Interesting facts about Scotland

Land & People

 Scotland has three officially recognised languages: English, Scots (a relative of English) and
Scottish Gaelic (a completely different language). Add to this Scottish English, which is
English spoken with a more or less strong Scots accent and the occasional use of words from
Scots or Scottish Gaelic.
 Scottish surnames are divided in two main categories : Gaelic names (typically starting with
"Mac-" or "Mc-") and Germanic names (e.g. Barclay, Blair, Brown, Carmichael, Cumming,
Hamilton, Howard, Melville, Menzies, Stewart...).
 Scotland is known as "Alba" in Gaelic.
 Scotland has only 5 million inhabitants, about 8.5% of the UK's population.
 Scotland has about the same land area as the Czech Republic, the United Arab Emirates,
Panama, the US state of Maine, or the Japanese island of Hokkaido. This latter (Hokkaido)
has the most similar climate and population density.
 Scotland has some 790 islands, 130 of which are inhabited.
 About 5 million Americans reported Scottish ancestry. The highest concentration of people
of Scottish descent are found in New England and in the North-West.
 At least 6 US Presidents were of Scottish descent : Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), James
Madison (1751-1836), Andrew Jackson (1767-1845), James Knox Polk (1795-1849),
William McKinley (1843-1901), Woodrow (Thomas) Wilson (1856-1924)
 Other famous Americans with Scottish ancestry include John Paul Jones (father of the
American Navy), Thomas Edison (inventor), Ben Affleck (actor), Heather Locklear (actress)
 The two first Prime Minister of Canada, John A. Macdonald (1815-1891) and Alexander
Mackenzie (1822-1892), were Scottish.
 Many Australian Prime Ministers were also of Scottish descent, like George Reid (1845-
1918). Andrew Fisher (1862-1928), Stanley Bruce (1883-1967), or Robert Menzies (1894-
1978).

History
 Scotland was an independent country until 1603. Then the king of Scotland became king of
England (not the other way round), but the two country didn't merge their governments until
1707, to form the Kingdom of Great Britain .
 Edinburgh was the first city in the world with its own fire-brigade.
 The Bank of Scotland, founded in 1695, is the oldest surviving bank in the UK. It was also
the first bank in Europe to print its own banknotes, a function it still performs today.
 Skara Brae, on the island of Orkney, is the most complete Neolithic village in Europe. It is
also the oldest building in Britain, dating from 3100 BCE.

Government & Politics

 Since 1 July 1999, Scotland has its own parliament, for the first time since 1707.
 Although Scotland was never part of the Roman Empire, Scots law has a basis derived from
Roman law.
 One particularity of Scots law is that the criminal trial may end in one of three verdicts:
'guilty', 'not guilty', or 'not proven'. The "not proven" verdict may be referred to as the
Scottish Verdict abroad.
 Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the UK since 1997, is Scottish, and so is his designated
 sucessor and Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown.

Culture & Sciences

 Scottish literature includes such names as Sir Walter Scott, Lord Byron and Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle.
 Scotland has spawned an amazing number of great thinkers and inventors for its diminutive
size : Adam Smith, James Watt, David Hume, John Stuart Mill, Sir Alexander Fleming,
Alexander Graham Bell...
 Famous Scottish actors include Sean Connery, Gerard Butler and Ewan McGregor.

Food & Drinks

 Scotland is reputed for its whisky, known outside Scotland as Scotch Whisky.
 Shortbread is Scotland's most famous biscuit.
 The most infamous Scottish dish is haggis, normally made with sheep's 'pluck' (heart, liver,
and lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and
traditionally boiled in the animal's stomach for approximately an hour.
 Scottish dishes are well-known for their weird names, like Forfar Bridie (a meat pastry),
Cock-a-leekie (soup), Collops (escalope), Crappit heid (fish dish), Finnan haddie (haddock
fish), Arbroath Smokie (smoked haddock), Cullen Skink (haddock soup), Partan bree
(seafood dish), Mince and tatties (minced meat and potatoes), Rumbledethumps, Skirlie...

Economy
 Edinburgh is Europe's fifth largest financial centre.
 Scottish waters have some of Europe's largest oil reserve.
 Scotland is a major producer of wool and wool textiles.