My first few weeks here in Scotland, the only “true” cultural experience I really felt like I received was the dreary weather. As time went on, I began to learn more and more about the culture, but there was one night that really cemented my idea of “Scottish Culture”. Introducing…Burns Night!

Burns Night is one of the Scottish holidays. I’ve asked people who are from Scotland which holidays they have that really celebrate Scotland as a country, and without fail everyone’s answer is Burns Night*. Burns Night was celebrated on January 25 of this year (2026), but because that’s a Monday, it seemed that the whole weekend was full of festivities. From what I understand, the festivities vary by area of Scotland, but most places have a ceilidh. 

Burns Night is the one night a year that the Scots celebrate the poet Robert Burns. Now I actually believe most people in the US know of Robert Burns’ works, but may not know him by name. He’s written some very famous poems, as well as the song of New Year’s Eve; Auld Lang Syne. In Scotland, he has his own holiday and is pretty heavily celebrated. To be honest, before I got here I really didn’t know much about him, but in at least 3 of my lectures someone has brought him up. Needless to say, the Scots put high value on Robert Burns. 

Back to the information about the ceilidh. This is where I would like to mention that I actually got the opportunity to go and experience a ceilidh firsthand for Burns Night. It was incredibly fun and unique for me. I believe that going to the event also finally helped me get settled in with the city and get out of the homesick slump. Of course, by now, there have been plenty of other cultural experiences and events I’ve been to but I’ll be outright and say that this was the most memorable. 

A ceilidh is a traditional Scottish (and Irish) event with storytelling, dancing, and food. It’s a time for the community to get together and just celebrate in an informal setting. I was invited to a ceilidh put on by my university and along with dancing, we were promised food. Since it was Burns Night, the food was “traditional”. A.K.A. Haggis, neeps and tatties. Or haggis, turnips, and potatoes. I went with my flatmates, and we spent hours learning traditional dances, as well as eating (what up until that point had been the best) food we’d had so far. 

The dancing was amazing, and we were all out of breath by the end of each song. The university provided live musicians and the “caller” which was a student who taught us the dances who was also a musician. The dances were creative, but predictable enough that it was easy to catch on. We ended the night with Auld Lang Syne (a Burns specialty) before heading out. 

I know that you may be thinking about my mention of haggis, and even more so about how I just glossed over it. I didn’t really mean to, but I will mention that I liked it. This may be a hot take (obviously not to the Scots) but haggis was actually really good! I’m not a picky eater, which helps a lot when trying new foods from other countries, but I was happily surprised when I tried it. My flatmates also approved (with the exception of one) and by the time we left, we were full and happier than we’d been in a while. 

Overall, my experience at the ceilidh on Burns Night was one that I’ll never forget. I’m hoping to go to another ceilidh while I’m here, but if you’re ever in Scotland on January 25th just know that I would 100% recommend attending one in honor of Burns Night. 

*Side note: every time that I ask this I am also reminded how much the US really celebrates itself. Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, President’s Day… And by no means is this bad, it’s just an interesting thing to note when comparing Scottish culture to American culture.  

And that’s all I have for this post! 

Much love,

Olivia Bird