Scotland: Customs and Tradition.

            Scotland is distinguished for many ancient traditions and customs about thousand years that have persist for centuries in this modern society, particularly in the Scottish life. Some typical customs are about the lucky, fertility, land and eternal cheerfulness.  Although many remain common customs today, here are little pieces of wonderful traditions, some that haven’t been remembered, and other ones that remain popular in many territories across this beautiful country today.

 Some Scottish customs and traditions are really important to know for example one of them is “Feet Washing”; this is used before the wedding, when a tub of water is placed in the best room or main room of the house in which the bride places her feet. The wife has female friend, these people gather around to wash them. A wedding ring from a happily married woman is placed in the tub and it’s believed that whoever finds the ring will be the next to get married. The main room or the best room is made to sit by the tub where the wife legs are painted with soot, ashes and cinders. This kind of tradition is still used by some places of Scotland.

           

            You can find others popular custom in Scotland, which is carried out even today, this custom is called “Blackening”. The couple are kidnapped by own friends one night before the celebration about wedding and then plumes and smoke cover in around the village like ceremony.

            This was a specially tradition in Scotland, it was the “Creeling of the Bridegroom”, in this Scottish celebration, the people puts into a big basket some stones and tied to the grooms back. The husband was forced to move the big basket with stones around the complete town and wasn’t until his bride agreed to kiss him when their friends would allow the “Creeling” to the end.

            Recently this celebration wasn’t celebrated in the Scottish nation. This celebration is called Christmas because it was against the culture tradition of Scotland; I mean the religion of this country.

            Scottish calendar has an important celebration; it is called Hogmanay, this custom refers to the “new year’s eve” when people in Scotland prefer this celebration before to celebrate the Christmas. The origins of this celebration is not clear and specially the name of this custom, some people say it is the celebration of winter solstice among the Nords and another say it is part of a celebration from Gaelic people. Before to celebrate it, you need prepare some things like cleaning the house (the night before to 1^st January), Getting rid of debt, Torch and Bonfire Ceremonies, etc.

 

            For Scottish life, the food is really important in many Ceremonial Occasions for example: Christmas, New Year and wedding, all of these traditions are represented with one symbol, it is the whiskey.

            On 30th November in Scotland women celebrates St. Andrew's Day, where a young woman pray to St. Andrew for a husband and then make a wish and look for a sign that they thirst and prayers were heard. One of the most important traditions of this celebration is the sign of peeling an entire apple without breaking the peel.

            The customs and tradition form an important function in their lives, for example every Scottish thinks about many celebration and they prepared previously the celebrates day. People are very careful with all things about these since when Scotland rose as nation to now.

References:

Tourism web site, consulted (October 17^th), Available in: http://www.scotlands-enchanting-kingdom.com/scottish-customs-and-traditions.html

Tourism web site, consulted (October 17^th), Available in: http://www.scotland.org/about-scotland/scottish-culture-and-traditions

Tourism web site, consulted (October 19^th), Available in: http://www.everyculture.com/Sa-Th/Scotland.html

Tourism web site, consulted (October 19^th), Available in: http://freewebs.com/clanswoman/birth.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

Myths and Legends

One of the fascinating facts at the time of entering into a culture , whatever , is discovered through mythology formed as this , following points in common with other cultures , but finding characteristics of the country in question, to begin we must ask ourselves , how this culture was formed ? Answering this question will reach deep mythological aspects very stored in the roots of this mystical land, so legendary aspects of life and work of the main national hero Sir William Wallace and his transcendence through space-time Scottish.

Referring mythological aspects about other cultures we can find similarities in their cosmological beliefs that give rise to special creatures which are credited as gods, demi-gods or descendants of other dimensions, Scotland is no exception, with a Celtic influence and Gaelic in certain respects. While there is no conclusive written about Celtic mythology and even more with the invasion of Rome to territories with which shared a polytheistic belief one might tend to confuse throughout history. The curious thing about all this is that the Celtic mythology presents much more than the Roman deities, considered as the main goddess of fertility Andarta strength is kept alive in the unconscious of humanity to this day, it represents the archetypal figure of the protective and caring mother yet invincible warrior, Curoi Mac Daire sun god was a giant, armed with an ax. He was also a god of time, associated with strong storms, Erce Goddess mother goddess of the harvest. These beings are often repeated in Irish mythology because of its close relationship to share in the same island with four different nations Wales and England. These are usually one of the main concepts regarding Scottish mythology and cosmogony. Other famous and important character in the mythology in Scotland is the large dinosaur like creature is reputed to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands.  

