Greetings folks! This blog is coming to you live from the Outer Hebrides and will follow my travels on my first trip straying from the Scottish mainland. I’ll be spending most of my time on the Isle of Barra with Clan Macneil, where I’ve been invited to attend a special ceremony at Kisimul Castle. I’m […]
Robert Currie, Commander of Clan Currie, received an honorary doctorate from Edinburgh Napier University on Thursday. The doctorate of arts was awarded for his tireless efforts in promoting and preserving Scottish heritage worldwide. Currie, who is also President of the Clan Currie Society of New York, is an international figurehead in promoting Scottish culture, education […]
The Scottish Government announced today that it is to provide funding for clan events to the tune of £200,000 in 2014 and beyond. The move cements the relationship between clans and the government, highlighting the importance of ancestral tourism to the Scottish economy. Known as the Scottish Clan Event Fund, the fund will be made […]
A much-loved and respected pillar of the North Highlands community and wife of the late chief of Clan Mackenzie has died. Lilias, Countess of Cromartie, passed away peacefully on 11th October 2013 at her home Dower House in the clan seat of Castle Leod at Strathpeffer. Born on the 25th March 1918, Lilias Janet Garvie […]
The Lord Lyon King of Arms, Scotland’s chief heraldic officer and the most junior of Scotland’s Great Officers of State, is set to step down later this year. Mr. David Sellar was appointed to the role in 2008 and will retire in December after five years in the role. The Lyon Court regulates and has […]
This article originally appeared on Clan Macnab’s website, which has just undergone a revamp. You can visit the website by clicking here. The striking and imposing character glaring down from Sir Henry Raeburn’s celebrated portrait The Macnab seems to be the perfect figure of an eighteenth century highland chief. This giant of a man stands […]
Here’s something to keep in mind if you’re ever visiting Nigeria – If someone calls you a ‘Dundee United’, it’s probably not a compliment. The Scottish football club’s name has been appropriated as Nigerien slang for ‘idiot’, and is believed to have originated after Dundee played several friendly matches in Nigeria in the 70s. The […]
A new photographic exhibition is set to open that will shine a light on abandoned crofts throughout the Western Isles of Scotland. Entitled Leaving Home: An Alternative View of the Outer Hebrides, selected photographs will be accompanied by memoirs from those who grew up in the houses, which reveal what life was like in the […]
Canada has the instantly recognisable maple tree, Japan has the whimsical cherry blossom, and England has the mighty royal oak. However Scotland seems to have missed the proverbial national-tree boat, as it was recently discovered that poor old Scotland is without a tree to call its own. After furious campaigning by a Glasgow tree campaigner, […]
Last week we reported that Edinburgh’s famous Greyfriar’s Bobby statue had undergone restoration work after years worth of tourists rubbing his nose for good luck. Less than 48 hours following the painstaking work to turn his shiny nose back to black, an abrasive material was “intentionally used” on the nose, stripping the repaired area. Police […]
