GAELIC HISTORY

Gaelic is the traditional language of the Scotti or Gaels, and the historical language of the majority of Scotland. It is not clear how long Gaelic has been spoken in what is now Scotland; it has lately been proposed in Argyll before the Roman period, but no consensus has been reached on the question. However, the consolidation of the Kingdom of Dal Riata and western Scotland, accelerated the expansion of Gaelic, as did the success of the Gaelic-speaking church establishment. Placename evidence shows that Gaelic was spoken in the Rhinns of Galloway by the 5th or 6th century.
The Gaelic language eventually displaced Pictish north of the Forth, and until the late 15th century it was known in Inglis as Scottis. Gaelic began to decline in Scotland by the beginning of the 13th century, and with this went its status as a national language. By the beginning of the 15th century , the highland-lowland line was beginning to emerge.
The Strathleven Artizans now learn to speak this ancient language weekly, taught by our fluent speaker Alisdair, who gives his time freely to feed his passion for teaching this proud language.
Gaelic is now being uttered by the Artizans in and around Renton as it was centuries ago, by our King Robert the Bruce who was fluent in many languages. The Strathleven Artizans are following in the footsteps of their beloved King and find speaking our ancient language a must in conecting and understanding the past.

By Paul Hunter