troops marched to the battle of Bannockburn in 1314. During the 12th century, Europe underwent a flourishing of art and culture as her horizons were being expanded with the crusades. The bagpipes were no exception, and many of Europe’s unique bagpipes began to develop around this time.
Actual examples of bagpipes from before the 18th century are extremely rare; however, a substantial nimber of carvings, engravings, manuscript illuminations, and so on survive. They make it clear that bagpipes varied hugely from set to set. It seems likely that bagpipe makers at that time would have mostly been primarily woodwarkers with an incomplete grasp of the art of pipemaking.
The role of the bagpipe would have varied naturally from place to place, but in Bulgaria it was said, ‘A wedding without a bagpipe is like a funeral’, and in Britain they were a common adjunct to religious festivals. In Britain, pipers became part of the travelling minstrel class, acting as carriers of news, gossip and music around the country. In the Scottish highlands, the pipers started to displace the harpers, the chief Celtic musicians since roman times, round about the 16th century. In 1760, the first serious study of the highland bagpipe and its music was attempted, in Joseph MacDonald’s ‘Compleat Theory’. Further south, we have a manuscript by a William Dixon from Nothumberland. This contains music which fits a nine-note bagpipe identical to the modern Great Highland Bagpipe; however the music is quite different, consisting mostly of variation sets of common dance tunes.
In the modern era the use of bagpipes has become a common tradition for military funerals and memorials on the Anglophone world, and they are often used at the funerals f high-ranking civilian public officials as well. Weddings, dances and parties are also venues for piping, in fact any social event, that can be given a lift by the addition of this unique instrumental music.
The national instrument in Scotland is bagpipe. There are different kinds of bagpipes. ‘Durer’ Design based on the famous Durer engraving. Chanter in c’ with a beating (single) reed; it works with recorder fingering in a compass of c’-d’. Drones can be tuned c-g or d-a, therefore it is possible to play in two keys – c major and d minor. This bagpipe sounds not loud and it is easy to blow. Also available in d’ and g’.
Schaferpfeif - this type of bagpipe can be seen in numerous pictures from the 16th century, particulary in the famous book of Michael Praetorius. The chanter of this bagpipe has a compass of 1 ½ octaves, it works with the hald-closed French fingering in g and semitones are possible. With the extra tuning hole in the drone it is possible to play in g major, g minor, a minor. One or two drones in g, g. Also available in a’.
Gaita gallega. This popular type of bagpipe comes from Galicia in northern Spain.The chanter of this bagpipe has a compass h’-d’’’ (usually it is possible to overblow one or two tones more), it works with the open fingering in c’’ and semitones are possible. With extra tuning hole in the drone it is possible to play in c major, c minor, d minor. One or two drones in C, c. Also available in d’.
Great highland bagpipe. Just intonation, pitch 440 or 466. Timbers – pearwood, plumwood, apricotwoos, as well granadilla for and boxwood for gaita. Rings – artificial ivory, ebonite, artificial or natural horn. Bags – hide or sheepskin. Cane chanter reeds. Cane, plastic or bronze drone reeds. Reeds of Spanish and Scottish makers are supplied for chaters of gaita and GNB.
In more recent years, often driven by revivals of native folk music and dance, many types of bagpipes have resurged in popularity, and in many cases instruments that were on the brink of extinction have become extremely popular. In Brittany, the concept of the pipe band was adopted, the Great Highland Bagpipe was brought in and the bagad was created, a showcase ensemble for Breton folk music.
1.6. Sports and Recreation
Sports plays an important part in the life of Scotland Association football (soccer) still has a wide following and is dominated by the Glasgow clubs, rangers and Celtic.
1.6.1. Rugby union football is played especially by private schools and by their former pupils, but in the towns of the borders region it draws players and spectators from a wider social range. In the Highlands, shinty, a hockeylike game, is popular. Curling is another traditional sport, though temperatures are seldom low enough for it to be other than an indoor sport played on man-made ice.
1.6.2. Golf, which originated in Scotland, is accessible not merely to the affluent through private clubs as in many countries but to most Scots through widespread public facilities. The old course at st Andrews if fife is the most famous of many excellent seazside courses. For hill-walking, rock-climbing, sailing and canoeing. Scotland has outstanding natural advantages. Skiing facilities have been developed in the cairngorms and other areas. Hunting, shooting and fishing are traditionally the sports, of the rich, but the last is popular with all classes. Other outdoor sports, such as
1.6.3. Tossing the caber (a heavy pole) and
1.6.4. Throwing the hummer are integral to the highland games, at which pipe bands and highland dancers (usually solo) also perform.
