Scotland's Culture

Scotland Culture: Part 1

Popular Sports
     Scotland hosts many sports and the popularity of each vary's with each region. In general, rugby, netball and soccer are the traditional popular sports. All three sports have many leading names. In rugby, Jaime Benn and Chris Birchall are well known for playing in the Rugby League. In netball, Irene van Dyke and Casey Williams are well known for their shooting averages and defense. In soccer, Bobby Johnstone and David Narey are Scottish Football Hall of Fame inductees.


Music
    Scotland's national instrument, the bagpipes, are used throughout the music instrudry in traditional music, rock, and covers of popular songs. Traditional Scottish music can be seen as folk music.
There music is not that different from the U.S. Popular artist such as Annie Lennox (lead singer of the Eurythmics) and The Average White Band (a band from the 70's) topped charts in Scotland and in the US.

Food
  Scottish food seems exotic based on the names of their traditional dishes, but they are fairly similar to the US. They eat cereal, soup, deserts, and meat just like us, but the preparation and types vary. Scotland is next to the Atlantic Ocean, so fish and seafood are essential. Bridie is a meat pastry/pie which originated in the town Forfar. Cullen Skink is a thick soup made from smoked Finnan haddock, potatoes and onions. Fish and Chips are very popular. The Scots have a sweet tooth just like everyone else, they have many deserts.

Major Religions/ Beliefs
   The major largest religion in scotland is Christianity. The national church is The Church of Scotland also called The Kirk (42.4% of the population are firm believers. The major domination is Roman Catholic Church (15.9% of the population). Islam, Buddism, Judaism are also in existence in Scotland. Minor faiths include Baha'i faith and neopagan groups. The beliefs are diverse, but Christianity is the leader.

National Holidays and traditional customs
   The major holidays include:

1. New Years Day (January 1)  - Include Hogmanay customs (the practice of 'First Footing', having a Ceilidh, and the singing of Auld Lang Syne)
2. Burns Night (January 25) - Celebration of the poet Rabbie Burns with a Burns Supper
3. Valentine's Day (February 14) 
4. Mother's Day (On the 4th Sunday of Lent)
5. Good Friday (March 29)
6. Easter - Families have Easter Sunday Diner which generally includes roast lamb
7. Early May Bank Holiday (May 6) -includes crowning of May Queen, dancing around Maypole, and Morris dancing
8. Spring Bank Holiday (March 27)
9. Summer Bank Holiday (August 8)
10. Saint Andrew's Day (November 30) - A day of honor 
11. Christmas Day (December 25) - The birth of Christ
12. Boxing Day (December 26)

-Many of the holidays and customs are similar to the US because the major belief/faith/religion is Christianity.

Popular TV Shows or Movies
All movie genres are popular in Scotland, like the US. The oldies but goodies inclues Whiskey Galore and The 39 Steps. Famous actors include Sean Connery (The original and best James Bond), Ewan McGregor (known for Moulin Rouge), Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid in Harry Potter films), and Alan Cumming (comedian/actor).

Online news sources

• http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Economy
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/
• http://www.thecourier.co.uk/business/news/
• http://newsnetscotland.com/

Online forums for expatriates

• http://www.expatforum.com/expats/tags/scotland.html
• http://www.expat-blog.com/forum/viewforum.php?id=364
• http://www.expatexchange.com/scotland/liveinscotland.html

Type of government
 Scotland is a part of the UK, so it is a constitutional monarchy, under Queen Elizabeth .  Scotland has a parliament  commonly referred to as "Holyrood," which is composed of 129 members and is unicameral. The Presiding Officer is Tricia Marwick (since May 11, 2011). The Minister for Parliamentary is Joe Fitzpatrick ( since September 5, 2012). There are 16 committees.

Within itself, Scotland has a multi-party system.

1. The Scottish National Party (SNP) - currently holds 65 seats in Parliament, led by Alex Salmond
2. The Scottish Labour Party (LAB) - currently holds 37 seats in Parliament, led by Johann Lamont
3. The Scottish Conservative Party (CON) - currently holds 15 seats in Parliament, led by Ruth Davidson
4. The Scottish Liberal Democrats (Lib Dem) - currently holds 5 seats in Parliament, led by Willie Rennie
5. Scottish Green Party (Green) - currently holds 2 seats in Parliament, led by Patrick Harvie
6. Independent politicians - currently holds 4 seats in Parliament