Showing posts with label Scotland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scotland. Show all posts

Nov 11, 2016

A Different Election Perspective

Seems everyone likes to claim a victor as their own. The Buchan Observer, based in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, ran a presidential announcement with the headline: "Aberdeenshire Business Owner Wins Presidential Election."

Donald Trump owns the Trump International golf course in Balmedie, Aberdeenshire, which opened in 2011. He has visited the area several times, most recently earlier this year. Trump is also half-Scottish. His mother, Mary Macleod, grew up on the Isle of Lewis.

Speaking after the result became official, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon congratulated Trump on his victory and said it's time for all those who share "progressive values" to speak up loudly together.

Feb 27, 2015

Kilts

Regardless of what we learned in Braveheart, the kilt didn’t appear until about 300 years after Wallace. The version we are familiar with today did not appear until the 18th century

The word kilt is of Scandinavian origin. Middle English (as a verb in the sense ‘tuck up around the body’): Danish kilte (op) ‘tuck (up)’ and Old Norse kilting ‘a skirt.’ The noun dates from the mid 18th century.


The kilt made its first appearance in the 16th century, but it was very different from the modern version. Now referred to as the great kilt or belted plaid, it was a full-body garment that covered both upper and lower halves. The upper half of the kilt could be draped over the shoulder like a cloak or worn over the head like a hood. This was the only type of kilt used for a couple hundred years.

Sometime during the early 18th century, Englishman Thomas Rawlinson decided that the standard kilt was too cumbersome to wear while working, so he came up with the small kilt. It was just the lower half of the great kilt and resembled the kilt we all know today. He went into business with Scottish chief Ian MacDonell, who liked Rawlinson’s idea and also started wearing the small kilt. Because they were influential, all of their employees started wearing it the small kilt and its popularity spread throughout Scotland.

Jun 1, 2012

Caught Red Handed

“Caught red handed”, has its origins in Scotland around the 15th century. Given the context it was often used in the earliest references, the phrase “red hand” or “redhand” probably came about referring to people caught with blood on their hands.

The first known documented instance of “red hand” is in the Scottish Acts of Parliament of James I, written in 1432. It subsequently popped up numerous times in various legal proceedings in Scotland, nearly always referring to someone caught in the act of committing some crime, such as “apprehended redhand”, “taken with redhand”, etc.

The first documented instance of the expression morphing from “red hand” to “red handed” was in the early 19th century work Ivanhoe, written by Sir Walter Scott.

Jul 29, 2011

Tiger Wood's Woods

Speaking of golf, during July 2000, Tiger Woods won the British Open at St. Andrews, Scotland to become the youngest player, at  24, to win the career Grand Slam of golf (The Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open and British Open) and the first to win all four majors since Jack Nicklaus’ victory in the 1966.