Many Scots find these games and other traditions, such as Burns suppers (honouring Robert Burns) and eating haggis (a delicacy consisting of offal boiled in a sheep’s stomach), a self-conscious parade of legendary characteristics that have little to do with ordinary Scottish life – a show put on, like national costumes, to gratify the expectations of tourists (encouraged by the royal family’s annual appearance at the Braemar Gathering near Balmoral Castle). Scottish country dancing, however, is a pastime whose popularity has spread far beyond Scotland.
1.6.5. The Highland Games
The games which are now celebrated in the highlands first started in Celtic times and were always held in front of the king. Competitors were held to find the strongest and fastest men to the body-guards and messengers. Essential to the modern games are the events such as putting the stone, throwing the hammer.
Scottish Highland, at which sports (including tossing the caber, putting the weight and throwing the hammer), dancing and piping competitions take place, attracts large numbers of spectators from all over the world.
There meetings are held every year in different places in the Scottish Highlands. They include the clans led by their pipers, dressed in their kilt, tartan plaids, and plumed bannets, who march round the arena.
The features common to Highland Games are bagpipers and Highland dancing competitions and the performance of heavy athletic events-some of which, such as tossing the caber, are Highland in origin. All competitors wear highland dress, as do most of the judges. The games take place in a large roped-off arena. Several events place at the same time pipers and dancers perform on a platform, athletes tossing the caber, putting the weight throwing the hammer, and wrestle. There is also a competition for the best-dressed highlander.
Highland dancing is performed to bagpipe music, by men and women, such as the Sword Dance and the Reel.
No one knows exactly when the men of the Highlands first gathered to wrestle, toss cabers, throw hammers, put weights, dance and play music. The Games reflected the tongh life of the early. Scots Musclepower was their means of livelihood-hand ling timber, lifting rocks to built houses, hunting. From such activities have developed the contest of tossing the caber, putting the weight and so on. Tossing the caber originated among woodmen who wanted to cast their logs into the deepest part of a river. Tossing the caber is not a question. Of who can throw it farthest? For a perfect throw the caber must land in the 12 o’clock position after being thrown in a vertical semicircle. The caber is very heavy and long lag.
1.7. Customs and Traditions
1.7.1. Yeletide Customs of Old Scotland.
Christmas and New Year were equally welcomed by Scots before the reformation of the 16th-17th centuries. All the customs of both festivals stem from that time.
The name comes from the Scandinavian, for whom ‘Yultid’ was the festival celebrated at the twelfth month, being the twelfth name of Odin, who was supposed to come to earth in December, disguised in a hooded cloak. He would sit awhile at the firesides listening to the people, and where there was want he left a gift of bread or coins.
Christmas was often known as Nollaig Beag, Little Christmas. The custom was to celebrate the Birth of Christ with all solemnity, the festivities began a few days later, and spilled into New Year and twelfth night, which was known as ‘Little Christmas’. However, the French often called Christmas colloquially ‘Homme est ne’ (Man in Born) which is thought by some scholars to be the origin of the word ‘Hogmanay’, steaming from the time of the ‘Auld Alliance’.
The reformation hit Scotland as hard as everywhere else. By 1583, Bakers who made the Yulebreads were fined; their punishment could be lessened if they gave the names of their customers! In 1638 the general assembly in Edinburgh tried to abolish Yuletide.
While the same things were going on south of the border, with the restoration of the Monarchy came the restoration of Christmas. In Scotland, the rigid laws of the new Kirk still frowned upon Christmas celebration, so it stayed underground. Only the High Church and the Catholics kept the old traditions going.
In England many of the symbolism and earlier religious elements were lost, ad it took the intrepid Victorian historians to gather together the remnants and re-establish Christmas, an effort which was helped by the strongly Christmas orientated Royal family with its German consort. The reformation in Germany had hardly touched Christmas at all, and Prince Albert brought it all to the public eye.
