Question for Americans please (re Scottish-American regiments??)

[Nathan]

The greater cultural impact of the Scots in the United States can be found in other areas of life outside of the military. If you want to see the legacy of the Scottish American, start with commerce. Many Scottish Americans were active in trading and industry of all types.

It's true that many Highland Gaels were Loyalists but there were Gaelic speakers on both sides of the American War of Independence. Many Scottish-American loyalists came to Canada but not before leaving their mark.

The biggest impact of Scottish Americans was held in the Carolinas and Virginias and Appalachia where they were active in many industries, especially tobacco and coal mining.

Their musical legacy is demonstrable although it was usually covered up due to the need to create a uniquely American culture to unite the country.

If you listen to Appalachian fiddle tunes, a lot of them are Scottish reels with the names changed. The names were changed to remove reference to the Nobles after whom many of the tunes were named. For example, "Lord MacDonald's Reel" is called "Leather Britches" in Appalachian music.

The Gaelic Psalm singing style common to the Presbyterian Church in Lewis found its way into African American culture through the practice of "Lining out" in which strikingly similar call and answer melodies are sung to the same Psalms with English rather than Gaelic lyrics. Lining out has been considered an ancestor to Afro-American Gospel music.

You can hear a lot of Scottish influence in the music of the Carolina Chocolate drops and a lot of early American music. Bluegrass also has roots in the music of Scotland.

The American folk music tradition also goes back to Scotland. In fact, if you listen to a recent musical project called Cowboy Celtic, David Wilkie demonstrates just how many early American cowboy tunes are simply Scottish melodies with new lyrics.

The influence of the Scottish Free Masons, and Scottish Church Fathers and Scottish Academics on American life is also well documented.

In fact, the entire American political ethos is based in the writings of the "British Empiricists" who were products of the Scottish Enlightenment. There would be no Declaration of Independence and no Bill of Rights if it were not for the writing of Adam Smith, David Hume and John Locke. In fact, according to Fry's, "How the Scots Made America," nineteen of the fifty-six delegates who signed the Declaration of Independence came from Scotland, Ulster or, like the Scottish-tutored Thomas Jefferson, had Scottish Ancestors.

Why is this not stressed? I'm not an American (well not a resident of the USA anyway) but I think it's due to that country's revolutionary history that resulted in a melting pot philosophy. "America" was more than the sum of its constituent parts and people were encouraged to embrace American identity rather than a hyphenated American identity.

In Canada, the experience was far different. For much of its history it was a colonial extension of Britain. As such, Scottish Canadians held their ties to Scotland closely and took great pride in those ties. They were not discouraged from celebrating their Scottish identity as it was perfectly compatible with their Canadian identity. Most of Canada's early leaders were Scots. So while they made a melting pot, we went for a Multicultural Mosaic which keeps the various ethic communities and their accomplishments somewhat more distinct from one another.

As a result of these broader cultural pressures, where Scottish traditions blended with other influences and morphed into new styles and creations South of the border, in Canada, Scottish music stayed very purely Scottish and even among the Metis, who incorporated French and Aboriginal influences in their music, the Scottish style is still very recognizable and I dare say, dominant.


Just a few of my thoughts as a music nerd and political history buff...