Portal:Scotland
-
-
-
The Black Cuillins, Isle of Skye -
-
Whisky casks, Dallas Dhu distillery
_P-SCO_Panorama.jpg){kind=small}
| Main Page | Selected articles 1 | Selected articles 2 | Selected biographies | Selected quotes | Selected pictures | Featured Content | Categories & Topics |
Introduction
 |
|
|
| ||
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjacent islands, principally in the archipelagos of the Hebrides and the Northern Isles. In 2022, the country's population was about 5.4 million. Its capital city is Edinburgh, whilst Glasgow is the largest city and the most populous of the cities of Scotland. Scotland shares a land border with England to the south-east and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, the North Sea to the north-east and east, and the Irish Sea to the south. The legislature, the Scottish Parliament, elects 129 members to represent 73 constituencies. The Scottish Government is the executive arm of the devolved government, headed by the first minister, who chairs the cabinet and is responsible for government policy and international engagement.
The Kingdom of Scotland emerged as a sovereign state in the 9th century. Independence from England was maintained partly through an alliance with France. In 1603, James VI succeeded to the thrones of England and Ireland, forming a personal union of the three kingdoms. On 1 May 1707, Scotland and England combined to create the new Kingdom of Great Britain, with the Parliament of Scotland subsumed into the Parliament of Great Britain. In 1999, a Scottish Parliament was re-established, and has devolved authority over many areas of domestic policy. The country has its own distinct legal system, education system and religious history, which have all contributed to the continuation of Scottish culture and national identity. Scottish English and Scots are the most widely spoken languages in the country, existing on a dialect continuum with each other. Scottish Gaelic speakers can be found all over Scotland, but the language is largely spoken natively by communities within the Hebrides; Gaelic speakers now constitute less than 2% of the total population, although state-sponsored revitalisation attempts have led to a growing community of second language speakers.
The mainland of Scotland is broadly divided into three regions: the Highlands, a mountainous region in the north and north-west; the Lowlands, a flatter plain across the centre of the country; and the Southern Uplands, a hilly region along the southern border. The Highlands are the most mountainous region of the British Isles and contain its highest peak, Ben Nevis, at 4,413 feet (1,345 m). The region also contains many lakes, called lochs; the term is also applied to the many saltwater inlets along the country's deeply indented western coastline. The geography of the many islands is varied. Some, such as Mull and Skye, are noted for their mountainous terrain, while Tiree and Coll are flatter.
Selected article
Loch Lomond (/ˈlɒx ˈloʊmənd/; Scottish Gaelic: Loch Laomainn) is a freshwater Scottish loch that spans the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the Lowlands and Highlands of Scotland. Traditionally forming part of the boundary between the counties of Stirlingshire and Dunbartonshire, it is today split between the council areas of Stirling, Argyll and Bute and West Dunbartonshire. Its southern shores are about 23 kilometres (14 mi) northwest of the centre of Glasgow, Scotland's largest city. The loch forms part of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, which was established in 2002. From a limnological perspective, Loch Lomond is classified as a dimictic lake, meaning it typically undergoes two mixing periods each year. This occurs in the spring and autumn when the water column becomes uniformly mixed due to temperature-driven density changes
Loch Lomond is 36.4 kilometres (22.6 mi) long and between one and eight kilometres (1⁄2–5 miles) wide, with a surface area of 71 km2 (27.5 mi2). It is the largest lake in Great Britain by surface area; in the United Kingdom, it is surpassed only by Lough Neagh and Lough Erne in Northern Ireland. The loch has a maximum depth of about 190 metres (620 ft) in the deeper northern portion, although the southern part of the loch rarely exceeds 30 metres (98 ft) in depth. The total volume of Loch Lomond is 2.6 km3 (0.62 cu mi), making it the second largest lake in Great Britain, after Loch Ness, by water volume. Due to its considerable depth and latitudinal location, Loch Lomond exhibits thermal stratification during the summer months, with a distinct epilimnion, metalimnion, and hypolimnion forming in deeper areas. These stratification patterns have important implications for nutrient cycling and aquatic ecology within the loch. During periods of stratification, a decrease in hypolimnetic oxygen can occur in the deeper northern basin, which can affect the species distribution patterns.
