Thursday, March 15, 2012

Scottish Highland Trivia


National Flag  
Scotland's flag is one of the oldest of any country in the world, dating back to at least the 12th century.



Royal Standard Flag
This centuries old design of the "Rampant Lion" is reserved for the Queen and her representatives. It was first used  by Alexander II (1214-1249).


 


Some Scottish Inventions
Telephone - Alexander Graham Bell
Penicillin - Sir Alexander Fleming
Steam Engine -  James Watt
Fax Machine - Alexander Bain
Logarithms - John Napier
Golf

Famous Novelists of Scotland:
Sir Walter Scott - the innovator of the literary form, the historical novel
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Robert Louis Stevenson
R. M. Ballentyne
Kenneth Graham
William McGonagall

  Scottish Naming Customs 
"The general custom, to which there were some variations, was to name children as follows:-
The eldest son after the paternal grandfather
The second son after the maternal grandfather
The third son after the father
The eldest daughter after the maternal grandmother
The second daughter after the paternal grandmother
The third daughter after the mother
Younger children would be named after earlier forebears, but the pattern in their case was less settled."
("In search of Scottish Ancestry" by Gerald Hamilton-Edwards, Phillimore, 1983 Edition)

The Belted Plaid (or Kilt)
Contrary to what you see shown in Hollywood films, the first belted plaid wasn't even depicted until the early 1600's. Also, in the late 1500's women were forbidden to wear the plaids (arisaid) out of doors, lest they be confused for "loose women." 
                                 


All information from      
http://romancereaderatheart.com/scotland/Trivia.html

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1 comment:

Rosemary Indra said...

Interesting Scottish History.
Good luck with your book.
Rosemary