1.7.2. Hogmanay
English custom was not particularly accepted by Scotland. The inherent need to celebrate came out in Scotland as a revival of the New Year celebrations. In fact, hardly changed at all because old Christmas comprised three days of solemn Tribune, church services, fasting and hard work. Church on Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Followed by a day of charity on the Feast of Stephen and which we now call Boxing Day. No one would have thought much about parties and frolics until after these days were over. Ten the solemnity gave to joyous and often rowdy celebration and holiday under the name of ‘Homme est ne’ or Hogmanay.
Being intended by the reformed church, as a day of prayer, the puritanical elements gradually closed in on all those will defied the new laws and continued their festivities. In England soldiers were chosen especially for their noses a long nose was thought to be able to sniff out the spices in the Christmas baking better! In Scotland the bakers were encouraged to bake inform on their customers. In their attempts to stamp out frivolity, they prescribed that Christmas would be a working day. So it became the custom to work over Christmas.
This prevailed throughout the whole of Britain, especially in the working classes. Until 40 years ago postmen, bakers, transport workers, and medical staff were commonly expected to work, but because of the Victorian revival of Christmas in England, many other establishments closed, while in Scotland shops and many offices stayed open.
However, this did not mean that people did not celebrate Christmas. Often they would go to Church before work, or at Lunchtime, or in the evening. They would have a Christmas tree and Christmas dinner and children went to bed expecting that kindly old gentleman to call with a gift or two.
1.7.3. Christmas
Black Bun. Originally twelfth night cake. It is a very rich fruit cake, almost solid with fruit, almonds, spices and the ingredients are bound together with plenty of whisky. The stiff mixture is put into a cake tin lined with a rich short pastry and baked.
This takes the place of the even more ancient Sun Cakes. A legacy from Scotland’s close associations with Scandinavia. Sun Cakes were baked with a hole in the centre and symmetrical lines around, representing the rays of the Sun. This pattern is now found in the modern Scottish shortbread, and has been misidentified as convenient slices marked onto the shortbread.
Bees leave hives Christmas Morn. There is an old belief that early on Christmas Morning all bees will leave their hives, swarm, and then return. Many old Scots tales of having witnessed this happening, though no one can explain why. One explanation is that bees get curious about their surroundings, and if there is unexpected activity they will want to check it out to see if there is any danger. As people were often up and about on Christmas night observing various traditions, or just returning from the might services, the bees would sense the disturbance and come out to see what was going on.
Divination customs – ashes, Bull, Caliieach. There are a number of ancient divination customs associated with Scottish Christmas tradition. One involves checking the cold ashes the morning after the Christmas fire. A foot shape facing the door was said to be foretelling a death in the family, while a foot facing the room meant a new arrival.
Another was the ceremonial burning of old Winter, the Cailleach. A piece of wood was carved roughly to represent the face of an old woman, and then named as the spirit of winter, the Cailleach. This was placed onto a good fire to burn away, and all the family gathered had to watch to the end. The burning symbolised the ending of all the bad luck and enmities etc of the old year, with a fresh start.
The Candelmas Bull was in reality a cloud. It was believed tat a bull would cross the sky in the form of a cloud, early on the morning on Candlemas, February 2nd. From its appearance people would divine. An East travelling cloud foretold a good year, south meant a poor grain year, but if it faced to the west the year would be poor. This custom was a remnant of the ancient Mithraiac religion, when the bull-god would come at the start of Spring to warm of the year the farmers could expect.
Candlelight. All of the Celtic countries have a similar custom of lighting a candle at Christmastime to light the way of stranger.
In Scotland was the Oidche Choinnle, or Night of candles. Candles were placed in every window to light the way for the Holy Family on Christmas Eve and First footers on New Years Eve. Shopkeepers gave their customers Yule Candles as a symbol f goodwill wishing them a ‘Fire to warm you by a light to guide you’.
First Footers. It was and still is the custom for a stranger to enter the house after midnight on new years Eve/Day. There were taboos about the luck such a stranger would bring, especially in the days of hospitality to travelling strangers. A fair visitor was considered bad luck in most areas, partly due to the in-fighting between the dark Scots and the fair Norse invaders. However, in Christmas times, a fair haired man was considered very lucky providing his name was Andrew, because St. Andrew is the Patron saint of Scotland. A woman is considered taboo still in many areas!
The Firstfooter must make an offering, a Handsel. This can be food, drink or fuel for the fire. The ritual, which have grown up around this custom are many. An offering if food of drink must be accepted by sharing it with everyone present, including the visitor. Fuel must be placed onto the fire by the visitor with the words ‘A Good new Year to one and all and many may you see’. In todays often fireless society the fuel is usually presented as a polished piece of coal, or wood which can be preserved for the year as an ornament.
