A country on the north-western edge of Europe. A mix of islands, highlands and lowlands. A country of romance and unique traditions, very different from their imperial neighbour to the south.
A nation of three different languages, its culture has survived and flourished across the millenia, delivering some of the greatest and most innovative minds found anywhere. This is the land of whiskey and haggis, Nessie and oil, golf, tartan and bagpipes. This land could only be Scotland.
Scotland is a country within the nation state of the United Kingdom, being the most northerly part of the island of Great Britain. It is comprised essentially of three parts - an archipelago, highlands and lowlands. It has a rich history and culture, quite distinct from that of its southern English neighbour, and such is the depth of this distinction that I chose to cover this country in a separate set of videos, despite Scotland not being a nation state per se.
I do use the word “country” correctly, however, as Scotland is one of four “countries” of the United Kingdom, and is the legal term used to describe these subdivisions of the greater nation state. In this, the second of a two part presentation I’ll look at Scotland’s physical and human geography, its national organisation and state structure and symbols, and lastly its economy and culture. If you haven’t yet watched Part 1, regarding Scotland’s rich history, I recommend you do so to gain a full understanding of Scottish culture and the country of today.
If you like these country summary videos then please be sure to hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss future episodes. The word Scotland means land o1f the Scots, which is simple enough. But the word “Scot” has a more complex history which I go into in Part 1 of this Presentation.
The geography of Scotland is a contrast of wild and rugged islands and highlands on the one side and tamed lowlands on the other. It forms the top half of the island of Great Britain, so named as it is the larger of the two British Isles. The only land border is with England, although with the customs union that has been in place since 1707, one can pass through uninterrupted.
To the east is the North Sea, and to the North and West the Atlantic Ocean. To the south-west is the North Channel of the Irish Sea separating Scotland from Ireland. With a total land area of just over 80,000 square km (80,239km2), it is 60% the size of England and 14% larger than the Republic of Ireland.
If ranked globally, it would be 115th largest by land area, between the Czech Republic and the United Arab Emirates. The mainland spans latitudes from 54° to 58°N while the top of the Shetland Islands reaches as far as 60°N. The car journey of 390 miles from the extreme north to south on the mainland will take you about eight hours, while the journey of 230 miles at the widest point would take around five and a half hours.
There are four island groups off the Scottish coast. In the far north we have Shetland Islands, to the immediate north Orkneys, to the northwest the Outer Hebrides and nestled within the channels and peninsulars of the rugged west coast, the Inner Hebrides. Due in part to the almost constant winds blowing in from the Atlantic, all these islands are almost totally devoid of forest cover and have been so throughout the historical record.
Instead they are covered in low lying shrubs such as heather and gorse, along with grasses. The Highlands of Scotland form the northern and western parts of the mainland, and are considered to be one of the last great wildernesses of Europe, being relatively lightly populated. They too are largely lacking forest cover, either due to their elevation that means summer temperatures are too cool for the growth of trees, or to millenia of deforestation and the grazing of cattle, deer and sheep that prevent the budding of saplings.
So, like the islands most have a covering of grasses and low lying shrubs. The highest point in the British Isles is found here. Ben Nevis, meaning “Cloudy Mountain” in Gaelic, stands at 1,345m (4,413ft).
It can be climbed in one day, as I did just over a decade ago, and demonstrates that the British Isles are not truly mountainous when compared to many other countries, where mountain ranges regularly exceed three times this height. The Highlands are split in two by the almost ruler-straight Great Glen, with Loch Ness running most of its length. By contrast, the central and eastern parts of the Scotland are low lying, where most of the population is found, and when not urbanised, are almost completely farmed.
Finally, we have the Southern Uplands that form a wide skirt of elevated country that is comparatively sparsely populated, and has acted as a natural barrier to England for centuries. Like the almost all of the British Isles, the climate is Oceanic, meaning that rain can occur year round and where the variation in temperature is mild, with cool winters and warm summers. That said, there are significant variations in rainfall between the west and east coasts, as the prevailing wind direction is westerly, and so storms moving in from the Atlantic deposit their load on the rugged western coasts leaving a small remainder to continue eastwards.
