102-573: The University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) ( Scottish Gaelic : Oilthigh na Gàidhealtachd agus nan Eilean ) is an integrated, tertiary institution encompassing both further and higher education. It is composed of 12 colleges and research institutions spread around the Highlands and Islands , Moray and Perthshire regions of Scotland. UHI offers further education, undergraduate, postgraduate and research programmes which can be studied at
204-714: A Girl Guide leader in 1931. On 21 December 2000, the pop star Madonna had her son Rocco christened in Dornoch Cathedral , the day before her wedding to Guy Ritchie in nearby Skibo Castle . On 13 January 2005, Dornoch was granted Fairtrade Town status. The Burghfield House Campus of the University of the Highlands and Islands in Dornoch is the home for the Centre for History, teaching undergraduate and postgraduate history degrees to students around
306-442: A 19% fall in bilingual speakers between the 1911 and 1921 Censuses. Michelle MacLeod of Aberdeen University has said that there was no other period with such a high fall in the number of monolingual Gaelic speakers: "Gaelic speakers became increasingly the exception from that point forward with bilingualism replacing monolingualism as the norm for Gaelic speakers." The Linguistic Survey of Scotland (1949–1997) surveyed both
408-564: A Pictish substrate. In 1018, after the conquest of Lothian (theretofore part of England and inhabited predominantly by speakers of Northumbrian Old English ) by the Kingdom of Scotland , Gaelic reached its social, cultural, political, and geographic zenith. Colloquial speech in Scotland had been developing independently of that in Ireland since the eighth century. For the first time,
510-524: A central feature of court life there. The semi-independent Lordship of the Isles in the Hebrides and western coastal mainland remained thoroughly Gaelic since the language's recovery there in the 12th century, providing a political foundation for cultural prestige down to the end of the 15th century. By the mid-14th century what eventually came to be called Scots (at that time termed Inglis ) emerged as
612-823: A challenge to revitalization efforts which occur outside the home. Positive engagements between language learners and native speakers of Gaelic through mentorship has proven to be productive in socializing new learners into fluency. In the 2022 census, 3,551 people claimed Gaelic as their 'main language.' Of these, 1,761 (49.6%) were in Na h-Eileanan Siar, 682 (19.2%) were in Highland, 369 were in Glasgow City and 120 were in City of Edinburgh; no other council area had as many as 80 such respondents. Gaelic has long suffered from its lack of use in educational and administrative contexts and
714-489: A full range of language skills: speaking, understanding, reading and writing Gaelic. 40.2% of Scotland's Gaelic speakers said that they used Gaelic at home. To put this in context, the most common language spoken at home in Scotland after English and Scots is Polish, with about 1.1% of the population, or 54,000 people. The 2011 UK Census showed a total of 57,375 Gaelic speakers in Scotland (1.1% of population over three years old), of whom only 32,400 could also read and write
816-457: A grass air strip suitable for small aircraft and helicopters. The name 'Dornoch' is derived from the Gaelic for 'pebbly place', suggesting that the area contained pebbles the size of a fist ( dorn ) which could therefore be used as weapons. Archaeological excavations during the development of a new business park in 1997 revealed a building, evidence for ironworking and part of a whale, dating from
918-586: A language ideology at odds with revitalization efforts on behalf of new speakers, state policies (such as the Gaelic Language Act), and family members reclaiming their lost mother tongue. New learners of Gaelic often have a positive affective stance to their language learning, and connect this learning journey towards Gaelic language revitalization. The mismatch of these language ideologies, and differences in affective stance, has led to fewer speaking opportunities for adult language learners and therefore
1020-539: A marine physicist, took over as Rector in June 2014. The University's coat of arms is designed to reflect important aspects of UHI. A compass rose with a fleur-de-lys indicating north denotes University's northernly location and two open books symbolise learning, the 13 hazel leaves represent UHI's partners, and a tree associated with wisdom in Celtic and Norse tradition. UHI has an annual income of £137 million. UHI
1122-694: A multi-campus institution has been constrained by a legislative framework that deals with further and higher education separately. Technology has played an important part in connecting the partner institutions. In April 2001, it became known as the UHI Millennium Institute , following the Scottish Parliament awarding Higher Education Institute status. By 2004 full-time deans had been appointed to its three faculties, with experienced figures having been attracted from other academic bodies. University degrees were authenticated by
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#17327840097391224-752: A national centre for Gaelic Language and Culture, based in Sleat , on the Isle of Skye . This institution is the only source for higher education which is conducted entirely in Scottish Gaelic. They offer courses for Gaelic learners from beginners into fluency. They also offer regular bachelors and graduate programs delivered entirely in Gaelic. Concerns have been raised around the fluency achieved by learners within these language programs because they are disconnected from vernacular speech communities. In regard to language revitalization planning efforts, many feel that