1.7.4. New Year’s Eve in Scotland
In Scotland most traditional ceremonies are connected not with the winter solstice, but with the New Year, when the mornings start to get lighter. Perhaps this is because in winter the sun rises much later in, say, Edinburgh than in London! In Allenadale, Nothumberland, there is a New Year’s Eve fire Festival; men parade with blazing tar barrels, and then throw them onto a great bonfire. The first foots then set out. Yes – foot, not feet! Over the border in Scotland, ‘first footing’ is a common custom; it’s considered lucky if a dark-haired man is the first to set foot in the house after midnight on hogmanay, bringing a coin, a piece of bread, or a lump of coal as a symbol of plenty for the coming year.
Centuries ago, it was the custom to put an ivy leaf in water on New Year’s Eve and leave it there until Twelfth Night (the 6th of January). If the leaf remained fresh and green, it foretold a good health year; if, however, black spots appeared on it, this meant illness and death in the family. Al holly and ivy was taken down in Twelfth night, as it was feared that it would attract goblins. It’s still considered unlucky in Britain to leave Christmas decorations up after Twelfth Night.
New Year Water. The first water drawn from any well, pond, or stream on New Year’s morning formerly had a very special significance. It was known as the Flower of the Well, or the Cream of the well, and whoever obtained it was certain of good luck in the coming year, if a young girl did so, she could expect to marry her true love before twelve months were out. Farmers in Scotland washed their dairy utensils with it and gave it to the cows, to drink, in the belief that by so doing they would increase the supply of milk. If it was bottled and kept in the house, it never lost its original freshness and purity, and by its presence there, it protected the family from misfortune until the next New Year came round.
1.7.5. St. Andrew’s Day. 30th November.
In the first chapters of the Gospels of mark and John in the New Testament it is said that Andrew was the first fisherman whom Jesus called to follow him. After Jesus died Andrew travelled as a missionary as far as Russia and then Greece. There, in the city of Patras, he was taken prisoner and condemned to die for being a Christian he is said to have chosen to be crucified on a cross ‘saltire’, because he thought he was unworthy to die in the same way as Jesus. This was probably about AD 60 -70.
Andrew’s body was taken to Constantinople. Five hundred years later a group of missionary monks set out from there to tell the Scottish people about Christianity. They took Andrew’s body with them as a protection, and an inspiration in their missionary work. Having landed on the east coast of Scotland, they set up an altar and founded a settlement at the place, now called St. Andrews.
Because of his missionary work, his martyrdom and the final resting place of his body, Andrew was chosen as patron saint of Russia, Greece and Scotland.
The Scottish people living in Scotland and other countries celebrate St. Andrew’s Night. These celebrations include ‘piping the haggises into the dining room; the traditional meat dish of a sheep’s heart, liver and oatmeal is carried steaming hot into the room to the music of the bagpipes.
St. Andrew’s Day is celebrated as the national day of Scotland.
1.7.6. Burn’s Night.
25th of January is celebrated all over the world by Scotsmen wherever they are, as it is the birthday of Robert Burns. There are hundreds of Burns clubs scattered throughout the world, and they all endeavour to hold burns Night celebrations to mark the birth of Scotland’s greatest poet. The first club was founded at Greenock, Renfrewshire, in 1802.
The traditional menu at the suppers is cock-a-leekie soup (chicken broth), boiled salt herring, haggis with turnips, and champit taties (mashed potatoes). The haggis is carried into the dining room behind a piper wearing traditional dress; he then reads a poem written especially for the haggis! The arrival of the haggis is usually heralded by the music of bagpipes. ‘The Immortal Memory’ is toasted, and the company stand in silent remembrance. Then follows dancing, pipe music, and celections from Burns’s lyrics, the celebration concluding with the poet’s famous ‘Auld Lang Syne’.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind,
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
And days of auld lang syne.
Chorus: For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne
We’ll take a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne!
And here’s a hand, my trusty friend,
And give a hand of thine,
We’ll take a cup of kindness yet
For auld lang syne!
