Highland games
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Highland_Games-Opening_ceremonies_in_Canmore.jpg/220px-Highland_Games-Opening_ceremonies_in_Canmore.jpg)
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Highland games (Scottish Gaelic: geamannan Gàidhealach) are events held in spring and summer in Scotland and other countries with a large Scottish diaspora, as a way of celebrating Scottish and Celtic culture, especially that of the Scottish Highlands. Certain aspects of the games are so well known as to have become emblematic of Scotland, such as the bagpipes, the kilt, and the heavy events, especially the caber toss and weight over bar. While centred on competitions in piping and drumming, dancing, and Scottish heavy athletics, the games also include entertainment and exhibits related to other aspects of Scottish and Gaelic cultures.
The Cowal Highland Gathering, better known as the Cowal Games, is held in Dunoon, Scotland, every August. It is the largest Highland games in Scotland,[a] attracting around 3,500 competitors and somewhere in the region of 23,000 spectators[1][2] from around the globe. Worldwide, however, it is exceeded in terms of spectators by three gatherings in the United States: the estimated 30,000[3] that attend Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina; the New Hampshire Highland Games & Festival, which attracts over 35,000 annually; and the even larger Northern California gathering—the largest in the Northern Hemisphere[4]—that has taken place every year since 1866.[5] This event, the Scottish Highland Gathering and Games, is currently held on Labor Day weekend in Pleasanton, California; the sesquicentennial event held on 5–6 September 2015 attracted record crowds close to 50,000.[4]
The games are claimed to have influenced Baron Pierre de Coubertin when he was planning the revival of the Olympic Games. De Coubertin saw a display of Highland games at the Paris Exhibition of 1889.[6][b]
History
Early events
The first historical reference to the type of events held at Highland games in Scotland was made during the time of King Malcolm III (Scottish Gaelic: Máel Coluim, c. 1031 – 13 November 1093) when he summoned men to race up Craig Choinnich overlooking Braemar with the aim of finding the fastest runner in Scotland to be his royal messenger.[citation needed] There is a document from 1703 summoning the clan of the Laird of Grant, Clan Grant. They were to arrive wearing Highland coats and "also with gun, sword, pistol and dirk".[c] From this letter, it is surmised that the competitions would have included feats of arms.[citation needed]
There are also thought to have been events where the strongest and bravest soldiers in Scotland would be tested. Musicians and dancers were encouraged to reveal their skill and talents and so be a great credit to the clan that they represented.[citation needed] Some modern sources suggest more these games would originate from the deer hunts that the inhabitants of the Highlands engaged in.[7]
Attempts have been made to discover earlier traditions of games, although evidence is thin. The primary sources are from the bardic traditions of both contests between clans and of tests to select retainers for clan chiefs. An example of a possible early games venue is at Fetteresso,[citation needed] although that location is technically a few miles south of the Scotland Highlands.