Loch Lomond is considered oligotrophic (north of the Highland Boundary Fault) to mesotrophic (south of the fault), with relatively low to moderate nutrient levels and generally good water quality, although localised pressures such as agriculture and tourism can contribute to nutrient enrichment.
The loch contains many islands, including Inchmurrin, the largest fresh-water island in the British Isles. Loch Lomond is a popular leisure destination and is featured in the song "The Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond". The loch is surrounded by hills, including Ben Lomond on the eastern shore, which is 973.7 metres (3,195 ft) in height and the most southerly of the Scottish Munro peaks. A 2005 poll of Radio Times readers voted Loch Lomond as the sixth greatest natural wonder in Britain. (... Read the full article)
Selected quotes
-
" ... Some folks are wise and some are otherwise ... "
— Tobias Smollett
" ... It is the mark of a good action that it appears inevitable in restrospect ... "
— Robert Louis Stevenson -
" ... Doctors, like minicab drivers, are the other idiots to whom we trust our lives ... "
— James Kennaway
" ... When shall I see Scotland again? Never shall I forget the happy days I passed there amidst odious smells, barbarous sounds, bad suppers, excellent hearts and the most enlightened and cultivated understandings ... "
— Sydney Smith -
" ... Politically correct is the language of cowardice ... "
— Billy Connolly
" ... It is never difficult to distinguish between a Scotsman with a grievance and a ray of sunshine ... "
— P. G. Wodehouse -
" ... A ripple of laughter is worth an ocean of tears. To laugh is to be free of worry ... "
— Harry Gordon
" ... It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important ... "
— Sir Arthur Conan Doyle -
" ... Peace is that state in which fear of any kind is unknown ... "
— John Buchan
" ... There are two great days in a person's life - the day we are born and the day we discover why ... "
— William Barclay -
" ... It's a small world, but I wouldn't want to have to paint it ... "
— Chic Murray
" ... Did not strong connections draw me elsewhere, I believe Scotland would be the country I would choose to end my days in ... "
— Benjamin Franklin -
" ... Every man has a sane spot somewhere ... "
— Robert Louis Stevenson
" ... You cannot force ideas. Successful ideas are the result of slow growth ... "
— Alexander Graham Bell -
" ... A good gulp of whisky at bedtime – it’s not scientific but it helps ... "
— Sir Alexander Fleming
" ... I have been trying all my life to like Scotchmen, and am obliged to desist from the experiment in despair ... "
— Charles Lamb -
" ... Authors and captured criminals are the only people free from routine ... "
— Eric Linklater
" ... The world is neither Scottish, English, nor Irish, neither French, Dutch, nor Chinese, but human ... "
— James Grant -
" ... Good lies need a leavening of truth to make them palatable ... "
— William McIlvanney
" ... Golf is a thoroughly national game; it is as Scotch as haggis, cockie-leekie, high cheek-bones or rowanberry jam ... "
— Andrew Lang -
" ... My theory is that all of Scottish cuisine is based on a dare ... "
— Mike Myers
" ... A man may well be condemned, not for doing something, but for doing nothing ... "
— William Barclay -
" ... All government is a monopoly of violence ... "
— Sir Walter Scott
" ... In order to enjoy leisure, it is absolutely necessary it should be preceded by occupation ... "
— Hugh MacDiarmid -
" ... Preparing youngsters for failure is easy; it’s preparing them for success that’s really difficult ... "
— Sir Alex Ferguson
" ... The battle for conservation will go on endlessly. It is part of the universal battle between right and wrong ... "
— John Muir -
" ... History is written from then to now but understood back to front ... "
— Allan Massie
" ... Growing old is great. It’s like getting drunk. Everyone around you gets better-looking ... "
— Billy Connolly -
" ... Avarice, the spur of industry ... "
— David Hume
" ... No enemy is half so fatal as a friend estranged ... "
— John Davidson -
" ... God gave us our memories so that we might have roses in December ... "
— J. M. Barrie
" ... A man, as a general rule, owes very little to what he is born with – a man is what he makes of himself ... "
— Alexander Graham Bell -
" ... All I've got against golf is that it takes you so far from the clubhouse ... "