1.7.7. Scottish Weddings.
Everybody knows about Gretna Green, the famous Scottish village just beyond the border. In the old days runaway couples escaped from England to Gretna Green to get married. The practice started in the year 1774. In that year a bill was passed in England forbidding marriages of persons under eighteen without their parents consent. In Scotland the legal age limit was sixteen – and still is for that matter. What is more, until the year 1856 the young couple could be married at once at any place in Scotland, without having to stay there for some time.
You may ask why all those young people chose Gretna Green for their wedding. After all, there are many romantic places in Scotland. The answer is simple. Gretna Green was the nearest village across the Scottish border, only ten miles north of Carlisle, on the main highway. To get there took the least time and the least money.
The blacksmith at Gretna Green was always ready to perform the marriage ceremony at a small fee. The formalities were very simple. All that was needed was a declaration made by the young couple in the presence of two witnesses. Visitors to Gretna Green can still see the old blacksmith’s shop and the famous marriage room in it.
The old tradition is still remembered. Many young couples who cannot get married in England because they are under age still think it romantic to go to Gretna Green. But today they must have enough money to say there for three weeks.
1.7.8. The Military Tattoo.
For many visitors the castle means nothing without the Edinburgh Military Tattoo which is taking place at the Castle esplanade. The esplanade had been a narrow rocky ridge until the middle of the 18th century when the present platform was created ads a parade ground.
The signal (Tattoo) indicated that soldiers should return to their quarters and that the beer in the taverns should be turned off. This signal was transmitted by drum beat each evening. Eventually this developed into a ceremonial performance of military music by massed bands.
It began when the city held its first International Festival in the summer of 1947. The army staged an evening military display on the Esplanade. The March and counter-march of the pipes and drums which was held near one of the most dramatic places anywhere in the world made it an immediate success. The tattoo haw been repeated every summer since on the same site. Each tattoo closes with another ‘tradition’ – the appearance of the lone piper on the battlements of the castle.
1.8. Scotland Today
Scotland is a country of differences. It is a country of yesterday and of today. Visitors often go there to see the old traditions but many Scots want things to change. Many Scots do not wear kilts, they do not eat haggis, and they do not belong to a clan. Many Scots love their country’s past but they want Scotland to be a rich, modern too.
Many Scots today are happy to be part of Great Britain but many want a freer Scotland too. And some Scots want Scotland to leave Great Britain.
Today, things are changing in Scotland. There is new life here: new business, new cinema, and new music. The big cities are exciting. The country is beautiful. Scotland is magic.
Conclusion
Our aim was to represent this country as it is, to show all peculiarities, style of life, customs and beliefs, Scottish people. So our investigation shows that in order to understand any foreign country and way of thinking of her people we should study her past, her history and culture. Besides in our work we examined cultural-specific vocabulary of Scottish language and analysed its realias. It’s also very interesting to know some facts about Scotland or any other foreign country and their legacy. It not only enriches our knowledge and broadens our outlook but also helps to draw different countries together. So we hope that this lecture will help people to know more about such interesting and far country as Scotland.
Chapter 2
The Practical Part
2.1. The Classification of Realias
In the practice of translation and in philology it is accepted to single out the following types of realias: geographical, ethnographical, folkloric, mythological home, which includes dwelling, food, beverages, clothes, public houses and shops, transport; historical, social and political, customs and traditions, habitual behaviour, which includes gestures and superstitions. In our project practically all of them are represented.
The nearness between language and culture reveals in realias visually: the appearance of new realias in material and spiritual life of society leads to the appearance of realias in language and the time of appearance of new realias can be fixed rather precisely because the vocabulary reacts on all changes of social life. So we classified all Scottish realias according to the following scheme.
- Geographical: Gretna Green, firth, Ben Nevis, Clyde, Lock Ness, Edinburgh, Meadowbank, Royal Mile, Highland.
- Etnographical: Auld Lang Syne, Greyfriars Bobby, Blue saltire, thistle, Sword of State, Mons Meg, Edinburgh Castle, Durer, bagpipe, Thistle Chapel, St. Gile’s Cathedral, Holyroadhouse.
- Folkloric: ‘Rise and Follow Charlie’.
- Mythological: Nessie.
- Social: clan, sept.
- Home: 1)clothes: tartan, kilt, filibeg.
2)food: haggis, cock-a-leekie.
3)beverage: Scotch.
We should mention here that historical realias include the names of historical events, the most important dates of the country, documents, political and religious groups, the participants of these events and so on.