Modern events
![A hundred or more pipers and drummers in an array of kilts at a Scottish games event](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/Massed_bands.jpg/220px-Massed_bands.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/The_Carmunnock_Highland_Games%2C_weight_over_the_bar%2C_City_of_Glasgow.jpg/220px-The_Carmunnock_Highland_Games%2C_weight_over_the_bar%2C_City_of_Glasgow.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9c/Highland_Dancing_Competition_-_Dornoch_Highland_Gathering_2007.jpg/220px-Highland_Dancing_Competition_-_Dornoch_Highland_Gathering_2007.jpg)
The modern Highland games are largely a 19th-century development, from the period following the Jacobite rebellions and subsequent ban on Highland dress.[d]
By the mid-20th century,[8] annual Highland games events, modelled on the traditional events in Scotland along with some elements borrowed from the mòd festivals, had been established not just in Scotland but throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, among other places with a notable Scottish diaspora, which totals about 50 million people worldwide.[9] (The earliest such events in North America go back quite a way, to 1836 in New York[10] and at least 1863 in Nova Scotia.)[11] The modern, rather commercialised[12] gatherings have done much to promote tartan, kilts, and other elements of Highland culture abroad, having up to tens of thousands of attendees,[13] a large proportion of them in Highland dress. The games are the primary source of business for a cottage industry of professional kiltmakers outside of Scotland, and are the main recruiting grounds of the numerous clan societies.[e]
While the Scottish Highland Games Association says there are dozens of such events in Scotland,[15] there were at least 260 annual Highland games events worldwide as of 2000,[16] more than 100 of them in the US alone, and dozens more in Canada.[15] They are closely intertwined with bagpipe band competitions (which date to 1781), a lasting source of Highland imagery in their regiment-inspired uniforms; the 2013 World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow drew over 8,000 pipers and drummers from all over the world.[17]
The games' rather flamboyantly[18] tartaned subculture, a "shortcut to the Highlands",[19] is sustained outside Scotland primarily by multi-generational Scottish descendants rather than by direct Scottish expatriates.[20][21] Sir Malcolm MacGregor, chief of Clan Gregor and then convenor of the Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs (well aware of tartan's connections to tourism and other Scottish economic interests) wrote in 2016 of the games events beyond Scotland that "it is the stuff of kilts and cabers, but it is the Scotland those not living in Scotland want it to be."[22] Ian Brown (2012) coined the term tartanism (as distinct from tartanry) for this international tokenisation of tartan, kilts, and other symbols of the Highlands as ethnic-identity markers, evolving to some degree independently to suit the cultural needs of the New World Scottish diaspora and unrestrained by the views of the originating Scottish "home" culture.[23] Michael B. Paterson (2001) hypothesises that the fondness for Highland symbols and activities among the diaspora may be due to the European-descended populations in these countries lacking much of a direct experience of culture deeper than a few generations, and being dominated by nuclear family structure;[24] Highland games, clan tartans, Burns suppers, St Andrew's societies (more than 1,200 of them just in the US), etc. provide a sense of shared roots, heritage, identity, and a broader and more elastic notion of family, as well as fostering Old World, "mother country" connections.[24][25] Fiona K. Armstrong (2017) writes: "It is a feudal longing in a modern age. It is a yearning for some supposedly comforting and ordered past."[22] According to Ian Maitland Hume (2001):[26]
Tartan and the kilt encapsulate many facets of a heritage which people aspire to access; they may also represent a part-mythical family origin for those seeking roots .... [T]he number of Americans who choose to adopt a Scottish element as part of their identity can be attributed in substantial part to the power these symbols possess.
This swell of diasporic tartan enthusiasm seems to have been triggered in the 1950s, the beginning of the age of affordable powered flight, as clan chiefs like Dame Flora MacLeod of Clan MacLeod travelled abroad to promote Scottish tourism and other connections.[8] (At least 1 in 5 Scottish-descended people surveyed in 2017 by VisitScotland, the national tourism board, expressed an interest in travelling to Scotland.)[27] However, in 2009, the US-based Council of Scottish Clans and Associations reported a drop in the number of active clan societies (which peaked at 170, and drive considerable tourism as well as historic-place restoration efforts), with up to a 25% decrease in individual memberships, as well as some of the annual games events coming to an end; "new technology" (i.e. the Internet) seemed to be related.[28]
Events
Heavy events
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Caber_2.jpg/220px-Caber_2.jpg)
In their original form centuries ago, Highland games revolved around athletic and sports competitions. Though other activities were always a part of the festivities, many today still consider Highland athletics to be what the games are all about—in short, that the athletics are the games, and all the other activities are just entertainment. Regardless, it remains true today that the athletic competitions are at least an integral part of the events and one—the caber toss—has come to almost symbolise the Highland games.