1326-549: A process of Gaelicisation (which may have begun generations earlier) was clearly under way during the reigns of Caustantín and his successors. By a certain point, probably during the 11th century, all the inhabitants of Alba had become fully Gaelicised Scots, and Pictish identity was forgotten. Bilingualism in Pictish and Gaelic, prior to the former's extinction, led to the presence of Pictish loanwords in Gaelic and syntactic influence which could be considered to constitute
1428-610: A proportion of Gaelic speakers greater than 65% (the highest value is in Barvas , Lewis , with 64.1%). In addition, no civil parish on mainland Scotland has a proportion of Gaelic speakers greater than 20% (the highest is in Ardnamurchan , Highland , with 19.3%). Out of a total of 871 civil parishes in Scotland, the proportion of Gaelic speakers exceeds 50% in seven parishes, 25% in 14 parishes, and 10% in 35 parishes. Decline in traditional areas has recently been balanced by growth in
1530-404: A range of locations across the area and online. It has 31,000 students, including 19,779 further education students and 11,210 higher education students. While UHI is Scotland's newest university, many of its 12 colleges and research institutions have longer histories, the earliest having been founded in the 19th Century. The UHI network has had a unique structure and the way that it has evolved as
1632-659: A single campus; staffed learning centres are located in Oban, Lochgilphead, Helensburgh, Campbeltown, Islay, Dunoon, Rothesay and Arran. Lews Castle College campus is set in 600 acres of parkland beside the principal harbour town of Stornoway. North Highland College UHI has four campuses spread throughout the north of Scotland. There are two campuses in Caithness; main campus in Thurso and one in Wick. Moray College UHI has its main campus in
1734-536: A situation where new learners struggle to find opportunities to speak Gaelic with fluent speakers. Affect is the way people feel about something, or the emotional response to a particular situation or experience. For Gaelic speakers, there is a conditioned and socialized negative affect through a long history of negative Scottish media portrayal and public disrespect, state mandated restrictions on Gaelic usage, and highland clearances . This negative affect towards speaking openly with non-native Gaelic speakers has led to
1836-577: A special emphasis on the traditional Gaelic speaking communities of Scotland. Founded in 2012, the Institute specializes in work on molecular genetics to help conserve and maintain all rivers and lochs biodiversity, including fish stocks. The researchers work with local communities, wetlands and fisheries managers, businesses and government agencies to provide scientific support for the protection, restoration and sustainable management of wetlands biodiversity. UHI offers Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees in
1938-625: A translation of the New Testament. In 1798, four tracts in Gaelic were published by the Society for Propagating the Gospel at Home, with 5,000 copies of each printed. Other publications followed, with a full Gaelic Bible in 1801. The influential and effective Gaelic Schools Society was founded in 1811. Their purpose was to teach Gaels to read the Bible in their own language. In the first quarter of
2040-581: Is a Moray College UHI centre for excellence in digital health and Life Science for the North of Scotland and beyond, providing facilities for, and expertise in, digital health and life science research and education. The centre was officially opened by the Princess Royal in June 2014. UHI received a £9 million grant from the UK Government for this project. The new life sciences innovation centre
2142-808: Is a collaborative project between UHI and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. The total size of the building is projected to be 2700m². The new innovation centre aims to promote the development of education and research. The new centre will also collaborate with the proposed Elective Care Centre also planned for Inverness Campus. UHI has 12 individual colleges and each college/research centre has its own campus in different locations. As colleges offer different programmes, not all courses are available at every campus. Some campuses such as SAMS have tiny student populations all studying similar courses, whereas other campuseses such as Inverness College teach diverse disciplines. Some UHI colleges have student accommodation on their campuses while others do not. Argyll College does not have
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#17327840097392244-490: Is a significant step forward for the recognition of Gaelic both at home and abroad and I look forward to addressing the council in Gaelic very soon. Seeing Gaelic spoken in such a forum raises the profile of the language as we drive forward our commitment to creating a new generation of Gaelic speakers in Scotland." Bilingual road signs, street names, business and advertisement signage (in both Gaelic and English) are gradually being introduced throughout Gaelic-speaking regions in
2346-734: Is a town, seaside resort , parish and former royal burgh in the county of Sutherland in the Highlands of Scotland . It lies on the north shore of the Dornoch Firth , near to where it opens into the Moray Firth to the east. The town is within the Highland local government council area . The town is near the A9 road , to which it is linked by the A949 and the B9168 . The town also has
2448-420: Is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands Scottish Parliament region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole. There is also elected local government councillors, and as of November 2011 there are elected community councillors. Rosamunde Pilcher's last novel Winter Solstice
2550-591: Is available across the UK from this faculty. The BSc (Hons) Sustainable Development is an example of a multi-disciplinary programme from this Faculty. The programme has professional accreditation from the Institute of Economic Development . The Faculty also offers postgraduate studies, including an MSc in Sustainable Rural Development. This Masters programme also has professional accreditation from
