Many previous works on Scottish Philosophy have tended to concentrate exclusively on the Scottish Enlightenment. Yet, two and a half centuries prior to that period, a circle of Scottish philosophers gained Europe-wide appreciation for their work. This study attempts to correct this bias in the history of thought. Broadie looks at the evolution of the subject from the beginning of the sixteenth-century in Scotland. He relates ideas and concerns in philosophy previous to the Enlightenment to those which followed, thereby revealing important similarities between the two. This is done in a highly accessible manner which makes these ideas available to the general reader for the first time. Contents: Introduction; The Mirror of Wisdom: ^R Philosophy in the Scots Tongue; The Circle of John Mair; Knowledge; Ways of Saying 'Yes'; Freewill and Grace; The Post-Medieval Period; A Science of Human Nature; The Common Sense Reaction; Hume on Belief and Will; Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index^R

All over the world traditional tales used to be told at the fireseide until their place came to be taken by books, newspapers, radio and television. This is an entertaining collection from Scotland, recorded and collected by researchers from the School of Scottish Studies at Edinburgh University over the past fifty years. Taken from a variety of sources, from the Hebridean Gaelic tradition to recordings of Lowland cairds (travelling people), some are well-known tales which have equivalents in other cultures and languages, whilst others are unique to Scotland. The tales are arranged by theme: - tall tales - hero tales - legends of ghosts and evil spirits - tales of fate and religion - fairies and sea-folk - children's tales - trickster tales - tales of clan feuds - robber tales This is a welcome reprint of a book that quickly established itself as a classic. It was previously published by Polygon.

A highly readable and absorbing anthology of traditional Scottish customs and rites of passage, Scottish Customs from the Cradle to the Grave draws upon a broad range of literary and oral sources. Scotland has been fortunate to have written accounts of intrepid early travellers such as Martin Martin, Edward Burt and John Lane Buchanan, and extracts from their writing are found alongside modern interviews made by Margaret Bennett and researchers from the School of Scottish Studies at Edinburgh University. This expanded edition includes a large amount of new material. The result is a detailed and comprehensive picture of social behaviour in Scotland over the last 400 years. The book is divided into three sections, each covering a stage in the cycle of life: Childbirth and infancy; Love, courtship and marriage; Death The first edition was originally published by Polygon and was joint runner-up of the 1993 Katharine Briggs Folklore Award.

This new edition of Michael Fry's remarkable book charts the involvement of the Scots in the British empire from its earliest days to the end of the twentieth century. It is a tale of dramatic extremes and craggy characters and of a huge range of concerns - from education, evangelism and philanthropy to spying, swindling and drug running. Stories of Scottish regiments on the rampage, cannibalism and other atrocities are contrasted with the deeds of heroic pioneers such as David Livingstone and Mary Slessor. Above all it tells how the British empire came to be dominated and run by the Scots, and how it truly became a Scottish empire. As the empire transformed Scotland beyond recognition, so was the Empire shaped by the Scots - a remarkable achievement from the population of so small a country, which was itself neither nation nor fully province, neither fully colonizer nor fully colonized. Michael Fry's energetic and colourful account is one of the classics of modern Scottish history.

This volume celebrates the completion of the monumental Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue.

Focus: Scottish Traditional Music engages methods from ethnomusicology, popular music studies, cultural studies, and media studies to explain how complex Scottish identities and culture are constructed in the traditional music and culture of Scotland. This book examines Scottish music through their social and performative contexts, outlining vocal traditions such as lullabies, mining songs, Scottish ballads, herding songs, and protest songs as well as instrumental traditions such as fiddle music, country dances, and informal evening pub sessions. Case studies explore the key ideas in understanding Scotland musically by exploring ethnicity, Britishness, belonging, politics, transmission and performance, positioning the cultural identity of Scotland within the United Kingdom. Visit the author's companion website at http://www.scottishtraditionalmusic.org/ for additional resources.