- Stone put or "putting the heavy stone": This event is similar to the modern-day shot put as seen in the Olympic Games. Instead of a steel shot, a large stone of variable weight is often used. There are also some differences from the Olympic shot put in allowable techniques. There are two versions of the stone toss events, differing in allowable technique. The "Braemar Stone" uses a 20–26 lb (9–12 kg) stone for men (13–18 lb or 6–8 kg for women) and does not allow any run up to the toeboard or "trig" to deliver the stone, i.e., it is a standing put. In the "Open Stone" using a 16–22 lb (7–10 kg) stone for men (8–12 lb or 3.5–5.5 kg for women), the thrower is allowed to use any throwing style so long as the stone is put with one hand with the stone resting cradled in the neck until the moment of release. Most athletes in the open stone event use either the "glide" or the "spin" techniques.
- Scottish hammer throw: This event is similar to the hammer throw as seen in modern-day track and field competitions, though with some differences. In the Scottish event, a round metal ball weighing 16 or 22 lb (7.25 or 10 kg) for men, or 12 or 16 lb (5.5 or 7.25 kg) for women, is attached to the end of a shaft about 4 feet (1.2 metres) in length and made out of wood, bamboo, rattan, or plastic. With the feet in a fixed position, the hammer is whirled about one's head and thrown for distance over the shoulder. Hammer throwers sometimes employ specially designed footwear with flat blades to dig into the turf to maintain their balance and resist the centrifugal forces of the implement as it is whirled about the head. This substantially increases the distance attainable in the throw.
Weight throw - Weight throw, also known as the weight for distance event. There are actually two separate events, one using a light (28 lb (13 kg) for men and 14 lb (6.4 kg) for women) and the other a heavy (56 lb (25 kg) for men, 42 lb (19 kg) for masters men, and 28 lb (13 kg) for women) weight. The weights are made of metal and have a handle attached either directly or by means of a chain. The implement is thrown using one hand only, but otherwise using any technique. Usually a spinning technique is employed. The longest throw wins.
- Weight over the bar, also known as "weight for height". The athletes attempt to toss a 56 lb (25 kg) (4-stone) weight with an attached handle over a horizontal bar using only one hand. Each athlete is allowed three attempts at each height. Successful clearance of the height allows the athlete to advance into the next round at a greater height. The competition is determined by the highest successful toss with fewest misses being used to break tie scores.
- Sheaf toss: A bundle of straw (the sheaf) weighing 20 pounds (9.1 kg) for the men and 10 pounds (4.5 kg) for the women and wrapped in a burlap bag is tossed vertically with a pitchfork over a raised bar much like that used in pole vaulting. The progression and scoring of this event is similar to the Weight Over The Bar. There is significant debate among athletes as to whether the sheaf toss is in fact an authentic Highland event. Some argue it is actually a country fair event, but all agree that it is a great crowd pleaser.[citation needed]
- Maide-leisg (Gaelic for 'lazy stick', pronounced [matʲəˈʎeʃkʲ]): Trial of strength performed by two competitors sitting on the ground with the soles of their feet pressing against each other. Thus seated, they hold a stick between their hands which they pull against each other until one of them is raised from the ground. The oldest maide-leisg competition in the world takes place at the Carloway show and Highland games on the Isle of Lewis.
Many of the heavy events competitors in Scottish highland athletics are former high school and college track and field athletes who find the Scottish games are a good way to continue their competitive careers.
Increasingly in the US, the heavy events are attracting women, as well as master-class athletes, which has led to a proliferation of additional classes in heavy-events competitions. Lighter implements are used in the women's classes.
Music
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/Massed_Bands%2C_2005_Pacific_Northwest_Highland_Games.jpg/220px-Massed_Bands%2C_2005_Pacific_Northwest_Highland_Games.jpg)
For many Highland games festival attendees, the most memorable of all the events at the games is the massing of the pipe bands. Normally held in conjunction with the opening and closing ceremonies of the games, as many as 20 or more pipe bands will march and play together. The result is a thunderous rendition of Scotland the Brave or Amazing Grace, and other crowd-pleasing favorites.
