Scottish national identity

[weeangelina]

Hi all,
I'm a Scot lecturing in Germany and next semester, I'm doing a course on Scottish nationalism and patriotism. Thing is, I would like some other opinions (the students are getting sick of mine!) as to what might constitute scottishness or scottish identity. I would also be very interested if other Scots could tell me if and why they are proud to be Scottish.
Thank you!

[Polwarth]

Hiya Angelina
I'm sure that like with any other topic, the native Scots on here will have as many opinions as there are posters!

It might pay you to have a wee squint at some of the earlier threads on here and just have a sense of what answers have been given to similar questions in the past!

[Scottish_Republican]

I just am Scottish. I don't see why we have to justify that to ourselves all the time, it is merely a sign of the insecurity of the colonized...

[FionaMcG]

Hi Angelina,

I'm an English teacher in Scotland and I'm preparing a unit for a discursive piece on national identity. When I saw your post I was hoping you had a lot of replies to give me some ideas, but maybe we could swap ideas?
I could do with some short texts on the topic, but haven't found much online - just lots of sites selling tacky souvenirs.

Whereabouts in Germany are you working? I'm a bit of a germanophile myself, having studied the language at uni.

Mail me on fiona@zoom.co.uk if you want to share ideas

Thschuess

Fiona

[sgriobhadair]

Originally posted by weeangelina
Hi all,
I'm a Scot lecturing in Germany and next semester, I'm doing a course on Scottish nationalism and patriotism. Thing is, I would like some other opinions (the students are getting sick of mine!) as to what might constitute scottishness or scottish identity. I would also be very interested if other Scots could tell me if and why they are proud to be Scottish.
Thank you!

Ye jist ARE Scottish, that's aw! It's jist a fact, like having a head and two feet, that doesn't need to be explained or defended. It's in your heart and your belly and you'd stop a bullet for it.

But what a can of wurrums you have opened. There are as many answers as there are Scots. It might be instructive to look at the divisions of Germans within their country. What does it mean to be a Schwabian, for example, and do you correct folk when they mistake you for an Alsatian? (This can be extremely insulting if you are female.)

I'm sure you'll get a guid long list eventually from Scots defining their national identity to you. It will be confusing and contradictory. I'd say that Scots tend to love bagpipes and kilts but are not always pleased that non-Scots do too, because it detracts from what it really means to be Scots. Not that many of them will share with you what they mean by that. They will not make it easy for you. It's not easy being Scots to begin with. You need physical, mental and linguistic toughness.

Let me predict some of the responses you will get:

Old Scottish Republican there, for example, will growl and maunder like a troll under a bridge and swat you for daring to even ask the question. Rangeanach will fly at you with barbed texts proving that Gaelic speakers are the only folks with the right to call themselves Scots. Polwarth might wait to see what others say and then correct them with schoolteacher rigour. PRGirl will bounce in with deliriously passionate expositions of what national identity means to a Puerto Rican lassie. Sgriobhadair will jump in now and then to tease, get on his high horse or look for a fight.

There used to be others here with informed and nuanced opinions, but they grew tired of the cloddishness expressed by so many (plus they took offence at management; very Scottish.)

The one common denominator that may be close to the heart of what it means to be Scottish is the readiness to take offence. First and foremost, to be Scottish means to be contentious. And sometimes a lot of fun. And sexy. And courageous. And romantic. And witty. And enchanted by aesthetics. And proud. And independent. And, in the case of some of us, incredibly good looking.

Good luck.

PS. In fact as a nation we have every reason to be pissed off. The great Tom Leonard put it exactly right, as ever:

this is thi
six a clock
news thi
man said n
thi reason
a talk wia
BBC accent
iz coz yi
widny wahnt
mi ti talk
aboot thi
trooth wia
voice lik
wanna yoo
scruff. if
a toktaboot
thi trooth
lik wanna yoo
scruff yi
widny thingk
it wuz troo.
jist wanna yoo
scruff tokn.
thirza right
way ti spell
ana right way
ti tok it. this
is me tokn yir
right way a
spellin. this
is ma trooth.
yooz doant no
thi trooth
yersellz cawz
yi canny talk
right. this is
the six a clock
nyooz. belt up.




[Edited by sgriobhadair on 20th October 2004 at 20:10]

[Scottish_Republican]

"Old Scottish Republican there, for example, will growl and maunder like a troll under a bridge and swat you for daring to even ask the question. "

You really have a stereotype of me don't you? Have a look at my answer further up. I didn't swat her.

[sgriobhadair]

Originally posted by Scottish_Republican
"Old Scottish Republican there, for example, will growl and maunder like a troll under a bridge and swat you for daring to even ask the question. "

You really have a stereotype of me don't you? Have a look at my answer further up. I didn't swat her.

Come on! SR! Ah wiz jist hivvin a wee laugh at yir expense. But ye proved me right! Contentious, that's whit y'are. BTW. Troll under a bridge is no stereotype. I bestow the sobriquet on you alone.