Category: Scottish
Burns Suppers
A Burns Supper is a celebration of the life and poetry of the Scottish poet Robert Burns. The suppers, also referred to as Burns Night, are held on or near the poet’s birthday on January 25. The tradition has become popular as a celebration of Scottish heritage.
The basic format for the evening has [...] Read More »
Up-Helly-Aa
Scene from a video posted on YouTube by Gary13579, showing the burning galley at the 2006 Up-Helly-Aa festival:
If you’d like to dress as a Viking, carry a burning torch in a procession through villages and towns, and then throw the torch into a replica of a Viking longship to set it alight before sending it [...] Read More »
St. Andrew’s Day: Scotland’s National Day
November 30 is St. Andrew’s Day in Scotland. St. Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland, and it is celebrated as Scotland’s National Day. St Andrew is credited with spreading the gospel to Romania, Greece and Russia, and is also the patron saint of those countries. St. Andrew is also said to [...] Read More »
The Origin of the Halloween Jack-o-Lantern Tradition
In America, families carve jack-o-lanterns – lanterns made from carved pumpkins and display them to celebrate Halloween.
The Legend of Stingy Jack
The tradition was brought to America by Irish and Scottish immigrants. It originated in an Irish legend about a man named “Stingy Jack” who tricked the Devil. First, he invited the Devil [...] Read More »