The music of the great Highland bagpipe has come to symbolize music at the games and of Scotland itself. In addition to the massed bands (when all the attending pipe bands play together), nearly all Highland games gatherings feature a wide range of piping and drumming competition, including solo piping and drumming, small group ensembles and full the pipe bands.
Music at Highland games gatherings also includes other forms, such as fiddling, harp circles, and Celtic bands.
Dance
The Cowal Highland Gathering hosts the annual World Highland Dancing Championship. This event gathers the best competitive dancers from around the world who compete for the RSOBHD sanctioned World Championship title. But most other Highland Games have dancing as well. The impressiveness of the performance varies wildly depending on the section dancing, with the 4/5/6 year old Primary dancers bringing the cuteness but not necessarily the technique compared to the 10-30+ year olds that are typical of the Premier (Open) section. The dances performed can vary quite a lot depending on the size of the dancing boards, access to swords for dancing over, and just preference of which dances to perform. Among the most common dances are the Highland Fling, the Sword Dance or the Ghillie Callum, the Seann Triubhas, the Irish Jig and the Hornpipe. Of these dances three (Highland Fling, Sword Dance, and Seann Triubhas) are performed wearing the semi-traditional kilt whilst the Irish Jig and the Hornpipe have specific outfits for their dances.
Secondary events and attractions
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/2005_Tacoma_Highland_Games.jpg/220px-2005_Tacoma_Highland_Games.jpg)
At modern-day Highland Games events, a wide variety of other activities and events are generally available. Foremost among these are the clan tents and vendors of Scottish related goods. The various clan societies make the Highland games one of the main focus of their seasonal activities, usually making an appearance at as many such events as possible. Visitors can find out information about the Scottish roots and can become active in their own clan society if they wish. These are more common at Highland Games held outside of Scotland as there is less of a demand for them in Scotland, which is not to say that they do not pop up from time to time.
At modern games, armouries will display their collections of swords and armour, and often perform mock battles. Various vendors selling Scottish memorabilia are also present selling everything from Irn-Bru to the stuffed likeness of the Loch Ness Monster.
Herding dog trials and exhibitions are often held, showcasing the breeder's and trainer's skills. In addition, there may be other types of Highland animals present, such as the Highland cattle.
Various traditional and modern Celtic arts are often showcased. These could include harpers' circles, Scottish country dancing, and one or more entertainment stages. In addition, most events usually feature a pre-event ceilidh (a type of social event with traditional music, dancing, song, and other forms of entertainment).
Various food vendors will also offer assorted types of traditional Scottish refreshment and sustenance.
In popular culture
The Highland games phenomenon is satirised by Neil Munro in his Erchie MacPherson story, "Duffy's Day Off", first published in the Glasgow Evening News on 22 August 1904.[29]
Major events in Scotland
Location | Name of Event | Details |
---|---|---|
Alva, Clackmannanshire | Alva Highland Games | Johnstone Park, Alva at the foot of the Ochil Hills. First held in summer 1856.[30] |
Blair Atholl, Perthshire | Atholl Gathering[31] | Europe's only private military unit, the Atholl Highlanders, open the games in the grounds of Blair Castle. |