2652-915: Is based on Church Street in Inverness. They previously were based at the Executive Office on Ness Walk. HISA represents all higher and further education students across UHI and its 12 partners. HISA hosts events including Sports Day, Freshers, Student Elections, HISA Awards and Regional Council. All UHI students aged over 16 are automatically a member of HISA. The Union supports more than 60 clubs and societies. Eight UHI campuses offer accommodation with more than 600 rooms. Halls of Residence located on campuses include: The students' association, HISA, offers sports clubs including badminton, basketball, boxing, climbing, football, golf, mountain biking, mountaineering, paddle sports, snow sports, sub-aqua, wind and wave, and more. UHI's Sporting Blues awards programme
2754-580: Is located in the town of Thurso . The Environmental Research Institute (ERI) is part of North Highland College UHI, which is one of 12 partners in UHI. Its research is focused into three areas; Renewable Energy and Environment, Carbon Water and Climate, and Environmental Contamination and Ecological Health. The Centre for Energy and the Environment is affiliated with the ERI. The Agronomy Institute performs work on
2856-411: Is no evidence that Gaelic was ever widely spoken. Many historians mark the reign of King Malcolm Canmore ( Malcolm III ) between 1058 and 1093 as the beginning of Gaelic's eclipse in Scotland. His wife Margaret of Wessex spoke no Gaelic, gave her children Anglo-Saxon rather than Gaelic names, and brought many English bishops, priests, and monastics to Scotland. When Malcolm and Margaret died in 1093,
2958-488: Is organised into two faculties, the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business, and the Faculty of Science, Health and Engineering. The Court consists of up to 20 members including graduates, academic and support personnel, university sponsor representatives and a majority of independent members. From the independent members the party elects its President and Vice-Chair. The Court assigns many of its academic responsibilities to
3060-518: The 2011 census of Scotland , 57,375 people (1.1% of the Scottish population aged over three years old) reported being able to speak Gaelic, 1,275 fewer than in 2001. The highest percentages of Gaelic speakers were in the Outer Hebrides . Nevertheless, there is a language revival , and the number of speakers of the language under age 20 did not decrease between the 2001 and 2011 censuses. In
3162-538: The 2021 census , 2,170 Canadian residents claimed knowledge of Scottish Gaelic, a decline from 3,980 speakers in the 2016 census . There exists a particular concentration of speakers in Nova Scotia , with historic communities in other parts of Canada having largely disappeared. Scottish Gaelic is classed as an indigenous language under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages , which
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3264-468: The 2022 census of Scotland , it was found that 2.5% of the Scottish population had some skills in Gaelic, or 130,161 persons. Of these, 69,701 people reported speaking the language, with a further 46,404 people reporting that they understood the language, but did not speak, read, or write in it. Outside of Scotland, a dialect known as Canadian Gaelic has been spoken in Canada since the 18th century. In
3366-638: The Gaels of Scotland . As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as both Irish and Manx , developed out of Old Irish . It became a distinct spoken language sometime in the 13th century in the Middle Irish period, although a common literary language was shared by the Gaels of both Ireland and Scotland until well into the 17th century. Most of modern Scotland was once Gaelic-speaking, as evidenced especially by Gaelic-language place names. In
3468-781: The Liberal Democrats . In the Scottish Parliament, since 2011 Dornoch has been part of the Caithness, Sutherland and Ross constituency. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. Since its creation, the constituency has been held by the Scottish National Party (SNP). As of 2021 the MSP is Maree Todd , who was first elected in May 2021 . It
3570-745: The Open University Validation Service , the University of Strathclyde and the University of Aberdeen until 2008 when the UHI was given taught degree awarding powers (tDAP) by the Privy Council under recommendation from the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA); Higher National Certificate and Higher National Diploma courses are awarded by the Scottish Qualifications Authority . University status
3672-492: The Outer Hebrides , accommodation ethics exist amongst native or local Gaelic speakers when engaging with new learners or non-locals. Accommodation ethics, or ethics of accommodation, is a social practice where local or native speakers of Gaelic shift to speaking English when in the presence of non-Gaelic speakers out of a sense of courtesy or politeness. This accommodation ethic persists even in situations where new learners attempt to speak Gaelic with native speakers. This creates
3774-688: The Scottish Lowlands . Between the 2001 and 2011 censuses, the number of Gaelic speakers rose in nineteen of the country's 32 council areas. The largest absolute gains were in Aberdeenshire (+526), North Lanarkshire (+305), the Aberdeen City council area (+216), and East Ayrshire (+208). The largest relative gains were in Aberdeenshire (+0.19%), East Ayrshire (+0.18%), Moray (+0.16%), and Orkney (+0.13%). In 2018,
3876-706: The UK Government has ratified, and the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005 established a language-development body, Bòrd na Gàidhlig . The Scottish Parliament is considering a Scottish Languages Bill which proposes to give the Gaelic and Scots languages official status in Scotland. Aside from "Scottish Gaelic", the language may also be referred to simply as "Gaelic", pronounced / ˈ ɡ æ l ɪ k / GAL -ik in English . However, "Gaelic" / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik also refers to
