National Anthem of Scotland
Flower of Scotland (de facto)
Proposed National Anthems
Highland Cathedral
A Man's A Man for A' That
Scotland the Brave
Scots Wha Hae
National anthem of  Scotland

There is no agreed national anthem of Scotland, however, the British national anthem "God Save the King" is used in Scotland. In sporting and other significant national situations, other songs are used as de facto Scottish anthems, most notably "Flower of Scotland" and "Scotland the Brave". There have been calls for Scotland to have its own official national anthem.

In 2004, lawyers for the devolved Scottish Parliament advised that it was within the legal competence of the Scottish Parliament to choose a national anthem for Scotland, countering the suggestion that it would be a matter reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.[1] This ruling prompted some interest in the idea, and a petition to the Scottish Parliament's petitions committee supported by the Scottish Green Party was referred without recommendation to the Scottish Executive, but they decided to take no action, considering the issue not to be a political priority.[2][3] There have been subsequent attempts to re-open the debate on a national anthem for Scotland.[4]

In 2006, the Scottish Parliament Enterprise Committee denied a motion from Scottish National Party MSP Michael Matheson on the subject.[5]

Current use

At most international sporting events Scotland uses "Flower of Scotland" as its national anthem. These events include matches of the Scottish national football team, Scottish cricket team and the Scottish rugby union team.[6] The song has also been used as the victory anthem of Scotland at the Commonwealth Games since 2010, replacing "Scotland the Brave".[7]

Possible candidates

In June 2006 the Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted an online opinion poll on their website, asking visitors to choose a favourite to be Scotland's national anthem. With over 10,000 votes cast, "Flower of Scotland" came first with 41% of the votes, followed by "Scotland the Brave" with 29%.[8]

Tune Votes (%)
"Flower of Scotland" 41%
"Scotland the Brave" 29%
"Highland Cathedral" 16%
"A Man's A Man for A' That" 7%
"Scots Wha Hae" 6%

Other songs which have been suggested include Robert Burns' "Auld Lang Syne",[9] and Hamish Henderson's "Freedom Come-All-Ye".[10] Both of these songs, from the 18th and 20th centuries respectively, are written in Lowland Scots.

References

  1. ↑ Macdonell, Hamish (10 November 2004). "Scots win right to choose own national anthem". The Scotsman. Edinburgh.
  2. ↑ "Anthem demand falls on deaf ears". BBC News. 24 November 2004. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  3. ↑ "The Scottish Parliament - Public Petitions Committee Official Report". Archived from the original on 2011-06-05. Retrieved 2010-05-09.
  4. ↑ "Anthem debate call hits flat note". BBC News. 9 May 2006. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  5. ↑ "RSNO sounds out a song for Scotland", The Scotsman, 24 May 2006
  6. ↑ BBC News - McConnell calls for anthem debate
  7. ↑ "Games team picks new Scots anthem". BBC News. 9 January 2010. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  8. ↑ "RSNO poll reveals Flower of Scotland as nation's favourite 'anthem'". Royal Scottish National Orchestra. Archived from the original on 2009-02-15.
  9. ↑ Dalgarno, Paul (2 July 2006). "Nation picks Flower Of Scotland as top anthem SONG CONTEST: OLD". The Sunday Herald.
  10. ↑ English, Shirley (30 October 2003). "It may be a dirge but its still our anthem say Scottish MPs". The Times. London. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
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