Curiously certain sheltered parts of the west coast, such as the village of Plockton sport palm trees reminiscent of the tropics. The reason for this is that Scotland is directly in the path of the warm Gulf Stream ocean current of the Atlantic which is responsible in general for the mild climate at these high latitudes, but in particular for local spots right on the ocean that are also sheltered by surrounding hills that prevent cold winds blowing out from the interior that would otherwise bring frost. One last comment of Scotland’s geography relates to its geology, where in fact, that very subject began.
The rocks of Scotland have been examined for a longer period than any place in the world, and it was here that the Scot James Hutton, considered to be the father of geology, first postulated that the earth was probably much older than the few thousand years that were thought at that time. Scotland has a population of around five and a half million (5,466,000 -2020 estimate), comprising only about 8% of the total UK population despite occupying about a third of its land area. Notably, it is less than 10% of the population of England.
Over 80% of Scotland’s population are white Scottish born, with about 8% being from other parts of the UK and between 2-3% being of South Asian origin. In the 2011 census, Scots were asked how they self identify nationally. 62% said Scottish only, while 18% identified as Scottish and British, and 8% as British only.
This demonstrates that the Scottish identity is still very much alive, despite being in a union with England for over three centuries. Although recent DNA studies do not show a great distinction between the Scots and the English, Scotland nonetheless has the second highest proportion of redheads in the world at 6% with only Ireland at 10% having more. Redheads are associated with Celtic peoples, as documented as far back as ancient Greek and Roman sources.
English is spoken universally throughout Scotland, with a range of accents that, to a native English speaker outside of Scotland is instantly recognisable as Scottish. However, there are more subtle regional accents of English within Scotland, with Glaswegian being notably different to Edinburgh despite their relatively close proximity. These accents, and the Scottish accent considered collectively are the descendents of the Scots language of the Middle Ages, where English was mixed with Gaelic forms during the urbanisation of the lowlands at that time.
Since the Union of 1707, however, Scots rapidly fell into disuse, as it was seen at that time as backward or denoted one of a lower class. Remarkably, though, the Scots language today is claimed to be spoken by about 30% of Scottish people, predominantly in the east and south of the country. For a native English speaker such as myself, which I personally estimate about a 75% legibility rate with when reading or listening, it is a fascinating experience, as it is the only true dialect of English, that most universal of all tongues, that can be regarded as a separate language, and is indeed officially recognised as such.
Scottish Gaelic, by comparison is now only spoken by about 1% of Scottish people, largely in the Outer Hebrides, a variant and survivor of the Celtic Gaelic language brought over from Ireland in the early Middle Ages. You can hear all these English accents, Scots and Gaelic spoken in links that I have provided in the description. When it comes to religion, just over a third of Scots are protestant Christian with most adhering to the presbytarian Church of Scotland.
Half that number are Catholic, while just over a third of the total claim no religion. Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland, with the greater metro area accounting for over a third of the total Scottish population at 1. 8 million.
Next in population is the capital of Edinburgh, with a metro area population of about a million. Both are within the densely populated lowland belt around the Forth and Clyde rivers. Scotland’s third city, however, lies far to the North-East.
Aberdeen has a metro-area population of about half a million, and is home to Scotland’s oil industry. Scotland’s position as a nation today is within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or UK for short. It is one of four “countries” that compose the UK, the others being Northern Ireland, Wales and England.
All of these countries send members of parliament or MPs to Westminster, London, for the 650-member national parliament, for terms that cannot exceed five years between each election. All countries except England have some form of devolution, or autonomy, with an assembly or parliament that has varying degrees of powers to enact laws that relate to domestic affairs within that country. Of these devolved assemblies, the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh has the most powers, and form a rather long and complex list.
For instance, food safety, education and agriculture are within its purview, whereas broadcasting, pensions and drug policy are not. Most importantly, defence and fiscal and economic policy are determined as a whole UK. While this may sound like a federal structure, it is not, since England has no parliament, and indeed the 59 MPs from Scotland can still, rather controversially, vote on issues in the national parliament that might only affect England.
There are some areas, however, that have forever remained separate to England. Scottish law, for instance, was never harmonised to English law, and legal terms and court procedures have always been different. Within Scotland itself, like in the rest of the UK, the next subdivision is at the local authority level.