3978-786: The significant increase in pupils in Gaelic-medium education since that time is unknown. Gaelic Medium Education is one of the primary ways that the Scottish Government is addressing Gaelic language shift. Along with the Bòrd na Gàidhlig policies, preschool and daycare environments are also being used to create more opportunities for intergenerational language transmission in the Outer Hebrides. However, revitalization efforts are not unified within Scotland or Nova Scotia, Canada. One can attend Sabhal Mòr Ostaig ,
4080-544: The 19th century, the SSPCK (despite their anti-Gaelic attitude in prior years) and the British and Foreign Bible Society distributed 60,000 Gaelic Bibles and 80,000 New Testaments. It is estimated that this overall schooling and publishing effort gave about 300,000 people in the Highlands some basic literacy. Very few European languages have made the transition to a modern literary language without an early modern translation of
4182-734: The 2005 Times Higher Education Supplement Award for Most Imaginative Use of Distance Learning. Other postgraduate masters programmes cover the culture, literature and history of the Highlands and Islands, Material Culture and Gàidhealtachd History, Orkney & Shetland Studies, and Viking Studies. The business school offers distinctive programmes such as Scotland's only degree in Golf Management. The School of Adventure Studies delivers courses in Adventure Tourism Management, Adventure Performance & Coaching, Adventure Education & Marine Coastal Tourism using Lochaber,
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4284-404: The 2011 Census. The 2011 total population figure comes from table KS101SC. The numbers of Gaelic speakers relate to the numbers aged 3 and over, and the percentages are calculated using those and the number of the total population aged 3 and over. Across the whole of Scotland, the 2011 census showed that 25,000 people (0.49% of the population) used Gaelic at home. Of these, 63.3% said that they had
4386-407: The 4th–5th centuries CE, by settlers from Ireland who founded the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata on Scotland's west coast in present-day Argyll . An alternative view has been voiced by archaeologist Ewan Campbell , who has argued that the putative migration or takeover is not reflected in archaeological or placename data (as pointed out earlier by Leslie Alcock ). Campbell has also questioned
4488-586: The 8th to the 11th centuries AD. The archaeologists surmised that the findings were of an industrial area on the edge of a settlement and that a settlement existed at Dornoch from at least the 8th century. However, the first direct reference to a settlement in Dornoch is not until the early 12th century when David I , as recorded in the Dunfermline Abbey register, orders Rognvald , the Earl ;of Orkney , to respect the monks at Dornoch. Dornoch has
4590-569: The Bible; the lack of a well known translation may have contributed to the decline of Scottish Gaelic. Counterintuitively, access to schooling in Gaelic increased knowledge of English. In 1829, the Gaelic Schools Society reported that parents were unconcerned about their children learning Gaelic, but were anxious to have them taught English. The SSPCK also found Highlanders to have significant prejudice against Gaelic. T. M. Devine attributes this to an association between English and
4692-461: The Centre for Health Science in Inverness from Highlands and Islands Enterprise in a £9.83m deal. The building includes a research centre. Phase I of this opened in early 2007, phase II and phase III were opened in 2009. The University of Stirling has moved its nursing and midwifery operations from Raigmore Hospital to the CfHS. A BSc Oral Health Science was set up in 2008, and was based on two campuses,
4794-754: The Centre for Health Sciences and Dumfries Dental Centre. In 2011 a third campus was added in Stornoway. In September 2016 the Nursing and Midwifery Council approved the transfer of the pre-registration nurse BSc nursing programmes in Inverness and Stornoway to be provided by UHI. In August 2015, UHI Inverness, one of the main collaborators at UHI, opened at the Inverness Campus . The £50m 18,500 sqm facility offers further and higher education courses including Life Sciences education and research. The £6.5 million Alexander Graham Bell Centre for Digital Health
4896-546: The EU's institutions. The Scottish government had to pay for the translation from Gaelic to other European languages . The deal was received positively in Scotland; Secretary of State for Scotland Jim Murphy said the move was a strong sign of the UK government's support for Gaelic. He said; "Allowing Gaelic speakers to communicate with European institutions in their mother tongue is a progressive step forward and one which should be welcomed". Culture Minister Mike Russell said; "this
4998-629: The Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business, courses such as honours programmes in Gaelic, Theological Studies, and Scottish History, all reflect the distinctive nature of the region, its past, present and future. The Centre for History is based in Dornoch and teaches a range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees via videoconference to students around the UHI network and worldwide. The faculty also offers an interdisciplinary course in Scottish Cultural Studies, which received
5100-538: The Forth–Clyde line and along the northeastern coastal plain as far north as Moray. Norman French completely displaced Gaelic at court. The establishment of royal burghs throughout the same area, particularly under David I , attracted large numbers of foreigners speaking Old English. This was the beginning of Gaelic's status as a predominantly rural language in Scotland. Clan chiefs in the northern and western parts of Scotland continued to support Gaelic bards who remained
5202-684: The Gaelic Act falls so far short of the status accorded to Welsh that one would be foolish or naïve to believe that any substantial change will occur in the fortunes of the language as a result of Bòrd na Gàidhlig 's efforts. On 10 December 2008, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , the Scottish Human Rights Commission had the UDHR translated into Gaelic for
