Scotland
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Scotland (Gaelic: Alba) is a country in the northern part of the British Isles, on the island of Great Britain. It was once a separate country, but it is now part of the United Kingdom. In 1603 the King of Scotland James VI (the Sixth) became King of England too. In 1707 the parliament of Scotland joined with the parliament of England to become the parliament of Great Britain, and in 1801 Great Britain joined with Ireland to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Now Scotland is not independent, but throughout history it always had a separate, law and school system and a unique culture. Since 1999 Scotland now has its own parliament. However, many things are still controlled by the parliament in London, England.
The Scottish flag is blue with a white diagonal cross (called a saltire). This is the cross of Saint Andrew, who is the patron saint of Scotland. Some other symbols used for Scotland are a thistle, and a lion.
The north of Scotland has many mountains, and few people live there. Most people live in the low central area, or around the coast. South of the central belt are the Southern Uplands, another hilly place. On the west coast and in the north are a lot of islands.
The capital of Scotland is the city of Edinburgh, on the east coast. But the biggest city is Glasgow - nearly half of Scotland's people live in Glasgow or in the area near it. Other cities in Scotland are Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness and Stirling.
[edit] Sport
Football (soccer) is very popular in Scotland. The big cities often have two or three big football teams, and most towns have at least one team. Other popular sports are rugby, cricket, hill-walking, mountain-climbing, swimming, and golf, which was invented in Scotland.
[edit] Language
English is the main language spoken in Scotland, but Scotland has two native languages - Gaelic and Scots. Gaelic is a Celtic language like Irish and Welsh. It is spoken in the north-west of Scotland, especially in the Western Isles. Scots is a Germanic language spoken in the east and south of Scotland.
