FOLKLORE AND CULTURE

Every year there are up to one hundred Highland games in Scotland alone. While still a popular event in Scotland, it is the Scottish diaspora that have emigrated all over the world that have fueled the popularity of the event (Fournier 2015, 21). The Scottish Highland Gatherings and Games have not only been a traditional facet of Scotland’s sporting history but there are many different facets, images or even traditions of this set of essentially athletic activities. They have evoked and presented to the rest of the world a particular image of Scotland (Grant 2004, 166). It helps those who came from or descended from Scotland hold on to their culture, while educating others of traditional Scottish folklore.

The sight during the games is spectacular as hundreds of men and women don kilts with their own unique tartan print. There is singing, dancing, and feasting on traditional Scottish food. 

The games begin with a tartan clan parade while pipe bands take turns playing. Each band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland bagpipe and several different types of drums. The bands continue to play through the entirety of the competition.