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GRAMPIAN REGION (ABERDEEN), SCOTLAND
Date Established: May 11, 1979, under Mayor Jim McConn President: Mr. Bob Gilbert, rhbgilbert@yahoo.com
GEOGRAPHY Location: Scotland is part of the United Kingdom. Grampian Region is in northeast Scotland, covering 3,301 square miles.
Description: Named after the Grampian Mountains. This area is known as Scotland's Castle Country, the floral capital of Scotland, and the "Granite City".
PEOPLE Ethnicity: Anglo-Saxon Language: English City Population: 500,000 Religion: Christianity (Church of Scotland - Presbyterian)
ECONOMY Natural Resources: Oil and natural gas Industries: Agriculture, horticulture, fishing, textiles, paper making, quarrying, whiskey, and oil and gas production Exports: Flower bulbs, seed potatoes, Angus beef, oil and natural gas, whiskey Imports: Fresh fruits and vegetables, cotton, and silk Currency: Pound Sterling
HISTORY About 3,000 B.C. Stone Age peoples built burial cairns in the region and intriguing stone circles can be seen as remnants. King William the Lion granted Aberdeen Royal Charters in the 12th century. By the 13th century, the region was a center of mercantile enterprise.
FACTS * Scotland's royal family resides in the castle at Balmoral, which is in the Grampian Region, about 70 km (43 miles) west of the North Sea oil port, Aberdeen. * Grampian is Scotland's granary with more land under oats, wheat, and barley than any other region in Scotland * The world's first body scanner using nuclear-magnetic resonance was developed in Grampian * More than half of Scotland's malt whisky distilleries are in the Grampian "Highlands"
NATIONAL GOVERNMENT Head of State: Queen Elizabeth II Type: Constitutional Monarchy. The House of Lords (with noblemen, life appointees, and Church of England bishops) has little legislative power although it is the highest judicial body in the land. The House of Commons is elected by the people. The leader of the majority party, appointed by the Queen as prime minister, selects a cabinet and runs the government. Elections are held every five years. Scotland maintains its own legal system related to, but different from that of England. It also has its own police force and other departments that are not directly controlled from London.
MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT Head of City: Lord Provost John Reynolds (of Aberdeen), appointed by fellow council members Term: 3 year term with possibility of re-election; next election 2002
EDUCATIONAL PACKET
The Grampian Region of Scotland is located in the northeast part of the country. The area is famous for its rugged mountains and spectacular castles. The Grampian region produces a large amount of a very strong alcoholic drink called Scotch whisky. The Scotch whisky is exported around the world. Like Texas, the Grampian Region is also known for its cattle ranching. Angus beef, which is one of the best in the world, comes from the Grampian Region.
Aberdeen is the main city in the Grampian Region and it is the third largest city in Scotland. Aberdeen is an important city for oil exploration and production, especially offshore oil that is drilled from the North Sea. It is called the “oil capital of the United Kingdom.” Aberdeen is also a port city. Houston and Aberdeen have many things in common, which is why they became sister cities in 1979. Since then, the two cities have held many exchanges. People from Aberdeen and Houston take turns visiting each other and learning about the other country and culture. The volunteers coordinate several exchanges every year, including a business exchange and a nurse’s exchange.
Did you know…?
Aberdeen is called the “Granite City”. Many of its buildings are built of granite stone, which is gray. Some people say this makes the city look “sad”, others really like how it looks!
Highlights of Scotland
Balmoral Castle has been the Scottish home of the royal family since it was purchased for Queen Victoria by Prince Albert in 1852.
The original castle was too small for the needs of the royal family, so in 1853 they began constructing a new castle. The new castle was completed in 1856. Every royal family that has lived there since then has made small improvements to the castle. Did you know…? Scotland has over 2,000 castles!
Angus beef is one of the highest quality types of beef in the world. It comes from Angus cows that were first bred right outside of Aberdeen. Now, Angus cows can be found in many countries, including the United States, but we will always thank Scotland for introducing the world to such wonderful beef! Next time you are in the grocery store, go to the meat department and look for the Angus beef.
NESSIE, THE LOCH NESS MONSTER
In Scotland lakes are called “lochs”. Loch Ness, which is north of Aberdeen, is one of the most famous tourist sites in the world. It is a beautiful lake, but it’s really famous because of the mystery of the monster that some are certain swim in the water. The creature is affectionately named Nessie. People have been trying to get pictures and definite proof of its existence since it was first “sighted” hundreds of years ago. Thousands of visitors go to Loch Ness each year in the hope of being the first with the definitive photograph.
What Do People Eat in Scothland?
The food in Scotland is similar to the food in England and other parts of the United Kingdom. The Scots get wonderful salmon from the North Sea, and their land produces excellent beef from the Angus cattle.
