An Introduction to Scotland's Languages
Gaelic and Scots are the indigenous languages of Scotland. They are protected under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, and Gaelic has official status as a ‘national language’ of Scotland under the Gaelic Language Act (2005). Both languages are part of our history and culture with rich oral traditions still very much alive in song, drama and storytelling. The literature of both languages dates back hundreds of years, and today talented writers are producing excellent new books for adults and children.
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View the Introduction to Scotland's Languages in pdf format.
Useful Links
The Association for Scottish Literary Studies publishes a range of titles, including the Scottish Literary Review, ScotLit, Scottish Language, New Writing Scotland, and the Scotnotes study guides.
BBC ALBA is a Gaelic language digital TV channel and features news,
sport, drama, documentary and entertainment, as well as children’s programmes.
The Gaelic Books Council is the lead organisation with responsibility for supporting Scottish Gaelic authors and publishers, and for raising the profile and reach of Scottish Gaelic books in Scotland and internationally.
A major voice in promoting Gaelic arts and culture, Fèisean nan Gàidheal provides learning opportunities in Gaelic music, song, dance and drama to over 13,000 young people across Scotland.
Celebrating Gaelic language and culture, the Royal National Mòd provides opportunities for people of all ages to perform and compete across a range of disciplines including Gaelic music and song, Highland dance, instrumental, drama, sport and literature.
Scots Hoose is a free online resource for children, young people and new Scots writers to inspire and support creativity in the Scots language. Here you can learn more about Scots language, improve writing skills, and discover poems, stories and songs.
Scots Radio is a monthly podcast that speaks about the culture and news of people who use Scots in their working world. The site features interviews, videos, resources and news.
Read the latest about the prestigious position of the Scots Scriever residency, hosted by the National Library of Scotland.
The Scottish Poetry Library is a unique national resource and advocate for the art of poetry, and Scottish poetry in particular.
Shetland ForWirds celebrates Shetland dialect in literary and oral material, and is also home to a Shetland Dictionary, a dialect map and teaching resources.
Stòrlann Nàiseanta na Gàidhlig coordinates the production and distribution of Gaelic educational resources throughout Scotland. Through their programme, resources are distributed free of charge to nurseries, primary schools, secondary schools and lifelong learning groups.
A contemporary Gaelic theatre company is committed to producing high quality Gaelic theatre through the use of multi-media and digital technologies.
TRACS represents the traditional arts in Scotland and is a collaboration between three forums: Music, Storytelling and Dance.
Discover fun games, activities and resources themed around Scots on the Scots Language Centre website. This free resource was developed in collaboration with Education Scotland, and the activities are designed to support the teaching and learning of Literacy, English, Modern Languages, and Scots.