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#17327840097395304-582: The Gaelic aristocracy rejected their anglicised sons and instead backed Malcolm's brother Domnall Bán ( Donald III ). Donald had spent 17 years in Gaelic Ireland and his power base was in the thoroughly Gaelic west of Scotland. He was the last Scottish monarch to be buried on Iona , the traditional burial place of the Gaelic Kings of Dàl Riada and the Kingdom of Alba. However, during the reigns of Malcolm Canmore's sons, Edgar, Alexander I and David I (their successive reigns lasting 1097–1153), Anglo-Norman names and practices spread throughout Scotland south of
5406-442: The Highland and Island region. In 1616, the Privy Council proclaimed that schools teaching in English should be established. Gaelic was seen, at this time, as one of the causes of the instability of the region. It was also associated with Catholicism. The Society in Scotland for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge (SSPCK) was founded in 1709. They met in 1716, immediately after the failed Jacobite rising of 1715 , to consider
5508-406: The Highlands and Islands, Links between Scotland and the Nordic world, The history and culture of the Scottish islands within the North Atlantic region, Highlands and Islands Literature, Island Studies, The languages and dialects of Orkney and Shetland, and Pictish studies. Language Sciences Institute seeks to revitalize minority languages. The LSI will expand on the work of the Soillse project, with
5610-416: The Highlands and Islands, including Argyll. In many cases, this has simply meant re-adopting the traditional spelling of a name (such as Ràtagan or Loch Ailleart rather than the anglicised forms Ratagan or Lochailort respectively). Some monolingual Gaelic road signs, particularly direction signs, are used on the Outer Hebrides , where a majority of the population can have a working knowledge of
5712-426: The Inner Hebridean dialects of Tiree and Islay, and even a few native speakers from Western Highland areas including Wester Ross , northwest Sutherland , Lochaber and Argyll . Dialects on both sides of the Straits of Moyle (the North Channel ) linking Scottish Gaelic with Irish are now extinct, though native speakers were still to be found on the Mull of Kintyre , on Rathlin and in North East Ireland as late as
5814-432: The Institute of Economic Development. The Energy and Technology subject area offers a range of academic programs up to, and including Masters level, together with various subjects taught at HNC / HND level. UHI has links with the new Centre for Health Sciences located behind Raigmore Hospital . This is being funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise , the Scottish Government and Johnson and Johnson . UHI purchased
5916-410: The Irish language ( Gaeilge ) and the Manx language ( Gaelg ). Scottish Gaelic is distinct from Scots , the Middle English -derived language which had come to be spoken in most of the Lowlands of Scotland by the early modern era . Prior to the 15th century, this language was known as Inglis ("English") by its own speakers, with Gaelic being called Scottis ("Scottish"). Beginning in
6018-467: The UHI network and worldwide. Dornoch was a parliamentary burgh , combined with Dingwall , Kirkwall , Tain and Wick in the Northern Burghs constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1918. Cromarty was added to the list in 1832. The constituency was a district of burghs known also as Tain Burghs until 1832, and then as Wick Burghs . It
6120-428: The UK Government as Welsh . With the advent of devolution , however, Scottish matters have begun to receive greater attention, and it achieved a degree of official recognition when the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act was enacted by the Scottish Parliament on 21 April 2005. The key provisions of the Act are: After its creation, Bòrd na Gàidhlig required a Gaelic Language Plan from the Scottish Government. This plan
6222-557: The UK's Outdoor Capital as a living research laboratory. From August 2013 UHI has benefited from allocation of student teacher places, allowing postgraduate diploma in education (PGDE) to be offered, and the success of this has led to the number of places being increased. The Faculty of Science, Health and Engineering has three subject networks; The Faculty of Science, Health and Engineering has research in Renewables, Marine Science, Digital Health, Sustainable Rural Development and Environmental Issues. A fully online honours degree programme
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#17327840097396324-581: The Western Isles (−1,745), Argyll & Bute (−694), and Highland (−634). The drop in Stornoway , the largest parish in the Western Isles by population, was especially acute, from 57.5% of the population in 1991 to 43.4% in 2011. The only parish outside the Western Isles over 40% Gaelic-speaking is Kilmuir in Northern Skye at 46%. The islands in the Inner Hebrides with significant percentages of Gaelic speakers are Tiree (38.3%), Raasay (30.4%), Skye (29.4%), Lismore (26.9%), Colonsay (20.2%), and Islay (19.0%). Today, no civil parish in Scotland has
6426-589: The Western Isles. The Scottish Qualifications Authority offer two streams of Gaelic examination across all levels of the syllabus: Gaelic for learners (equivalent to the modern foreign languages syllabus) and Gaelic for native speakers (equivalent to the English syllabus). An Comunn Gàidhealach performs assessment of spoken Gaelic, resulting in the issue of a Bronze Card, Silver Card or Gold Card. Syllabus details are available on An Comunn's website. These are not widely recognised as qualifications, but are required for those taking part in certain competitions at