There are 32 such authorities, ranging in size from the large Highland Council down to the six councils that collectively encompass the Greater Glasgow area. \In the Cato Institute’s latest Human Freedom Index, compiled now from data that includes the events of 2020, Scotland, considered as part of the UK, ranks 20th globally, which is very high. Like most countries during this time, personal freedom in the UK dipped sharply in the wake of lockdowns imposed by the governments of all four UK countries in response to the Coronavirus outbreak.
This aspect can be seen in the UK’s score within the Section “Movement”. The Scottish government was free to pursue different lockdown and masking policies to those of England, and I will note here that they imposed them with greater vigour and for longer periods. On the economic side, the main weakness is the continually increasing size of government within the UK, with tax rates now being at a 70 year high.
The flag of Scotland is a white saltire, meaning a diagonal cross, against a blue field. It is also known as the Cross of St Andrew – the patron saint of Scotland. The saltire forms the blue and white part of the Union Flag of the United Kingdom.
The white saltire on a blue field has been associated with Scottish military and heraldry since the Middle Ages. The Royal Arms of Scotland is a red lion rampant on golden shield. Dating back also to the Middle Ages as part of Scottish Royal Heraldry, it was quartered with the English arms when James VI of Scotland became also James I of England in 1603, and so it takes its place today on the official United Kingdom coat of arms.
That said, a special coat of arms for the Union is used within Scotland, giving the Scottish Lion pride of place on the main shield. On this arms, the latin “Nemo me impune lacessit” translates as “No one provokes me with impunity” – a motto dating back to the Scottish military of the Middle Ages. The Scottish economy is an advanced mixed economy typical of highly developed Western countries.
The estimated GDP in 2020 was $US 205bn, which, if viewed as its own country, would be the 50th largest in the world, and around the size of that of Greece, New Zealand and Peru. Once a hive of heavy industry, in particular coal, steel and shipbuilding, these industries declined in the latter half of the 20th Century, and today most of the Scottish economy is in the service sector. Scotland’s most famous export is a certain distilled alcoholic beverage.
I refer of course to whisky (‘uisge beatha’, or ‘usquebaugh’ “water of life” Gaelic), the distilled fermentations of malted or germinated barley. Distilleries can be found across Scotland, but with the largest concentrations in Speyside in the Northeast, and Islay in the Southern Inner Hebrides. In 2018, Scotland exported over £4bn of whiskey.
Oil was discovered in the North Sea to the north and east of Scotland in the 1960s, and production began in the 1970s, peaking in the late 1990s, but is still today a significant employer within Scotland, a generator of tax revenue for the UK government and is the country’s largest export. With such distinctive natural beauty within the Highlands in particular, as well as dozens of castles, palaces, and the unique historical draw of the capital Edinburgh, it is no surprise to find tourism as a significant industry in today’s Scotland. An estimated 3.
5 million visitors came to Scotland in 2018 spending about £6bn, and contributed about 5% to the national economy. Scotland has a very rich and distinctive culture that has emerged over centuries through its blend of Celtic and British influences. In terms of architectural treasures, Scotland hosts a number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
The oldest of these are the Neolithic villages of Scara Brae, in Orkney, the best preserved stone age ruins in Europe. Then there are the Old and New Towns of Edinburgh. The unique old city centre of Edinburgh once had the tallest residential buildings in Europe during the 16th and 17th Centuries, and these towering stone buildings flank you as you walk up the Royal Mile to the spectacular Edinburgh castle at the highest end of the hill, its outline dominating the city skyline.
Just to the north is the “New Town” of Georgian terraces and crescents built during the city’s expansion of the 18th century following the Union with England, and a living testament to the days of the Scottish Enlightenment. Not far away is the Forth Bridge, a colossal cantilevered railway bridge built from tubular steel, and completed in 1890. The bridge, my personal favourite among all the world’s bridges, has an impressive total length of 2.
5km, with the two central spans each being over 500m. Subject to the salted winds of the Firth of Forth, the vast amounts of steel need to be painted so much that when a crew supposedly finishes painting it from one end to the other, so much time had elapsed that they must start again at the beginning. And so the expression “painting the Forth Bridge” entered the English lexicon, referring to a task that would continue without end.