Braemar, Aberdeenshire | Braemar Gathering | Attended by the British Royal Family. |
Brodick, Isle of Arran | Brodick Highland Games | First held in 1886.[32] |
Burntisland, Fife | Burntisland Highland Games | Second oldest in the world |
Carloway, Isle of Lewis | Carloway Show and Highland Games | Home to the oldest 'Maide Leisg' competition in the world |
Ceres, Fife | Ceres Highland Games | Oldest free games in Scotland |
Crieff, Perthshire | Crieff Highland Games | Home of the Scottish Heavyweight Championships and has the Earl of Strathearn (Prince William) as the Royal Chieftain |
Cupar, Fife | Cupar Highland Games[33] | Started in 1979 |
Dunoon, Argyllshire | Cowal Highland Gathering | Biggest games in Scotland |
Glenisla, Angus | Glenisla Highland Games[34] | Started in 1869 |
Gourock, Inverclyde | Gourock Highland Games[35] | The first Highland games of the Scottish season – held on the second Sunday in May |
Halkirk, Caithness | Halkirk Highland Games | Started in 1886 |
Inverkeithing, Fife | Inverkeithing Highland Games | |
Lochearnhead, Perthshire | Balquhidder, Lochearnhead and Strathyre Highland Games | Cameron, MacLaren and MacGregor clans linked to the games |
Luss, Dunbartonshire | Luss Highland Gathering | Clan Colquhoun linked to the games. Held regularly since 1875. |
Strathdon, Aberdeenshire | Lonach Highland Gathering & Games | Held by The Lonach Highland & Friendly Society Est. 1823, features the march of the Lonach Highlanders consisting of Forbes, Wallace and Gordons |
Perth, Perthshire | Perth Highland Games | Held on the second Sunday in August |
Pitlochry, Perthshire | Pitlochry Highland Games | |
Portree, Skye | Isle of Skye Highland Games | |
St. Andrews, Fife | St. Andrews Highland Games | |
Stirling | Stirling Highland Games | First Stirling Highland Games were held in July 1870 |
Tobermory, Isle of Mull | Mull Highland Games | Held every third Thursday in July, supported by Clan MacLean; considered one of the most picturesque Games events, overlooking Tobermory Bay and the Sound of Mull |
Inverness | Inverness Highland Games | Staged in the world's oldest[citation needed] highland games stadium, Northern Meeting Park |
Major events outside Scotland
Australia
Location | Name |
---|---|
Daylesford, Victoria | Highland Gathering |
Maclean, NSW | Maclean Highland Gathering |
Belgium
Location | Name |
---|---|
Alden Biesen | Scottish weekend |
Bermuda
Location | Name |
---|---|
Somerset (2012); Pembroke (2013) | Bermuda Highland Games |
Brazil
Location | Name |
---|---|
Estância Velha, Rio Grande do Sul | Scout Highland Games - GEJL46RS |
Sapucaia do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul | Brazilian Scottish Highland Games |
Canada
On 1 August 1997, Canada Post issued "Highland Games" designed by Fraser Ross, based on photographs by Andrew Balfour. The 45¢ stamps are perforated 12.5 x 13 and were printed by Canadian Bank Note Company.[36]
Location[37] | Name | Month Held |
---|---|---|
Alberta | ||
Calgary, Alberta | Calgary Highland Games[38] | September |
Canmore, Alberta | Canmore Highland Games[39] | September |
Edmonton, Alberta | Edmonton Scottish Society Highland Gathering[40] | June |
Grande Prairie, Alberta | Grande Prairie Highland Games[41] | June |
High River, Alberta | Foothills Highland Games[42] | August |
Red Deer, Alberta | Red Deer Highland Games[43] | June |
British Columbia | ||
Coquitlam, British Columbia | BC Highland Games | June |
Kamloops, British Columbia | Kamloops Highland Games[44] | July |
Penticton, British Columbia | Penticton Scottish Festival[45] | July |
Victoria, British Columbia | Victoria Highland Games[46] | May |
Manitoba | ||
East Selkirk, Manitoba | Manitoba Highland Gathering[47] | June |