6528-599: The academic board. The Academic Council is the main Higher Education disciplinary authority in UHI. Specific tasks are assigned to a number of committees; The Foundation creates a link between UHI and its communities and contains a maximum of 120 members. In addition to the Rector, Principal and Vice-Chancellor, President of the Student Association and Chair of the Court, the Foundation also includes members from academic partners, employees, students, industry, alumni, external organisations and individuals. The Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business has three subject networks; In
6630-466: The age and reliability of the medieval historical sources speaking of a conquest. Instead, he has inferred that Argyll formed part of a common Q-Celtic -speaking area with Ireland, connected rather than divided by the sea, since the Iron Age. These arguments have been opposed by some scholars defending the early dating of the traditional accounts and arguing for other interpretations of the archaeological evidence. Regardless of how it came to be spoken in
6732-400: The ancient cathedral town of Elgin. The Elgin campus is home to Scotland's fifth art school and the only one located in a non-urban environment. West Highland College is located in Fort William. Orkney College UHI is principally based in Kirkwall in the Orkney Islands with a second campus in Stromness and learning centres based on the smaller islands. UHI Perth is situated in the city of Perth on
6834-408: The annual mods . In October 2009, a new agreement allowed Scottish Gaelic to be formally used between Scottish Government ministers and European Union officials. The deal was signed by Britain's representative to the EU, Sir Kim Darroch , and the Scottish government . This did not give Scottish Gaelic official status in the EU but gave it the right to be a means of formal communications in
6936-413: The bill be strengthened, a revised bill was published; the main alteration was that the guidance of the Bòrd is now statutory (rather than advisory). In the committee stages in the Scottish Parliament, there was much debate over whether Gaelic should be given 'equal validity' with English. Due to executive concerns about resourcing implications if this wording was used, the Education Committee settled on
7038-441: The broader community in and around Inverness, is being planned. A wide variety of sports and activities will be offered at the centre. Scottish Gaelic language Scottish Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ æ l ɪ k / , GAL -ik ; endonym : Gàidhlig [ˈkaːlɪkʲ] ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic , is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family ) native to
7140-625: The census of pupils in Scotland showed 520 students in publicly funded schools had Gaelic as the main language at home, an increase of 5% from 497 in 2014. During the same period, Gaelic medium education in Scotland has grown, with 4,343 pupils (6.3 per 1000) being educated in a Gaelic-immersion environment in 2018, up from 3,583 pupils (5.3 per 1000) in 2014. Data collected in 2007–2008 indicated that even among pupils enrolled in Gaelic medium schools, 81% of primary students and 74% of secondary students report using English more often than Gaelic when speaking with their mothers at home. The effect on this of
7242-419: The cities and professors of Celtic from universities who sought to preserve the language. The Education (Scotland) Act 1872 provided universal education in Scotland, but completely ignored Gaelic in its plans. The mechanism for supporting Gaelic through the Education Codes issued by the Scottish Education Department were steadily used to overcome this omission, with many concessions in place by 1918. However,
7344-499: The concept of 'equal respect'. It is not clear what the legal force of this wording is. The Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament unanimously, with support from all sectors of the Scottish political spectrum, on 21 April 2005. Under the provisions of the Act, it will ultimately fall to BnG to secure the status of the Gaelic language as an official language of Scotland. Some commentators, such as Éamonn Ó Gribín (2006) argue that
7446-499: The dialect of the Scottish Gaelic language, and also mixed use of English and Gaelic across the Highlands and Islands. Dialects of Lowland Gaelic have been defunct since the 18th century. Gaelic in the Eastern and Southern Scottish Highlands, although alive until the mid-20th century, is now largely defunct. Although modern Scottish Gaelic is dominated by the dialects of the Outer Hebrides and Isle of Skye, there remain some speakers of
7548-582: The entire region of modern-day Scotland was called Scotia in Latin, and Gaelic was the lingua Scotica . In southern Scotland , Gaelic was strong in Galloway , adjoining areas to the north and west, West Lothian , and parts of western Midlothian . It was spoken to a lesser degree in north Ayrshire , Renfrewshire , the Clyde Valley and eastern Dumfriesshire . In south-eastern Scotland, there
7650-560: The first time. However, given there are no longer any monolingual Gaelic speakers, following an appeal in the court case of Taylor v Haughney (1982), involving the status of Gaelic in judicial proceedings, the High Court ruled against a general right to use Gaelic in court proceedings. While the goal of the Gaelic Language Act was to aid in revitalization efforts through government mandated official language status,
7752-459: The following academic areas; UHI offers Masters by Research (MRes) degrees in the following academic areas; UHI offers undergraduate degrees in the following academic areas; UHI offers HNC / HND degrees in the following academic areas; The Witherby Publishing Group Charitable Trust Scholarship provide scholarships and bursaries for students from rural backgrounds to attend the university. The Highlands and Islands Students' Association (HISA)
7854-428: The historic village of Scalloway. UHI conducts its research through a collaboration of twelve colleges and academic institutions. These institutions are defined as academic partners which can operate as an autonomous body. Due to UHI's regional characteristic, academic partners can determine their own strategy and they are authorised to make their own investments and manage recruitment independently. UHI operates across