Known as the guardian of Scotland, Sir William Wallace, the presence of this character in the idiosyncrasy of the people take a very important place, because he was fighting against the wealth and tyranny of English kings and he refused the idea of condemn his nation than he love with a passion disproportionate, the main reason because Wallace became one of the stronger leadership around the world, give to the world history a great hero than his legacy break the barriers of time and space. The struggle for the independence of Scotland in the hands of William Wallace and sense to strengthen and change to a diminished army and defeated. Thinking that leadership is something that only few can master so perfectly as this hero, considering the difficulties of the time in which this important heroic deed, is worthy of respect, admiration and reverence, and the Scots know very well reflect the importance of their national heroes, installing a giant monument which is very popular as a place of ritual to reflect the life and work of who is considered the brave heart of Scotland, although he paid tribute hollywood famous movie with Mel Gibson, popularizing the image even more Wallace , but if we want to focus on discovering the real story, we must move away from cinematographic film and focus on the family history and the brief written documents of antiquity, or simply ask a Scottish which is the feelings than emerged from his emotionality perspective. After all the most sincere element of knowledge is the heart, without a doubt the Scots have that in a considerable quantity, one of the most important legacies of Wallace.

Science

SCOTLAND SCIENCE

      Scotland has been an important cradle of research and discoveries in science, mathematics, engineering and technology for centuries. The Scottish Enlightenment in the eighteenth century, in particular, saw a large number of scientific findings, progress and achievement that took place as a result of investments in education, a thriving economy and a worldview optimistic after the act of union in 1707.  Below we offer five brief reviews of the most famous Scottish scientist made tremendous progress in their fields and that certainly helped shape the world in which we live.

     These Scottish scientists serve as inspiration for future generations of young Scots looking to make their mark in the history books as well.

      Some Scottish scientists was James Clerk Maxwell: Theorical Thermo electromagnetism (1831-1879) His groundbreaking work in the science of Scotland and was it unify global magnetic observations, electrical and optical parts of the electromagnetic theory of Maxwell in the same league as Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein on the world stage, Indeed, Einstein once said of Maxwell’s work was the most profound and the most fruitful that physics has experienced since Newton’s time.

     Its four fundamental equations describing the behavior of electric and magnetic fields. They can be used to demonstrate that the light is an electromagnetic wave. Along with his contributions to the kinetic theory of gases, Maxwell’s work paved the way for the fields of special relativity and quantum mechanics.

    Actually with help of Newton and Maxwell the modern Scientist created a robot that collaborated in the hospital carrying pills, food at the sick’s.

     In the last time anthropologic and scientist   discovered the world’s oldest calendar. Aberdeen shire, Scotland, July 15, 2013. Thank to aerial images of the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Archaeologist found the oldest calendar in the world.

    “It shows a very important step in the formal construction time and therefore to the history” emphasizes Vince Gaffney, a teacher and director at Birmingham University.

     The calendar dates back 10.000 years ago and lunar phases required to establish satellite months in the course of a year. It’s estimated that his creation is authored by hunters and gatherers.

Education

                                 EDUCATION IN SCOTLAND

     Scotland was, after Sparta, first in designing a system of public education general. Schooling was made compulsory for the first time with the 1496 Education Act, in 1561; the Church of Scotland designed a program for reform spiritual, which included the creation of a school in every parish. Education remained a matter over which the state church until 1872 Education Act.

     The Scottish education system is independent from the rest of the UK. The schools  are administered by the Scottish Education Department and local education authorities. The Scottish Parliament is responsible for approving the legislation related to education, Primary and secondary educations are compulsory for children up 16 years of age.

    There are a limited number of private schools, but fewer than 5 percent of children attending Scottish schools. Public school in Scotland’s are parochial, whether Protestant or Catholic.

    Children whit conditions such as blindness, deafness, mental retardation or other disabilities may receive special attention in mainstream school or to attend a specialized school for these children.

     There are 14 Universities in Scotland, some of which are among the oldest in the world. The country produces 1% of the world’s scientific publications with just 0.1% of the population, and higher education institutions are responsible for 9% of service sector exports of Scotland. In all Scottish school there a extra programmatic activities mean in secondary and universities , activities like a sport as football, rugby Arthur Conan Doyle that written  Sherlock  Home, and James Matthew that written Peter Pan.