— Eric Linklater
" ... I have always found that the man whose second thoughts are good is worth watching ... "
— J. M. Barrie -
" ... There are only two types of music: rock and roll ... "
— Alex Harvey
" ... A man willing to work, and unable to find work, is perhaps the saddest sight that Fortune's inequality exhibits under this sun ... "
— Thomas Carlyle -
" ... Maxims are the condensed good sense of nations ... "
— James Mackintosh
" ... Who thinks the law has anything to do with justice? It’s what we have because we can’t have justice ... "
— William McIlvanney -
" ... Of all vices, drinking is the most incompatible with greatness ... "
— Sir Walter Scott
" ... The hardest thing in life is to know which bridge to cross and which to burn ... "
— David Russell -
" ... Jimmy Hill is to football what King Herod was to babysitting ... "
— Tommy Docherty
" ... Maybe that's why in England you have better horses, and in Scotland we have better men ... "
— James Boswell responding to Samuel Johnson
("In England we wouldn't think of eating oats. We only feed them to horses.") -
" ... A place for everything, and everything in its place ... "
— Samuel Smiles
" ... All politicians have vanity. Some wear it more gently than others ... "
— Sir David Steel, speaking in 1985 -
" ... My wife says I'm Scotch by absorption ... "
— Magnus Magnusson
" ... Parents learn a lot about coping with life from their children ... "
— Muriel Spark -
" ... I must follow them. I am their leader ... "
— Bonar Law
" ... None can destroy Scotland, save Scotland's self ... "
— Lord Belhaven, opposing the union of 1707
In the news
- 8 May 2026 – 2026 United Kingdom local elections
- 2026 Scottish Parliament election, 2026 Senedd election
- The Labour Party concedes defeat in Wales with Plaid Cymru and Reform UK making significant gains, while the nationalist Scottish National Party claims victory in Scotland. (BBC News) (Reuters)
- 7 May 2026 – 2026 United Kingdom local elections
- 2026 Scottish Parliament election, 2026 Senedd election
- Voters in England elect six mayors and 5,066 council seats across 136 councils. In Scotland, voters elect 129 seats to the Scottish Parliament. In Wales, voters elect 96 seats to the Senedd. (BBC News) (The Guardian)
- 19 March 2026 –
- An Iranian man and a Romanian woman are arrested by Police Scotland for attempting to enter Royal Navy base HMNB Clyde. (AP) (BBC News)
- 8 March 2026 –
- A fire occurs in a historic building adjoining the Glasgow Central railway station in Scotland, United Kingdom. The building collapses, destroying a number of businesses and shops. The fire also causes the disruption and cancellation of many train services, with Glasgow Central promptly shutting down until further notice. (BBC News)
Selected biography
Sir James Dewar (/djuːər/ DEW-ər; 20 September 1842 – 27 March 1923) was a Scottish chemist and physicist. He is best known for his invention of the vacuum flask, which he used in conjunction for his research into the liquefaction of gases. He also studied atomic and molecular spectroscopy, working in these fields for more than 25 years. Dewar was nominated for the Nobel Prize 8 times — 5 times in Physics and 3 times in Chemistry — but he was never so honoured. (... Read the full article)
Selected picture
-
Rannoch Moor (/ˈrænəx/ ⓘ; Scottish Gaelic: Mòinteach Rai(th)neach) is an expanse of around 50 square miles (130 km2) of boggy moorland to the west of Loch Rannoch in Scotland, from where it extends into westerly Perth and Kinross, northerly Lochaber (in Highland), and the area of Highland Scotland toward its south-west, northern Argyll and Bute. Rannoch Moor is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Special Area of Conservation.
Photo credit: Chjris Combe -
The Scott Monument
The Scott Monument is a Victorian Gothic monument to Scottish author Sir Walter Scott (not to be confused with the National Monument). It stands in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh.
Photo credit: Schatir -
Hopetoun House
Hopetoun House is the traditional residence of the Earl of Hopetoun (later the Marquess of Linlithgow). It was built 1699-1701, designed by William Bruce. It was then hugely extended from 1721 by William Adam until his death in 1748 being one of his most notable projects. The parklands in which it lies were laid out in 1725, also by William Adam.
