traveldk.com

No one knows why Highlanders adopted this distinctive mode of dress or exactly when clans adopted a family “pattern” or tartan. The oldest tartan is dated at around AD 245, and by 1746 there were enough clan tartans to be prohibited for 38 years in a purge on Highland culture. Today, with over 2,000 registered designs, tartans are flourishing.

No sound is more evocative of Scotland than that of the bagpipes. The great highland pipes are played by pipe and drum bands, and by individuals playing for competition or dancing. Over the last two decades bagpipes have also emerged onto the stage of world music alongside every other conceivable instrument.

Vital ingredients of any Highland Games are the young, kilted dancers competing on stage. They leap and turn, endeavouring to execute the varied steps perfectly in time to pipe music. Among the most common are the Sword Dance, performed over crossed blades, and the Highland Fling. Look out, too, for demonstrations of the ancient tradition of step dancing, now being revived.

The rich language of the Gael can be seen on road signs and heard in shops in the Highlands and Islands. There are estimated to be 60,000 Gaelic-speakers in the country, their stronghold being the Western Isles, but even here it’s a second language. Despite the increase in Gaelic-medium education and the success of Gaelic pop stars Runrig, young people appear less dedicated to the language and its use is in decline.

These are great summer spectacles that take place in communities across the land. Most popular are the kilted strongmen in the “heavy events”, which include hurling monstrous hammers and tossing the caber. This is a tree trunk that must be lifted vertically, carried at a trot and tossed so that it turns end over end. Packed with bagpipes, dancers and athletes, these games are an essential part of any visit.

This sport makes football look dull. A sort of hockey without rules, this fast-moving game is terrific entertainment (it does have rules, but they’re not apparent to the casual observer). Games take place during winter and spring in the Highlands, culminating in the Camanachd Cup Final, the nearest thing to a re-enactment of Culloden.

This sport – rather like bowls on ice – is the one in which the Scots usually excel at the Winter Olympics. Heavy circular granite stones are used, with a flat base and a handle on top. The curler slides the stone down the rink towards a bull’s-eye and team mates, armed with brushes, polish the path ahead of the stone if more momentum is needed.

This great music festival takes place in a different location each year and always attracts hundreds of top competitors. Conducted in formal dress and with a great sense of dignity, these competitions focus on Gaelic song and music. Singers perform as soloists, duettists and as choirs, all aspiring to win the Mod’s highest accolade, which is the Gold Medal. The instrument competitions are for bagpipes, clarsachs (small harps), fiddles, accordions, melodions and keyboards.

Commonly in the Western Isles, but also across many parts of the Highlands and Islands, Sunday is still strictly observed as a day of rest. Bed-and-breakfast operators may take in their signs, and loud music or washing hanging on lines may offend local sensibilities. Visitors may suffer inconvenience if they don’t plan ahead.

Ceilidh (“cay-ly”) is a Gaelic word for a visit among friends, but it has taken on the meaning of “a party”. Sometimes it is just that, a hall with a band where everyone dances. At others it is a performance where people do a turn, singing, dancing or playing an instrument. They are great fun and even the smallest village hall may have world-class local or touring performers.