Literature

Before of the understanding of the Scottish Literature we must to know the geographic features, the main particularity of Scotland came from the wonderful landscapes in the borders, the past of this island full of mystic histories, heroism and great courage. Then, the creation of the identity of the Scotland people arise from the different languages, the cultural preferences, the different terrains and cultures of each group of people than began to live together in a community. In one part we have the Nordic raiders, opposite them the Anglo-Saxons; they began to define the multi-faceted idiosyncrasy of the people of that Nordic island.

Donnottar Castle, Stonehaven

Therefore, in the poems we have different languages as Gaelic, Scots and English each one with own features like the rhythm, sounds, expressions of speech and writing. The geography is other important point about the writing style, because isn’t the same the poem write in the city or write near the cost with a beautiful landscape around. The city has other characters and particular histories, ancients and moderns.

The Wars of Independence in the XIII and XIV centuries, the image of William Wallace and Robert the Bruce brings to the writers, after the victory between the English forces, the inspiration to write poems about this historical fact and principally about the historical heroes reflecting the bravery of the leaders of this historical achievement.  We mentioned to Blind Harry who wrote some poems and stories about Wallace and John Barbour than realize the same job with Robert the Bruce between the early 1400s –1500s during the reigns of James III and James IV.

Robert The Bruce

William Wallace

For an easy understanding of the Scottish Literature we must imagine a timeline with five periods along the time of these historical periods, the most important facts and writers, and the specific cultural movement unique in each period of time.

The first lapse of time was the Early Literature; we can found a lot of stories about the contribution of the Celtic warriors and the Christian’s spread brings the sight to the world how was the lifestyle in that time, the cultural situation, and enriched the knowledge to the country, the linguistic mix propose a important fact about the different languages, this language are the Old English, Gaelic, Latin, Norse, and Welsh.

Other and one of the most important period was the Medieval Age - Renaissance, this period began with the War of Independence influenced by William Wallace and many others patriotic heroes, we have an infinity of stories, poems and songs than related this important fact for the Scottish culture.

The next era was the Enlightenment and Romanticism better known as the ‘great era’, here we have the emergence of many philosophers, songwriters, and novelists promoting with the cultural growing than still in the actuality.

The literature in the later XIX and XX Centuries, this era involves the expansion an evolution of the literature thought others places near Scotland, impressing to the rest of the world with the heroic vision in the writings that enriched the European Culture, not free from complications due to the wars what marked this time.

Actually, predominate the Modern and Contemporary literature, here we present the renewal of artists than influenced by many characteristic of this powerful culture, one of the most important actions by the government authorities is the creation of a ministry specifically dedicated to the collecting and preservation of Scottish literature, and a lot of universities and scholarships that conserve the literary potential of this prestigious nation.

(i'll upload a timeline indicating the main poems and writes, and each autor according the period)

References:

Riach, Alan (2008), What is Scottish Literature (ASL).pdf, recuperado 28, agosto del 2013. www.asls.org.uk

Arts

       Scotland has an important and beauty art where they use authentic methods to make them their art it's related with crafts, jewelry, textiles and potteries. They are natural products that if you visit the country you will have the chance to see it by yourself.

Craft

Potteries

                                                       

Craft Hand

       In Scotland the people show his arts on a natural way they use the landscape to do it and when a say people I am talking everybody musician, painters, artists.

       At the left we´ve got Jupiter Artland sculpture garden and at the right a Local knitter Doreen Brown created this jumpers for the ponies always showing their culture on a natural way.

Sources: http://www.visitscotland.com/about/arts-culture/crafts

              http://www.scotland.org/creative-scotland/art-and-design

Music

Traditional Scottish music

       The national instrument it´s the bagpipe they are everywhere principally Scottish folk when you listen this sound you know immediately it´s Scotland national music.

A Bagpipe

       Scotland has many festivals that take place every January in Glasgow where the Scottish people celebrate their diversity and wonderful music bringing talent all over the country related with dance and Gaelic song.

Classical Music

       Scotland has four companies that give wonderful concerts every week performing arts. They are Scottish Opera, the Royal Scottish, National Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Scottish Ballet they go all over the country delighting people.

The music it´s not focus just one place in Scotland the culture is everywhere for example  

Edinburgh has the usher hall that has a lot of classical events and international events attracting thousands   of tourists every year but there are other cities as inverness and Aberdeen as well.

Sources:  http://www.visitscotland.com/about/arts-culture/music/traditional

Video: Jori Chisholm a great bagpipe player.

or

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xy0pqj_bagpipe-virtuoso-jori-chisholm_music?search_algo=2