Summer is a great time for events, especially in Scotland, where we love any opportunity to celebrate! Our most recent event was the Marymas festival, which has been celebrated for thousands of years and got us thinking about the many Scottish traditions and events that take place each year and the way in which we celebrate them!
Where else to start but with the Highland Games, which spans over 60 different events across Scotland each summer. Among the most popular events are the Perth Highland Games, the Braemar Gathering, the Glenfinnan Gathering and the Bute Highland Games. These events, dating back hundreds of years, look to celebrate Scotland’s heritage with our famous highland dancing and pipe bands!
The oldest of these is the Highland Games held at Ceres in Fife, every june, which began under a Charter awarded by Robert the Bruce to thank villages for their support during the 1314 Battle of Bannockburn. While traditional Games events include tossing the caber and hammer throws, many try also their hand at ‘haggis hurling’!
Another time-honoured tradition is of course, our national day – St Andrew’s Day! In recent years, us Scots have come to embrace this day more and more, with many people honouring it with organised events to celebrate Scotland’s rich heritage. On November 30th each year – because we certainly don’t limit our partying to the summer months – Scots embrace the national culture, food and dance, in celebration of our Patron Saint.
One of the largest celebrations in Scotland falls on Hogmanay. There really is no better place to celebrate the New Year than in Scotland, where you can expect parties across the country, whether that be a street party or one of our traditional fire festivals! If you’ve celebrated hogmanay in Scotland, you’ll be used to bringing in the bells to the tune of Auld Lang Syne – a song which is used to celebrate New Year, not only in Scotland but many countries across the world.
Perhaps one of our most famously celebrated Scottish traditions is Burns Night. In celebration of Scotland’s national poet, many people organise Burns suppers with traditional Scottish recipes and knowing us Scots, a whiskey or two! This night is widely celebrated across the country and many others worldwide so grab your finest tartan and don’t be surprised if you’re offered more than one serving of haggis, neeps and tatties!
These are just a few of the traditional events held in Scotland each year, but considering our love of celebration and rich history, the list really is endless! We’re looking forward to preparing for the various winter celebrations but for now, how far do you reckon we could hurl a haggis?
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