Scotland is a small kingdom that is part of the UK. It is located in the north of the island, and on land, Scotland borders with England. The capital of the kingdom is Edinburgh, which is the second largest after Glasgow.
Scotland: Past and Present
Scotland used to be independent. But this trend has continued to this day. Even compared to Wales and England, the modern Scottish kingdom can be described as the most autonomous. Scotland is filled with antiquity and a romantic spirit. It is on the territory of Scotland that the oldest tree in Europe grows, the population by as much as 40% consists of red-haired people, and the unicorn is a symbol of the country.
What language is spoken in Scotland?
In modern Scotland, three languages are officially adopted: standard English, Anglo-Scottish or Scotts, and Scottish Gaelic. In this case, the first of these is a dialect of generally accepted English. It is Anglo-Scottish that is the spoken language in Scotland. It communicates a large part of the population, which lives on the plains of the kingdom. The number of speakers of this dialect is about 1.5 million people. Many locals use mixed forms - a cross between standard English and Scottish English.
Features of English Scottish
In fact, it is impossible to unequivocally answer the question of what language is spoken in Scotland. Modern scots are divided by researchers into several broad subgroups: the English-Scottish language of the central, northern, southern, and also island zones of the country. In addition, linguists place particular emphasis on the fact that the modern Scottish kingdom is characterized by a constant ethnic mix. In this case, assimilation of languages occurs. Therefore, modern scots, although it retained a lot of native vocabulary belonging to it, is filled with many words that are part of alien languages: Norwegian, Danish, Swedish and others.
Why did dialects arise?
What is the reason for this difference in the use of English Scottish? Perhaps the reason for this is not only external conquest. The Scottish kingdom in the early stages of its formation was distinguished by a multi-tribal composition. At the same time, the division of the terrain into plain and mountainous also played an important role. They were opposed not only in their ethnic composition. The way of life and the features of housekeeping were different.
Attempts to revive the Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic, unfortunately, belongs to endangered languages. It belongs to the Celtic group. The number of its carriers is becoming less and less every year. And now only about 50 thousand inhabitants of the kingdom communicate on it. The modern government of Scotland is taking a number of measures in order to popularize the Gaelic language in the country.
For this, a bilingual education policy was proclaimed. In Gaelic, worship began in temples. The revival of Gaelic decided to support the company and the Air Force. There are many Gaelic shows on television in Scotland. These are news, entertainment and educational programs.
The influence of Scandinavian culture on Scotland
In the XI century, the Vikings conquered many Scottish islands. This happened before the Scandinavians reached their main goal - the British Isles. For the Vikings, the Scottish kingdom at that time was a significant outlet. It was on the way from Baghdad to Newfoundland. The Vikings always warned their allies that they should stay away from the Scots. For the Scandinavians, Scotland was a dark and dangerous place. The Scots seemed to them cruel and awe-inspiring, and what language they speak in Scotland, the conquerors could not even understand.
Despite all these factors, the Vikings still managed to establish settlements in Scotland, and the Scandinavian culture had a great influence on the local one. In particular, the language turned out to be subject to influence. It is believed, for example, that the word "kilt" came from the Scandinavian kjalta. One cannot say with certainty which language in Scotland is more exposed to outside influences. Some researchers believe that the similarities between English Scottish and Scandinavian are much greater than with traditional English.
Standard English in Scotland
It will be especially interesting to know what language is spoken in Scotland, for those who study English. After all, if standard English is one of the official languages here, does this mean that it will be easy for a foreigner to communicate with the Scots? However, this is a big mistake. In the UK, standard English is considered correct regardless of region. But in Scotland, in fact, it is used by only a small part of the population - 3-5%. And at the same time, even these residents use an English version that will be far from official. Their dialect will be incomprehensible to those who study the standard language.