Scottish cuisine is famous for two things. Haggis and… deep frying. Ok, so the deep frying is a big of a dig at the Glaswegian propensity among fast food outlets for putting almost anything in batter and deep frying it.
Perhaps this once started out in the tradition of the British national dish of deep fried cod or haddock with chipped potatoes that is Fish and Chips, which, by the way, are the best in the world from my own experience. But the eclectic denizens of Glasgow sought more from the fryer, and so battered and deep fried sausages and chicken then suddenly jumped to Mars bars and even ice cream! And what about the mysterious haggis?
Is it some rare creature found among the glens of the highlands. Actually, no, it is just a mix of sheep’s heart, liver and lungs minced with onions, oatmeal and various spices, wrapped in a sheep’s stomach and boiled. I can see you all now rushing to Scotland to sample this delight.
Something perhaps more palatable, was the Scottish development of shortbread biscuits or cookies, composed simply from butter, sugar and flour. And we have already mention the giant in the world of food and drink, that is Scottish whiskey Although bagpipes are not unique to Scotland, it is those of Scotland that are internationally famous, and today form the core of ceremonial music in Scotland and often as Britain as a whole. The bag, traditionally made from the stomach of a sheep, is inflated by the performer, allowing them to breath independently and provide a constant source of wind for the base set of chords emerging from the top three pipes, and the bottom pipe which has the active melody played from it.
Where you find a bagpipe player, you’re guaranteed to also find that other Scottish hallmark, the tartan. Tartan is woven wool cloth made into cross patterns that soon developed into unique coloured signatures that would define a particular family or clan. Both tartan and bagpipes came from the Gaelic tradition, as evidenced by the Irish today having their own tartans and their own bagpipe known as uilleann (“ILLUN”) pipes.
Tartan was worn by highlanders when they went into battle in the form of a skirt known as a kilt, and today, on formal occasions and ceremonies Scottish men usually wear a kilt in place of trousers in a suit. And what creature lurks in the dark waters of Lochness? Of course the Lochness monster exists, right?
Well, I’m sitting on the fence on that one. But what is certain is that it has become one of the world’s most enduring and famous mysteries, rivalling that of bigfoot of North America or the yeti of the Himalayas. The first record of a supposed large beast swimming in the waters of the loch goes back as far as the 6th century, but the myth came to international prominence with a photo of the supposed beast taken in 1933, later proven to be a hoax.
Various sonar and other scientific surveys over the subsequent decades have not found any large beast living here, so either Nessie was just a figment of an old highlander’s active imagination, or she is very good at hiding in the deep waters of the loch. As for sports, well, Scotland brought us one of the most universally popular of outdoor pastimes. I refer to the game of hitting a ball with a club across long distances.
Golf first appeared in Scotland as early as the 15th Century, with the modern game of 18 holes being developed in St Andrews in the 18th Century, and the first tournament being the Open Championship taking place in Scotland in 1860. For a country with a relatively small population, Scotland has been the breeding ground for an astonishing number of inventions that have gone on to change the lives of everyone around the world. The usable steam engine by James Watt has already been mentioned, but Scottish inventors were the first to bring us the modern road surface, the telephone, the television, the refrigerator, the flush toilet, the encyclopedia, pedalled bicycles, pneumatic tyres, the kaleidoscope, the seismometer and the oil refinery.
Antibiotics, logarithmic mathematics, modern geology, electromagnetism, the absolute zero of temperature, colour photography, and numerous objects in our galaxy were either discovered or significantly advanced by Scottish scientists. And as for famous Scots, past and present, I offer my personal list here now… And that’s Scotland. I hope you enjoyed this presentation of its geography, economy and culture.
Please like and share this video if you enjoyed it or found it useful, and please let me know your thoughts in the comments, especially if you’re from this country, and if I missed out anything you feel is important. If you haven’t done so already, then please click the Subscribe button and the bell notification icon so you don’t miss future episodes. You can also support future development of this channel, by becoming a member – just click the “Join” button below the video.
Thanks again for watching, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