7. Historical: Robert Bruce, William Wallace, Mary Queen of Scots, Prince Bonnie, Jacobites, King Oengus, Battle of Bannockburn, Treaty of Northampton, David Rizzio, Prestonpans, Falkirk.
8. Customs and Traditions, holidays: Burn’s Night, Scottish Wedding, Military Tattoo, handsel, Hogmanay, Yelitide, Black Bun, Caliieach, Candlelight, Nolaig Beag.
9. Habitual behaviour, superstitions: First Footers, Twelfth Night, Flower of the Well.
Let us give some explanations of the most unfamiliar realias:
- Tartan – 1) woollen cloth woven with bands of different colours and widths crossing each other at right angles, of a kind worn originally by Scottish highlanders: a tartan skirt/kilt. 2) A special pattern on this cloth worn by a particular Scottish clan, and known by the clan’s name: the MacDonald tartan.
- Golf – an outdoor game in which the player tries to hit a small hard ball into a series of 9 or 18 holes using as few strikes as possible. Golf is traditionally said to have been invented in Scotland and the Scottish king James 6 made it fashionable in England when he came to London. For many amateur players a game of golf and the activities of the golf club are an important part of middle-class social life: play a round of golf.
- Highland Games – also Highland gathering a festival with competitions in Scottish sports, dancing and music held every year in the highlands, the best known Highland Games is the one held at Braemar, though similar festivals take place in other Scottish tows, some of which are outside the highlands. Typical sports include tossing the caber.
- ‘Auld Lang Syne’ – ‘Good Old Time’ is a Scottish song by Robert burns set to music, which according to tradition is played at parting at the end of a holiday dinner.
- Haggis – is a traditional Scottish dish, delicacy consisting of offal boiled in a sheep stomach.
- Kilt – is a national cloth in Scotland. It’s a piece of wool approximately six metres or twelve yeards long. It was used as primary clothing, coat, raincoat, and tent to those who wore it.
- First Foot – is the first New Year visitor. It’s considered lucky if a dark-haired man is the first foot in the house after midnight on Hogmanay.
- Flower of the Well – is the first water drawn from any well, pond, or stream on New Years morning, and whoever obtained it was certain of good luck in the coming year.
- Gretna Green – is the famous Scottish village just beyond the border. In the old days runaway couples escaped from England to Gretna Green to get married.
- Mons Meg – is the giant siege gun in the military collection. It was made at Mons (Belgium) in 1449. It weighs 6040 kilogrammes.
- Military Tattoo – is the march and counter-march of the pipes and drums. In august every evening for three weeks, you can see the Edinburgh Military tattoo next to the castle, with soldiers and musicians from Scotland and from many other countries.
- Clan – is a family group. Every Scotsmen belongs to a clan, all the people of the same family belong to the same clan. There are about 300 different clans in Scotland.
- Firth – is a word defines an outfall in Scotland.
- Handsel – is an offering, which the firstfooter must make. This can be food, drink, or fuel for the fire.
- Black Bun – is a Twelfth Night cake. It is a very rich fruit cake, almost solid with fruit, almonds, spices and the ingredients are bound together with plenty of whisky.
- Scotch – is a famous Scottish drink. There are over one hundred distilleries in Scotland making it, and every whisky is different.
- Cock-a- leekie – is a national dish, broth with spring onions.
2.2. The Part of the Lesson
Exercises
Test your knowledge
Write answers to these questions:
- Why Scotland is ‘a country in a country’?
- How many people live in Scotland?
- How many people speak Gaelic?
- Why and when were Scotland and England united again? How did England govern Scotland?
- What is Highland Scotland characterised with?
- What is Edinburgh famous for? Name the main Buildings. What festivals are held in Edinburgh?
- What can you say about St. Andrew’s Day? What is St. Andrew famous for?
- Why was Mary Queen of Scots executed?
- What role did Prince Charles Edward Stewart play in Scotland’s history?
10) What Scottish famous people do you know? What are they famous for?
11) How do Scotsmen celebrate Burn’s birthday? Why Burns is so famous?
12) What is your attitude to the Scotsmen’s passion for group dancing?
13) What ids ‘first footing’?
14) What is the village of Gretna Green famous for?
15) Why can Alexander Fleming be called a pioneer of medicine?
16) What do you know about Scottish musical instruments? What can you say about bagpipe history and origin?
17) What can you say about clans and septs?
