Hello! This is going to be (probably) my favorite post this semester. I’ve worked out a list of my favorite phrases/words I’ve heard people from Scotland or England say while I’ve been attending university abroad. I’m also adding the “American” translations where applicable as well as a sentence for context. 

To give a brief background on this, each time I meet someone at university that isn’t an exchange student, they pretty much always like to point out the things that we say differently in the US compared to Britain. A lot of the time in conversation, I feel myself having to ask what phrases and words mean because I simply can’t assume the meanings. I’m lucky enough to have made friends who have no issue with explaining things to me, and it’s actually been really helpful to have people I can ask questions to who are actually from Britain. 

Now for the phrases and words! The list below has 4 of my favorite and the most memorable words and phrases I’ve learned since studying in Scotland. Enjoy! 

Phrase: Waffling Around 

Definition: To talk about nothing essentially; to ramble about useless information 

Sentence: She was just waffling around. 

Reason why I love this phrase: When I really get to thinking about it, waffle is an odd word, so using it in a fun way is totally justifiable. I would have never come up with this on my own, but I will be adopting this phrase into my daily life. 

Word: N.E.D.

Definition: Stands for “Non educated delinquent” 

Sentence: I feel like I’m out here walking around like a Ned. 

Reason why I love this word: I find it funny. There are just certain things that make you laugh, and for me, this is one of them. It’s an easy add to your vocabulary, and I was told that it’s very Scottish which is a bonus.

Word: Cheeky

Definition: Cheeky?

Sentence: You can’t leave without having a cheeky Nando’s. 

Reason why I love this word: It’s inserted in areas of conversation that sound so natural to the people that are from the UK, but to me it stands out every time. (In a good way though) I just love how this adjective is used so often, but doesn’t actually carry much of a unique meaning. It’s like it’s just there because they can put it there. 

Word: Cheers

Definition: Thanks

Sentence: Cheers! 

Reason why I love this word: It’s so British. You would never hear anyone say this in the US unironically, so everytime I hear it in the UK I’m reminded that I am in the UK. It’s just one of those British words that sounds so British to someone who is still getting used to the accent. And update: yes I’m still getting used to the accent even towards the end of the semester. They never fail to surprise me. 

I’ve tried my best to ask as many people as possible if these are their definitions of these words, but it does vary from person to person, so I can’t promise you everyone will think these are the correct meanings. I hope you found at least a few of these words and phrases interesting. If I come back with a new vocabulary, now you’ll know why!

Much love, 

Olivia Bird

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

My personal experience with what I would consider the Scottish “Uni-Style”.

Now that I’ve been in Scotland for many months, I feel like I can finally say that I have a good idea of what the “Uni-Style” actually is. AKA the trends for college students in Aberdeen, Scotland. Of course, this can only really be relevant to the specific university where I am currently, however I do think some aspects of style are applicable all around the UK. 

My first week here I noticed a lot of things. We hadn’t started classes yet, but there were plenty of people walking around campus. Most of them were international students, so I couldn’t really gauge what the “style” in question would be, but there were aspects of international fashion that I found applied to the UK as well. As it so happens though, most of the international students I meet here (who are not Canadian or American) are from Europe, so there may be a correlation between UK fashion and just general European fashion. 

#1 – Tote Bags

Tote bags seem to be the most noticeable difference between the UK and US. I know that it varies by university in the US, but many people opt for a backpack rather than a tote bag. OU in particular, has what I would consider as majority backpacks and few tote bags. In Aberdeen, the tote bags are a fashion staple. Oftentimes I see girls with a tote bag, and guys with a satchel, rather than backpacks. However–I do still see backpacks. Backpacks aren’t unicorn status, but the vast majority of people do go for a tote bag. I do feel like I should note that these are quality tote bags. I see so many in stores and they have much more of a variety than I’m used to. The one most common is the Longchamp style (I don’t think they are actually Longchamps though).  

#2 – Trench Coat

To me, the idea of even wearing a coat most of the time is new. Oklahoma has temperatures that really only require a fleece or a light jacket (if anything) in the winter, so being in Aberdeen where the temperatures are quite a lot colder, I see a lot of coats which is a new experience for sure. Even in the Spring, it still can be in the 40s temperature-wise. One thing that really strikes me though is that even with the rainy and windy weather, the coats worn are “fashionable”. The students who I think have style (which is subjective I know) seem to brave the weather in a trench coat rather than a puffer. I’ll talk about the puffer below, but them choosing trench coats is incredibly interesting to me. If I had to guess, I’d say that most people here have both a puffer and a fashion-coat which is probably a trench. They’re not all the same kind, but rain or shine, the trenches are out. 

#3 – Black Puffer

This is honestly the biggest one on this list. Everyone and their whole family owns a black puffer jacket. They love their puffers here. The temperature makes it so that a black puffer fits the weather at any given moment. And since it may rain spontaneously, the fact that they’re waterproof makes it easy to stay dry. I see puffers of all lengths, on everyone. I seriously went to a football/soccer game recently and the entire stadium looked like ants in their black puffers. I did totally cave and get myself one early into the semester becuase I realized they’re actually very practical. (This has trained me to be really good at spotting my friends’ specific puffers too.)

#4 – Boots

Another thing to do with the weather I think is wearing boots. I see a lot of girls specifically who wear tall fashion-esque boots to class (not hiking boots is what I mean by that). This isn’t me saying that there aren’t any other shoes, because there are probably the same variety of shoes as there are at OU, it’s just an observation that boots are more popular. I think the biggest difference in the attire here and the attire at OU is how the weather will make you dress. In Oklahoma I’d be a lot more likely to see people in sandals in the fall or spring than I would here in Aberdeen. But the vice versa is true where I think it would be more likely to see people in boots in the summer here in Aberdeen than in the summer in Oklahoma. 

Those are my top four observations in what I would consider the “Uni Style” here in Aberdeen. Of course, this doesn’t cover the entirety of Scotland, let alone the UK. It may be very local to Aberdeen but it’s still one factor of culture I find very interesting!

That’s all!

Much love, 

Olivia Bird