Winnipeg, Manitoba | Pavilion of Scotland, Folklorama[48] | August |
Winnipeg, Manitoba | Transcona Highland Gathering[49] | September |
New Brunswick | ||
Fredericton, New Brunswick | New Brunswick Highland Games[50] | July |
Moncton, New Brunswick | Moncton Highland Games[51] | June |
Perth-Andover, New Brunswick | Gathering of the Scots Festival[52] | May |
Nova Scotia | ||
Antigonish, Nova Scotia | Antigonish Highland Games[53] | July |
New Glasgow, Nova Scotia | Festival of the Tartans & Highland Games[54] | July |
Ontario | ||
Almonte, Ontario | North Lanark Highland Games[55] | August |
Cambridge, Ontario | Cambridge Highland Games[56] | July |
Cobourg, Ontario | Cobourg Highland Games[57] | June |
Embro, Ontario | Embro Highland Games[58] | July |
Fergus, Ontario | Fergus Scottish Festival and Highland Games[59] | August |
Georgetown, Ontario | Georgetown Highland Games[60] | June |
Kincardine, Ontario | Kincardine Scottish Festival & Highland Games[61] | July |
Kingston, Ontario | Kingston Scottish Festival | May |
Maxville, Ontario | Glengarry Highland Games | August |
Sutton, Ontario | The Georgina Gathering[62] | June |
Uxbridge, Ontario | The Highlands of Durham Games[63] | July |
Quebec | ||
Montreal, Quebec | Montreal Highland Games[64] | August |
Saskatchewan | ||
Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan | Saskatchewan Highland Gathering & Festival (not to be held in 2015)[65] | May |
Regina, Saskatchewan | Saskatchewan Highland Gathering & Festival[66] | May |
Czech Republic
Location | Name |
---|---|
Brno | MonteBú Highland Games[67] |
Sychrov Castle | Skotské hry Sychrov[68] |
Hungary
Location | Name |
---|---|
Csesznek, Veszprém | Scottish Highland Games (Skót Felföldi Játékok) |
Zichyújfalu, Fejér | Highland Games Cup (Felföldi Játékok Kupa)[69] |
Indonesia
Location | Name |
---|---|
Jakarta | Jakarta Highland Gathering |
New Zealand
Location | Name |
---|---|
Hororata | Hororata Highland Games (2011) |
Fairlie | Mackenzie Easter Show & Highland Games (1898) |
Paeroa | Paeroa Highland Games & Tattoo (1993) |
Turakina | Turakina Highland Games (1864) |
Waipu | Waipu Highland Games (1871) |
Switzerland
Location | Name |
---|---|
Abtwil, St. Gallen | Appowila Highland Games |
Fehraltdorf, Zurich | Highland-Games Fehraltdorf[70] |
Ingenbohl, Schwyz | Highland Games Innerschweiz[71] |
United States
Location[37] | Name |
---|---|
Palmer, Alaska | Alaska Scottish Highland Games[72] |
Phoenix, Arizona | Scottish Highland Games[73][74] |
Prescott, Arizona | Prescott Highland Games & Celtic Faire[75] |
Tucson, Arizona | Tucson Celtic Festival & Scottish Highland Games[76] |
Monterey, California | Monterey Scottish Games & Celtic Festival[77] |
Pleasanton, California | Scottish Highland Gathering and Games[78][79] |
San Diego, California | San Diego Scottish Highland Games & Gathering of the Clans[80] |
Santa Cruz County, California | Scottish Renaissance Festival featuring the Loch Lomond Highland Games & Celtic Gathering[81] |
Ventura, California | Seaside Highland Games[82] |
Woodland, California | Sacramento Valley Scottish Games & Festival[83] |
Elizabeth, Colorado | Elizabeth Celtic Festival[84] |
Estes Park, Colorado | Longs Peak Scottish-Irish Highland Festival[85] |
Hartford, Connecticut | Pipes in the Valley[86] |
Brooklyn, Connecticut | Scotland Connecticut Highland Games[87] |
Dunedin, Florida | Dunedin Highland Games and Festivals[88] |
Green Cove Springs, Florida | Northeast Florida Scottish Highland Games[89] |
Marianna, Florida | The Big Bend Highland Games & Scottish Festival[90] |
Sarasota, Florida | Sarasota Highland Games[91] |
Blairsville, Georgia | Blairsville Scottish Festival & Highland Games[92] |
Stone Mountain, Georgia | Stone Mountain Highland Games and Scottish Festival[93] |
