Scotland is Now – Language

English is the main language spoken in Scotland today and has been the since the
18th Century. However, there 1. is/are/was/were a wide range of different accents
and dialects spoken across the country. From the largest cities right through to the
smallest of our islands, differing accents can be found. These 2.
range/ranges/ranged/ranging from soft and sing-song to stronger and more
pronounced.
Shaped by our rich history and vibrant culture, the ancient Celtic language of Gaelic
3. is/are/was/were still spoken throughout Scotland. Gaelic has been part of the
Scottish consciousness for centuries and is considered to be the founding language
of the country. The origins of Gaelic can be traced back as far as the 10th Century
and is believed to have been brought to Scotland from Ireland.
In recent times the Gaelic language has experienced a renaissance and is enjoying
new levels of popularity. Although the Highlands and Islands are the stronghold of
the Gaelic language, the number of speakers is steadily increasing and Gaelic
speakers can be found in all parts of the country. The introduction of bilingual road
signs and a dedicated Gaelic TV channel 4. mean/means/meant/meaning you are
never far from an encounter with the Gaelic language.
Whereas Gaelic 5. is/are/was/were the dominant language in the Highlands and
Islands of Scotland, the Lowlands of Scotland 6. adopt/adopts/adopted/adopting
the language of Scots. As opposed to Gaelic, the Scots language is much closer in
style to that of English and debate has raged for many years as to whether it's a
separate language or a dialect. Today, the UK government 7.
accept/accepts/accepted/accepting Scots as a regional language and recognised
it under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

Scotland is proud to maintain 8. its/hers/their/them indigenous tongues, but the

country is also home to many other languages. Scotland 9. has/have/had/having an
excellent reputation for welcoming people from around the world to our shores to
live, work and study, and this diversity 10. bring/brings/brought/bringing with it
many different languages, spoken by a diverse and growing population. While some
languages are spoken by only a few, others 11. is/are/was/were the primary
language of entire communities.

There are over 170 languages spoken in Scotland, and 12. this/those/them/their
include Arabic, Bengali, Cantonese, Dutch, Farsi, French, German, Hebrew, Hindi,
Italian, Japanese, Kurdish, Makaton, Mandarin, Punjabi, Polish, Spanish, Turkish,
Urdu and many more.