Photo credit: George Gastin -
Plockton
Plockton (Scottish Gaelic: Am Ploc/Ploc Loch Aillse) is a picturesque settlement in the Highlands on the shores of Loch Carron. It faces east, away from the prevailing winds, which together with the North Atlantic Drift, gives it a mild climate, allowing palm trees (actually cabbage trees) to grow.
Photo credit: Arthur Bruce -
Aerial view of Pennan village
Pennan (Scots: Peenan) is a small village in Aberdeenshire] consisting of a small harbour and a single row of homes. Pennan became famous for representing the fictional village of Ferness, being one of the main locations for the film Local Hero.
Photo credit: Tadpolefarm -
View from the Rest and be Thankful -
The William Younger Centre housing Our Dynamic Earth science centre
Our Dynamic Earth is a Scottish science centre and prominent conference venue and visitor attraction located in Holyrood, Edinburgh, beside the Scottish Parliament Building.
Photo credit: Globaltraveller -
National Museum of Scotland, main hall
The National Museum of Scotland is one of Scotland's national museums, on Chambers Street, in Edinburgh. The original Royal Museum began in the 19th century and was added to in the 1990s when a new building known as The Museum of Scotland was added, both merging in 2007 into The National Museum of Scotland.
Photo credit: Shimgray -
Arbroath Harbour
Arbroath or Aberbrothock (Scottish Gaelic: Obair Bhrothaig) is a former royal burgh on the North Sea coast, around 16 miles (25.7 km) ENE of Dundee and 45 miles (72.4 km) SSW of Aberdeen. It is the largest town in the council area of Angus. and has a population of 22,785.
Photo credit: Karen Vernon -
John Knox's House, Edinburgh
John Knox House, popularly known as John Knox's House, is a historic house in Edinburgh, Scotland, reputed to have been owned and lived in by Protestant reformer John Knox during the 16th century.
Photo credit: Kim Traynor -
Blackrock cottage, Rannoch Moor
A view of Blackrock Cottage on Rannoch Moor with Buachaille Etive Mor in the background.
Photo credit: Andrewmckie -
Detail of the Queen from the Lewis chessmen
The Lewis chessmen (named after their find-site) belong to some of the few complete medieval chess sets that have survived until today. The chessmen are believed to have been made in Norway, perhaps by craftsmen in Trondheim (where similar pieces have been found), sometime during the 12th century.
Photo credit: Finlay McWalter -
The Forth Bridge
The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge over the Firth of Forth. It was opened on 4 March 1890, and spans a total length of 2,528.7 metres (8,296 ft). It is often called the Forth Rail Bridge or Forth Railway Bridge to distinguish it from the Forth Road Bridge.
Photo credit: George Gastin -
Statue of Robert the Bruce, Bannockburn
Robert the Bruce statue at the Bannockburn Visitor Centre, Bannockburn, Stirling, is a 1964 work by Pilkington Jackson. The bronze sculpture depicts Robert the Bruce wielding an axe and on a war horse.
Photo credit: Martin Kraft -
Bealach na Bà
Bealach na Bà is a historic pass through the mountains of the Applecross peninsula, in Wester Ross in the Scottish Highlands—and the name of a famous twisting, single-track mountain road through the pass and mountains. The road is one of few in the Scottish Highlands that is engineered similarly to roads through the great mountain passes in the Alps, with very tight hairpin bends that switch back and forth up the hillside.
Photo credit: Stefan Krause -
RRS Discovery docked at Dundee
RRS Discovery was the last traditional wooden three-masted ship to be built in Britain. Designed for Antarctic research, she was launched as a Royal Research Ship (RRS) in 1901. Her first mission was the British National Antarctic Expedition, carrying Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton on their first, successful journey to the Antarctic, known as the Discovery Expedition. She is now the centrepiece of a visitor attraction in her home, Dundee.
Photo credit: Mactographer -
-
Evening view across Calton Hill towards the Castle
Evening view from Calton Hill towards an illuminated Edinburgh Castle with the Bank of Scotland headquarters and the Balmoral Hotel illuminated in the intermediate foreground. The sillhouettes of the Scott Monument and the tall gothic spire of the Hub are both prominent in the frame.
Photo credit: Chris Fleming -
Wemyss Bay railway station.