Honolulu, Hawaii | Hawaiian Scottish Festival and Highland Games[94] |
Columbus, Indiana | Columbus Scottish Festival and Highland Games[95] |
Indianapolis, Indiana | Indianapolis Scottish Highland Games and Festival[96] |
South Bend, Indiana | Celtic Festival and Bryan Verkler Invitational Highland Games |
Davenport, Iowa | Celtic Festival and Highland Games of the Quad-Cities[97] |
Eminence, Kentucky | Highland Renaissance Festival[98] |
Glasgow, Kentucky | Glasgow Highland Games |
Baton Rouge, Louisiana | The Highland Games of Louisiana[99] |
Mount Airy, Maryland | Frederick Celtic Festival |
St. Leonard, Maryland | Southern Maryland Celtic Festival and Highland Gathering[100] |
Alma, Michigan | Alma Highland Festival and Games[101] |
Livonia, Michigan | St. Andrew's Society of Detroit Highland Games[102] |
Parchment, Michigan | Kalamazoo Scottish Festival[103] |
Sparta, Michigan | Sparta Celtic Festival[104] |
St. Charles, Missouri | Missouri Tartan Day Festivities[105] |
St. Louis, Missouri | St. Louis Scottish Games and Cultural Festival[106] |
Hamilton, Montana | Bitterroot Celtic Games & Gathering[107] |
Kalispell, Montana | Flathead Celtic Festival[108] |
Lincoln, New Hampshire | New Hampshire Highland Games & Festival[109] |
Las Vegas, Nevada | Las Vegas Celtic Society Highland Games[110] |
Altamont, New York | Capital District Scottish Games[111] |
Liverpool, New York | CNY Scottish Games & Celtic Festival[112] |
Olcott, New York | Niagara Celtic Heritage Festival & Highland Games[113] |
Old Westbury, New York | Scottish Festival and Games[114] |
Huntersville, North Carolina | Loch Norman Highland Games[115] |
Laurinburg, North Carolina | Scotland County Highland Games[116] |
Linville, North Carolina | Grandfather Mountain Highland Games[117] |
Winston-Salem, North Carolina | Bethabara Highland Games[118] |
Tulsa, Oklahoma | ScotFest[119] |
Portland, Oregon | Portland Highland Games[120] |
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | Celtic Classic Highland Games & Festival[121] |
Ligonier, Pennsylvania | Ligonier Highland Games[122] |
Charleston, South Carolina | Charleston Scottish Games and Highland Gathering[123] |
Greenville, South Carolina | Gallabrae Greenville Scottish Games |
Elizabethton, Tennessee | Scottish Heavy Athletics Clinic and Competition / East Tennessee Celtic Festival[124] |
Gatlinburg, Tennessee | Gatlinburg Scottish Highland Games[125] |
Townsend, Tennessee | Smoky Mountain Scottish Festival and Games at Townsend, Tennessee[126] |
Arlington, Texas | Texas Scottish Festival and Highland Games[127] |
Austin, Texas | Austin Celtic Festival[128] |
Grapevine, Texas | Grapevine Celtic Heritage Festival and Highland Games |
Houston, Texas | Houston Celtic Festival and Highland Games[129] |
Sherman, Texas | Sherman Celtic Festival and Highland Games[130] |
Moab, Utah | Scots on the Rocks |
Payson, Utah | Payson Scottish Festival |
Salt Lake City, Utah | Utah Scots Festival |
St. George, Utah | RedStone Games |
Delaplane, Virginia | Virginia Scottish Games and Festival[131] |
Radford, Virginia | Radford Highlander's Festival[132] |
Kelso, Washington | Kelso Highlander Festival[133] |
Bridgeport, West Virginia | North Central West Virginia Scottish Festival and Celtic Gathering[134] |
Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Milwaukee Highland Games[135] |
Waukesha, Wisconsin | Wisconsin Highland Games[136] |
See also
- Basque rural sports
- History of physical training and fitness
- Sport in Scotland
- The Gathering 2009
- World Highland Games Championships
References
Informational notes
- ^ Cowal Highland Gathering can be verified as the world's largest highland games on the Official Scottish Tourist Board Website at VisitScotland.com.