18) What national dishes do you know in Scotland?
19) Why Loch Ness is so popular in Scotland?
20) In what way are the names of William Wallace and Robert Bruce connected?
21) What can you say about history of Scottish national emblem?
22) What kinds of sport are the most popular in Scotland?
23) Name the most famous rulers of Scotland.
24) What international festival held in Scotland has become one of the world’s largest cultural events?
25) What can you say about typical Scottish names?
26) Which inventions were made by Scotsmen?
27) What is the difference between clans and septs?
28) What can you say about the origin of military tattoo?
29) How many kinds of tartan do you know? Why they are different?
30) Do you agree that Scotsmen are superstitious people? Why?
2. Are these sentences true (T) or false (F)?
1) You need six metres of tartan to make a kilt.
2) Only people living in Scotland can go to clan meetings.
3) Golf in Scotland is very expensive.
4) The golf capital of Scotland is Edinburgh.
5) Haggis is made from the meat of Red deer.
6) Glasgow is the biggest city in Scotland.
7) People in Scotland don’t wear kilts any more.
8) Tossing the caber is a sport only for woman.
9) The most important Scottish river is Clyde.
10) The television was invented by a Scotsman.
3. Explain the essence and geographical associations and facts.
The highlands and the Islands, Loch Ness, Cement-and steel monster, Edinburgh, Mary Queen of Scots, Glasgow, Bonny Prince Charlie, haggis, Scotch, Mons Meg, the Edinburgh Festival, Tartans, St. Andrew, thistle, Gaelic, bagpipe, Thistle chapel, Yuletide, Cailleach lassie, clans and septs, Hogmanay, blue saltire, Royal Mile, Greyfriars Bobby. Black Bun, Flower of the Well.
4. Tell about this people. What are they famous for?
John Logie Baird, Mary queen of Scots, Robert the Bruce, St. Andrew, William Wallace, Prince Charles Edward Stewart, Walter Scott, Robert Louis Stevenson, Archibald Cronin, James clerk Maxwell, Alexander Bell, Robert Burns, John Knox, King Oengue, David Rizzio, King Edwin, Thomas Rawlinson.
5. Talking points.
- In 1314 Scotland gained its independence from England thanks to Robert Bruce’s victory at the battle of Bannockburn. The establishment of the Scottish parliament in 1999 is the result of the Scottish people’s will. How can you comment both events? How do they characterize the Scottish as a nation?
- What do you think about the Scottish people’s character and humour? What do you like most in the Scottish people’s character and behaviour? Why? Support you point of view.
- Suppose you are given a chance to go to Scotland. What place would you like to visit first of all? Why?
- You’ve read about Robert the Bruce, Prince Charles, Mary Queen of Scots and others who influenced the Scotland’s history. Can you call any of them a national hero? Who do you think is worth remembering nowadays as a real son, daughter of the nation? Why?
- What festivals do you prefer to visit or to take part in? Why?
Bibliography
1. Baranovsky L.B., Panorama of Great Britain, Minsk, 1990, 325c.
2. Harvey P., Jones R., Britain Explored, Longman, 1996, 248c.
3. Ivanova A.K., Satinova V.F., English revision course, Minsk, 1991, 423c.
4. Khmunina T., Konon N., Welsh I., Customs traditions and festivals of Great Britain, Prosveschenie, 1984, 423c.
5. Nesterova N.M., Cultural study. England, Fenix, 2001, 316c.
6. Ostrovsky B.S., English Optional course, Moscow, 1992, 346c.
7. Pavolotsky V. M., British studies, Caro, 2002, 415c.
8. Petrova C., Rudavin O., English Topics collection, Fenix, 2002, 378c.
9. Pozdeeva E.K., Reading for Pleasure.Moscow, 1990, 256c.
10. Satinova V.F., Read and Speak about Britain and the British, Minsk, 2004, 443c.
11. Steve Flinders., Scotland, Oxford University Press, 2003, 22c.
12. Stepnova T.S., Time, Events, People, M., 1983, 322c.
13. Tomakhin G.D., Great Britain. Everyday life and leisure, Prosvesheniye, 2002, 127c.
14. Tomakhin G.D., American Realias, M., High School, 1988, 240c.
15. Ter-Minasova S.G., Language and cultural communication, State Moscow University, 2004, 352c.
16. Utevskaya L.N., English and American Literature, Corona, 2004, 380c.
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