The national dish of Scotland is called haggis – but if you’re not from Scotland, you’ll be very brave to try it! Haggis is minced lamb and beef with onions and other flavors that are filled into a sheep’s stomach and cooked. After being boiled, the stomach is sliced open, and the contents are served piping hot. Some of the other popular Scottish dishes have very colorful names. For example, cock-a-leekie is a type of chicken soup made with a vegetable called leeks, and hugga-muggie is a dish made with fish.
The Scottish people also love to eat sweets. They are well known for their biscuits (which are like cookies in the United States), and their shortbread. Below is a recipe for Scottish shortbread that you can try to bake at home. Be sure and have an adult help you!
Ingredients:
4 cups regular flour 1 cup sugar 4 cups self-rising flour 1/2 tsp salt 2 cups butter
Directions: 1. Cream butter and sugar together. 2. Lightly work in sifted flours and salt, but do not knead or it will toughen. 3. Put dough on lightly floured board and press with your hands into two large rounds. (To avoid toughening, do not roll the dough.) 4. Place rounds on an ungreased baking sheet. Pinch the edges with your finger and thumb. Prick all over the round with a fork, making a pretty pattern. 5. Bake in the oven at 250 degrees for one hour. Let the cookies cool before removing them from the pan.
Did you know…?
Sports
The most popular sport in Scotland is soccer. (In Scotland, they call it football.) Rugby is another popular sport. Rugby is similar to American football. Scottish children play basketball, volleyball, and badminton in school.
Did you know…?
Highland Games
Every year between May and September, villages throughout Scotland hold what are called Highland Games. The villagers gather to watch athletes perform a variety of sports such as toss the caber, put the shot, and throw the hammer. There are also footraces, dancing, and bagpipe competitions. While the athletes perform, women dance to bagpipes and cheer them on. Over 20,000 people, including the royal family watch the Highland Games every year in the town of Braemar, near Aberdeen. But the largest gathering for the Highland Games doesn’t even take place in Scotland – it takes place in North Carolina in the United States! One of events started out as a joke, but now is one of the most popular – haggis throwing. (Remember that haggis is the national dish of Scotland.) Scottish people really have a sense of humor!
Did you know…?
The official language of Scotland is English, but the dialect is very different from American English. Many of the words in Scottish England come from years long ago when the Celtic tribes ruled the land. Other words come from French, since France has a long history of friendship with Scotland. There is also a small area of Scotland where a language called Gaelic is spoken. See if you can guess what these “English” words from Scotland mean.
(a) Wabbit (b) Shiplit (c) Lassie (d) Tatties
Answers: (a) weak, tired; (b) sick-looking; (c) young woman; (d) mashed potatoes.
Scotland is known around the world for its clans, tartans and kilts. Hundreds of years ago, Scotland was a much more dangerous place to live than it is today. Families needed to stick together with other families in order to protect one another. The people in the highlands of Scotland (the mountainous areas) formed clans, which were groups of families who banded together. The clans selected a chief, and the clan took the name of their first chief.
The people of Scotland no longer stick together in clans, but the clans left something behind that is still very popular today – tartans. Each clan developed a special type of plaid pattern called a tartan that they made into cloth and wore as clothes. People recognized what region of Scotland and even what family they were from based on the clothes they wore.
Tartans were mostly used on kilts. Kilts are worn only by men, and they look like skirts with many pleats. The highlanders in Scotland used kilts for hundreds of years. In the 18th century, Prince Albert made wearing kilts popular for all the people of Scotland.
Today, people take great pride in their family’s tartan, and new tartans are being designed all the time. Now even some companies design their own tartan for their employees.
Let’s Pretend…
Imagine your class is a “clan”. Working with your teacher and your classmates, design a tartan for your classroom. Your tartan should have at least three colors, and it should make some sort of plaid pattern. If you have access to the internet, you can do a search under “tartans” to see samples of the different types of tartans that already exist.
Some of the world’s greatest modern inventors came from Scotland. Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone; John Logie Baird, inventor of the television; and John Boyd Dunlop, inventor of the rubber tire, all came from Scotland.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Culturegram 2001 – Scotland. Millenium Star Network and Brigham Young University, 2001.
Insight Guides – Scotland. Fourth Edition. Edited by Josephine Buchanan, 1999 APA Publications BmbH and Co.
Various websites on the World Wide Web, including: www.discoveryschool.com/homeworkhelp/
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BALMORAL
CASTLE
ANGUS BEEF
Scottish
Shortbread
Scotland has more than 750 islands!
The people of Scotland love to be outdoors and play
sports.
The
popular game of golf was invented in Scotland in the 1500s. It all
started when a shepherd was swinging with his stick at round stones, and one
of the stones landed in a rabbit hole. Today, golf is a favorite game
of the Scots. Scotland’s golf courses are spread over green hills in
the Scottish countryside. Many people consider Scotland to have the
most beautiful golf courses in the world
