SCOTLAND

By Heather Shand

We look to Scotland for all our ideas of civilization - Voltaire

Scotland is one of four nations that make up the United Kingdom (the other 3 are England, Wales, and Northern Ireland). It is divided into 3 main regions: the Highlands, the Midland Valley and the Southern Uplands. Scotland includes 787 islands of which most belong to groups known as the Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland; only 62 exceed 3 sq. miles in area. Scotland is well known for its mountainous, beautiful scenery, and lochs or lakes.

The Scottish flag, also known as “Saltire”, is one of the oldest national flags of any country in the world; it dates back all the way to the 12th century. The flag was hoisted in 1512 and is a symbol of the Cross of St. Andrew (an apostle of Jesus who was put to death by the Romans by being pinned to a cross).

The Flag

There is another flag of Scotland, the “Rampant Lion”, or the Royal Flag of Scotland. It should now technically only be used by monarchs, however it is widely used as a second national flag.

A Second Flag?

Until 1603, Scotland (like England) had its own Monarch. In 1603, the King of Scotland became also the King of England ruling both countries. In 1707, Scotland joined 3 other countries to form the UK. A new Scottish Parliament was elected in 1999 following devolution of powers from the United Kingdom Parliament in London. This is the first time Scotland has had its own parliament in 300 years. The Scottish Parliament, which sits in Edinburgh, is responsible for most aspects of Scottish life like health, justice, education, rural affairs, housing and transport. The national parliament in Westminster (London) retains responsibility for areas such as defense, foreign affairs and taxation. The European Parliament in Brussels (Belgium) exercises certain powers vested in the European Union. The government currently is a Constitutional Monarchy and in 2014 the Scot’s will vote on whether or not to become independent from the UK after 300 years of unity.

Government

Population

The population of Scotland is 5.2 million people.

The Capital city of Scotland is Edinburgh. This was the first city in the world with its own fire brigade and it is also Europe’s fifth largest financial centre. It was built on seven hills, like the capital city of Rome.

Capital City

Edinburgh

Location

Average Income per Capita

In Scotland, the average household income per capita after housing expenses is £8,593 or $11,017. The currency is the Pound Sterling.

Major Industries

Scotland's main industries are fishing, electronics, textiles, whisky and tourism. Shipbuilding, once Scotland’s best-known industry, is now in decline. The Clyde valley, in the west of the Central Lowlands, was world-famous for shipbuilding for more than 100 years, but this industry has declined due to competition from other countries with lower labor costs. Farm produce includes cereals, wool, beef and lamb. Wool is woven into soft wool for sweaters, and into hard wool to make the cloth called tweed, used mainly for men's jackets. Harris Tweed, from the island of Harris in the Hebrides, has become world-famous.

Natural Resources

Some natural resources of Scotland are North Sea oil and gas, coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, lead, zinc, gold, tin, limestone, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, potash, silica sand, and slate. Scotland is also depended upon greatly because of its many rivers and their ability to create hydroelectric power.

The major religion of Scotland is Christianity, its presence dating back to the 2nd Century. Other denominations include the Roman Catholic Church, Presbyterians, Pentecostals, Baptists, Episcopalians, Methodists, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Congregationalists. It is believed that Judaism was introduced into Scotland during the High Middle Ages. Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism are also practiced. There are also minority religions such as Rasta, Neopagan and Bahai Faith. There are also groups that have no ties to religion.

Religion

Hogmanay- “New Year’s Eve”: The origins of the word 'Hogmanay' are lost in the past. Hogmanay is a more important festival in Scotland than Christmas. Scots celebrate in the build up to 'the bells' chiming at midnight by drinking and singing songs. There are traditions such as cleaning the house (known as 'redding') on 31st December (including taking out the ashes from the fire in the days when coal fires were common) also. And Scotland is the only part of the UK that has a statutory holiday on 2nd January as well as 1st January - so you can recover from the excesses of 31 December!First Footing- “New Year’s Day” : First footing after the bells have rung in the New Year is still common - the 'first foot' in the house after midnight should be male, dark, and handsome and should carry symbolic coal, shortbread, salt, black bun (a spiced cake) and, of course, whisky.Imbolc- the Celtic goddess who in later times became revered as a Christian saint. It refers to the flow of milk that heralds the return of the life-giving forces of spring. Later, the Catholic Church replaced this festival with Candlemas Day on February 2, which is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and features candlelight processions. Whuppity Scoorie- A rumbustious celebration by the young lads of Lanark. It is a relic of the days when making a lot of noise was believed to frighten away the evil spiritsAll Souls Day- Nov. 2, Prayers were said for the souls of the dead and alms given to the poor.

Holidays

Festivals• Founded in 1947, the Edinburgh International Festival is an annual festival held in

celebration of the arts.• The Fringe is an extremely popular side of the Edinburgh International Festival with

over 1.25 million tickets being sold every year. Anything goes here.• The Hogmanay Festival is essentially a new years celebration with a difference. This

festival takes place on the 31st of December every year and is phenomenally well supported and raucous. It's a ticketed festival that starts quite early in the evening reaching its peak as expected at midnight with the ringing of bells and plenty of kissing. Then old folk song 'Auld Lang Syne' is sung and followed by more kissing.

• Highland Games held through the highlands Scotland. Many of them have been taking place for so long that it is unknown when they were started or why. Today, however, they provide a showcase of traditional sporting events that are participated in and enjoyed by people of all nationalities

• Edinburgh International Jazz & Blues Festival. This is the biggest jazz event in Britain and it is generally held over ten days during the summer months in Scotland.