Wemyss Bay railway station is a railway station on the Inverclyde Line. Located in the village of Wemyss Bay, Inverclyde. The station incorporates the terminal for the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry connecting the mainland to Rothesay on the Isle of Bute.
Photo credit: wilm -
View of Canisp and Suilven from nearby Clachtoll
Canisp and Suilven seen from the coastal fishing and crofting village of Clachtoll in Sutherland county, on the north western edge of Scotland.
Photo credit: Louis_Daillencourt -
Satellite image of Scotland
The geography of Scotland is highly varied, from rural lowlands to barren uplands, and from large cities to uninhabited islands. Aside from the mainland, Scotland is surrounded by 790 islands encompassing the major archipelagoes of the Shetland Islands, Orkney Islands and the Outer Hebrides.
Photo credit: NASA -
36-inch telescope at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh
36-inch telescope at the Royal Observatory on Blackford Hill, Edinburgh, the location of the UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC).
Photo credit: Science and Technology Facilities Council -
The Old Man of Storr
The Old Man of Storr is a rock pinnacle, the remains of an ancient volcanic plug. It is part of The Storr, a rocky hill overlooking the Sound of Raasay on the Trotternish peninsula of the Isle of Skye.
Photo credit: Wojsy -
Glasgow Necropolis
The Glasgow Necropolis is a Victorian cemetery in Glasgow. It sits on a hill above, and to the east of, St. Mungo's Cathedral. It was conceived as a Père Lachaise for Glasgow, and subsequently established by the Merchants' House of Glasgow in 1831. Fifty thousand individuals have been buried in approximately 3500 tombs.
Photo credit: Finlay McWalter -
Meall a' Bhùiridh and Lochan na h-Achlaise as seen from the A82 road driving towards Glen Coe
Meall a' Bhùiridh and Lochan na h-Achlaise on Rannoch Moor viewed from the A82 en route to Glen Coe in the HIghlands..
Photo credit: Fuzzy14
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpeg)
Did You Know...
- ... that the Scottish invasion of England in 1648 was defeated by an army less than half their size?
- ... that Thomas Kerr protested the Iraq War with his SNP-supporting aunt, later campaigned for Labour, joined the Conservatives, and defected to Reform UK?
- ... that because of violent reactions – such as Jenny Geddes's on 23 July 1637 – to a Scottish prayer book, Walter Whitford kept loaded pistols visible to his congregants while using the book?
- ... that Prince Philip was the first member of the British royal family to fly in a helicopter?
- ... that before Michael Shanks became Member of Parliament for Rutherglen and Hamilton West, he ran along all of Glasgow's 6,143 streets?
- ... that Scottish politician Tam Dalyell opposed devolution, warning it would become a "motorway without exit to a separate state"?
- ... that Davy Russell won a 2025 Scottish election despite being dubbed the "invisible man" by an opponent?
- ... that local folklore links Boghead, a Northumbrian bastle house, to the story of Barty Milburn, an accomplished swordsman and killer of Scots?
Get involved
For editor resources and to collaborate with other editors on improving Wikipedia's Scotland-related articles, see WikiProject Scotland.
To get involved in helping to improve Wikipedia's Scotland related content, please consider doing some of the following tasks or joining one or more of the associated Wikiprojects:
- Visit the Scottish Wikipedians' notice board and help to write new Scotland-related articles, and expand and improve existing ones.
- Visit Wikipedia:WikiProject Scotland/Assessment, and help out by assessing unrated Scottish articles.
- Add the Project Banner to Scottish articles around Wikipedia.
- Participate in WikiProject Scotland's Peer Review, including responding to PR requests and nominating Scottish articles.
- Help nominate and select new content for the Scotland portal.
Do you have a question about The Scotland Portal that you can't find the answer to?
Post a question on the Talk Page or consider asking it at the Wikipedia reference desk.
Related portals
Other language versions
Associated Wikimedia
The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:
-
Commons
Free media repository -
Wikidata
Free knowledge base -
Wikiquote
Collection of quotations -
Wikisource
Free-content library -
Wikispecies
Directory of species -
Wikiversity
Free learning tools -
Wikivoyage
Free travel guide -
Wiktionary
Dictionary and thesaurus