7956-479: The initiatives must come from within Gaelic speaking communities, be led by Gaelic speakers, and be designed to serve and increase fluency within the vernacular communities as the first and most viable resistance to total language shift from Gaelic to English. Currently, language policies are focused on creating new language speakers through education, instead of focused on how to strengthen intergenerational transmission within existing Gaelic speaking communities. In
8058-502: The language. Compared with the 2001 Census, there has been a diminution of about 1300 people. This is the smallest drop between censuses since the Gaelic-language question was first asked in 1881. The Scottish government's language minister and Bòrd na Gàidhlig took this as evidence that Gaelic's long decline has slowed. The main stronghold of the language continues to be the Outer Hebrides ( Na h-Eileanan Siar ), where
8160-627: The language. These omit the English translation entirely. Bilingual railway station signs are now more frequent than they used to be. Practically all the stations in the Highland area use both English and Gaelic, and the use of bilingual station signs has become more frequent in the Lowlands of Scotland, including areas where Gaelic has not been spoken for a long time. Dornoch Dornoch ( / ˈ d ɔːr n ɒ x / ; Scottish Gaelic : Dòrnach [ˈt̪ɔːrˠn̪ˠəx] ; Scots : Dornach )
8262-532: The late 15th century, it became increasingly common for such speakers to refer to Scottish Gaelic as Erse ("Irish") and the Lowland vernacular as Scottis . Today, Scottish Gaelic is recognised as a separate language from Irish, so the word Erse in reference to Scottish Gaelic is no longer used. Based on medieval traditional accounts and the apparent evidence from linguistic geography, Gaelic has been commonly believed to have been brought to Scotland, in
8364-459: The members of Highland school boards tended to have anti-Gaelic attitudes and served as an obstacle to Gaelic education in the late 19th and early 20th century. Loss of life due to World War I and the 1919 sinking of the HMY Iolaire , combined with emigration, resulted in the 1910s seeing unprecedented damage to the use of Scottish Gaelic, with a 46% fall in monolingual speakers and
8466-734: The mid-20th century. Records of their speech show that Irish and Scottish Gaelic existed in a dialect chain with no clear language boundary. Some features of moribund dialects have been preserved in Nova Scotia, including the pronunciation of the broad or velarised l ( l̪ˠ ) as [w] , as in the Lochaber dialect. The Endangered Languages Project lists Gaelic's status as "threatened", with "20,000 to 30,000 active users". UNESCO classifies Gaelic as " definitely endangered ". The 1755–2001 figures are census data quoted by MacAulay. The 2011 Gaelic speakers figures come from table KS206SC of
8568-532: The modern era. Some of this was driven by policy decisions by government or other organisations, while some originated from social changes. In the last quarter of the 20th century, efforts began to encourage use of the language. The Statutes of Iona , enacted by James VI in 1609, was one piece of legislation that addressed, among other things, the Gaelic language. It required the heirs of clan chiefs to be educated in lowland, Protestant, English-speaking schools. James VI took several such measures to impose his rule on
8670-695: The official language of government and law. Scotland's emergent nationalism in the era following the conclusion of the Wars of Scottish Independence was organized using Scots as well. For example, the nation's great patriotic literature including John Barbour's The Brus (1375) and Blind Harry's The Wallace (before 1488) was written in Scots, not Gaelic. By the end of the 15th century, English/Scots speakers referred to Gaelic instead as 'Yrisch' or 'Erse', i.e. Irish and their own language as 'Scottis'. A steady shift away from Scottish Gaelic continued into and through
8772-459: The outcome of the act is distanced from the actual minority language communities. It helps to create visibility of the minority language in civil structures, but does not impact or address the lived experiences of the Gaelic speaker communities wherein the revitalization efforts may have a higher return of new Gaelic speakers. Efforts are being made to concentrate resources, language planning, and revitalization efforts towards vernacular communities in
8874-504: The overall proportion of speakers is 52.2%. Important pockets of the language also exist in the Highlands (5.4%) and in Argyll and Bute (4.0%) and Inverness (4.9%). The locality with the largest absolute number is Glasgow with 5,878 such persons, who make up over 10% of all of Scotland's Gaelic speakers. Gaelic continues to decline in its traditional heartland. Between 2001 and 2011, the absolute number of Gaelic speakers fell sharply in
8976-1082: The production and promotion of new crops and plant products in the Scotland's highlands and islands. The Institute cooperates with growers, end-users and other research organisations. Based on the Orkney Mainland, the UHI Archaeology Institute also has research and teaching staff in both Shetland and the Western Isles. Throughout Scotland, the Institute integrates teaching, scientific research, and applied industrial research and consultancy. The institute's commercial arm, ORCA, provides Northern Scotland archaeological and conservation services-from archaeological excavations and assessments to environmental consulting services, underwater archaeological invasion. Founded in 2007, Institute for Northern Studies operates at UHI Orkney, Shetland and Perth from three main locations. Research areas are Viking Studies, Medieval and modern history and culture of
