Scottish national identity is a term referring to the sense of national identity and common culture of Scottish people and is shared by a considerable majority of the people of Scotland.
Scottish national identity is largely free from ethnic distinction, and many of "immigrant" descent see themselves (and are seen as), for example, Pakistani and Scottish: Asian-Scots. Identification of others as Scottish is generally a matter of accent, and though the various dialects of the Scots language and Scottish English (or the accents of Gaelic speakers) are distinctive, people associate them all together as Scottish with a shared identity, as well as a regional or local identity. Parts of Scotland, like Glasgow, the Outer Hebrides, the north east of Scotland (including Aberdeen), and the Scottish Borders retain a strong sense of regional identity, alongside the idea of a Scottish national identity. Residents of Orkney and Shetland also express a distinct regional identity, influenced by their Norse heritage. However many other regions of Scotland, such as the Western Isles and Caithness, also have a Norse heritage.
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Famous quotes containing the words scottish, national and/or identity:
“We’ll never know the worth of water till the well go dry.”
—18th-century Scottish proverb, collected in James Kelly, Complete Collection of Scottish Proverbs, no. 351 (1721)
“In the past, it seemed to make sense for a sportswriter on sabbatical from the playpen to attend the quadrennial hawgkilling when Presidential candidates are chosen, to observe and report upon politicians at play. After all, national conventions are games of a sort, and sports offers few spectacles richer in low comedy.”
—Walter Wellesley (Red)
“Motion or change, and identity or rest, are the first and second secrets of nature: Motion and Rest. The whole code of her laws may be written on the thumbnail, or the signet of a ring.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)