- ^ The website of the International Wrestling Association reports rather more expansively on the role of the 1889 Paris event and its effect on the development of the Olympics, considering it to have had a "huge impact" on world sport. An article published in 2004 in the Christian Science Monitor points to two other events, including that of Much Wenlock, a small English village in Shropshire.
- ^ As quoted on the history page of the Aboyne Highland Gathering website.
- ^ The Dress Act 1746 was part of the Act of Proscription 1746.
- ^ Armstrong (2017) quoted a US-based clan association organiser thus: "without Scottish Clans & Families and our oft criticised tartan, bagpipes, musty castles, clan battles and inspiring heroes the national Scottish brand becomes somewhat indistinguishable from countless other nations".[14]
Citations
- ^ "Cowal Highland Gatcitationhering". Archived from the original on 9 August 2012. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
- ^ "Cowal Highland Gathering". cowalgathering.com. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
- ^ "Grandfather Mountain Highland Games Fast Facts". 12 July 2010.
- ^ a b "Scottish Games Draw Record Crowds". The Independent. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
- ^ "150th Scottish Highland Gathering & Games". thescottishgames.com. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
- ^ Horne, Marc (25 April 2010). "Highland games were the model for modern Olympics". The Times. London, England. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
- ^ Antonioli, Marina; "The Highland Games – guida ai giochi scozzesi"; CelticPedia.[unreliable source?]
- ^ a b Armstrong (2017), p. 256.
- ^ Armstrong (2017), p. 283.
- ^ Porter (1998), p. 5.
- ^ "History of the Antigonish Highland Games". CelticLifeIntl.com. Celtic Life International. 2015. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
- ^ Armstrong (2017), p. 238.
- ^ Armstrong (2017), p. 254.
- ^ Armstrong (2017), p. 13, 278.
- ^ a b Armstrong (2017), p. 264.
- ^ Paterson, M. B. (2001), p. 190.
- ^ Armstrong (2017), p. 260, 273.
- ^ Paterson, M. B. (2001), p. 218.
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Bibliography
- Armstrong, Fiona Kathryne (31 August 2017). Highlandism: Its value to Scotland and how a queen and two aristocratic women promoted the phenomenon in the Victorian age (PhD). University of Strathclyde. doi:10.48730/2m47-md74. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- Brown, Ian (2012). "Introduction: Tartan, Tartanry and Hybridity". From Tartan to Tartany: Scottish Culture, History and Myth. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-6464-1.
- Paterson, Michael Bennis (2001). Selling Scotland: Towards an intercultural approach to export marketing involving differentiation on the basis of 'Scottishness' (PDF) (PhD). University of Glasgow. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
- Porter, James (1998). "The Folklore of Northern Scotland: Five Discourses on Cultural Representation". Folklore. 109 (1–2). Taylor & Francis: 1–14. doi:10.1080/0015587X.1998.9715956. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- Trevor-Roper, Hugh (1983). "The Highland Tradition of Scotland". In Hobsbawm, Eric; Ranger, Terence (eds.). The Invention of Tradition. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521246458 – via Internet Archive.
External links
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- Royal Scottish Highland Games Association
- Council of Scottish Clans and Associations (COSCA)
- "Highland Games FAQ: What to know before you go"
- Tulloch Inverness Highland Games – Masters World Championships
- Swiss Highland Games Championships
- What Are Highland Games?
- HighlandGamesAndFestivals.com event calendar