9078-466: The prosperity of employment: the Highland economy relied greatly on seasonal migrant workers travelling outside the Gàidhealtachd . In 1863, an observer sympathetic to Gaelic stated that "knowledge of English is indispensable to any poor islander who wishes to learn a trade or to earn his bread beyond the limits of his native Isle". Generally, rather than Gaelic speakers, it was Celtic societies in
9180-460: The reform and civilisation of the Highlands, which they sought to achieve by teaching English and the Protestant religion. Initially, their teaching was entirely in English, but soon the impracticality of educating Gaelic-speaking children in this way gave rise to a modest concession: in 1723, teachers were allowed to translate English words in the Bible into Gaelic to aid comprehension, but there
9282-632: The region through partnerships with colleges and research institutions. In early 2018, UHI awarded the Institute of Health Science and Innovation an Institution status in recognition of the scale and success of the pre-existing cluster of health research. The Institute includes representatives from around the UHI collaboration, but most of them are located at the Inverness Centre for Health Science. Institute activities can be divided loosely into three major themes: Disease Management, Smarter Health, and Rural Health and Wellbeing. Opened 2000, The ERI
9384-587: The region, Gaelic in Scotland was mostly confined to Dál Riata until the eighth century, when it began expanding into Pictish areas north of the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. During the reign of Caustantín mac Áeda (Constantine II, 900–943), outsiders began to refer to the region as the kingdom of Alba rather than as the kingdom of the Picts. However, though the Pictish language did not disappear suddenly,
9486-602: The southern edge of the Highlands of Scotland. The Scottish Association for Marine Science UHI (SAMS UHI) is located on Dunstaffnage bay on the west coast of Scotland, three miles from the seaside town of Oban. Sabhal Mòr Ostaig UHI is situated close to the sea on the southern peninsula of Sleat on the Isle of Skye. Shetland College and NAFC Marine Centre mergered in August 2021 to become Shetland UHI, with college bases in Lerwick and in
9588-553: The thirteenth-century Dornoch Cathedral , the Old Town Jail, Dornoch Sheriff Court and Dornoch Castle , which is now a hotel. There is also a notable golf course , the Royal Dornoch Golf Club , named No. 2 on the 2024/24 Golf Digest list of Top 100 International (outside U.S.) courses. It is also notable as the last place a witch was burnt in Scotland. Her name was reported as Janet Horne ; she
9690-399: Was accepted in 2008, and some of its main commitments were: identity (signs, corporate identity); communications (reception, telephone, mailings, public meetings, complaint procedures); publications (PR and media, websites); staffing (language learning, training, recruitment). Following a consultation period, in which the government received many submissions, the majority of which asked that
9792-588: Was awarded by the Privy Council in February 2011, and UHI became the University of the Highlands and Islands. The Princess Royal was officially installed as Chancellor in June 2012. Clive Mulholland became Principal and Vice-Chancellor in June 2014, after his appointment to this post was announced in February 2014. Professor Todd Walker became Principal and Vice-Chancellor in 2021. Anton Edwards,
9894-571: Was launched in March 2017 and honors its students' sporting accomplishments. The Elite Athletes Fund supports athletes who are currently studying at UHI or one of its colleges and participating at national or international level in their chosen sport and representing the university/college where possible. A new sports complex to be situated within the Inverness campus with facilities targeted at both students and campus-based staff, but also available to
9996-491: Was long suppressed. The UK government has ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in respect of Gaelic. Gaelic, along with Irish and Welsh, is designated under Part III of the Charter, which requires the UK Government to take a range of concrete measures in the fields of education, justice, public administration, broadcasting and culture. It has not received the same degree of official recognition from
10098-510: Was no further permitted use. Other less prominent schools worked in the Highlands at the same time, also teaching in English. This process of anglicisation paused when evangelical preachers arrived in the Highlands, convinced that people should be able to read religious texts in their own language. The first well known translation of the Bible into Scottish Gaelic was made in 1767, when James Stuart of Killin and Dugald Buchanan of Rannoch produced
10200-669: Was opened on 2 June 1902. Stations on the line were Dornoch , Embo, Skelbo , Cambusavie Halt and The Mound Junction. The stations were shut on 13 June 1960. Dornoch Academy Modern Languages teacher Margaret C. Davidson led the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies in the burgh from 1913, volunteered as a nurse in the Scottish Women's Hospitals in France in World War One and returned to teach and serve as
10302-473: Was represented by one Member of Parliament (MP). In 1918 the constituency was abolished and the Dornoch component was merged into the then new county constituency of Caithness and Sutherland . Scotland's Westminster constituencies were redrawn for the 2005 UK general election , when Dornoch became part of the new Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency. Since 2017 , the MP has been Jamie Stone of
10404-523: Was tried and condemned to death in 1727. There is a stone, the Witch's Stone, commemorating her death, inscribed with the year 1722. The golf course designer Donald Ross began his career as a greenkeeper on the Royal Dornoch links . The golf course is next to the award-winning blue flag beach. Dornoch used to be connected to the main railway network at The Mound by a light railway . The railway
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