Oral History Training

Comunn Eachdraidh Nis has been SCA’s Year in the Life 2025/26 project, following the work of a community archive through a series of monthly blogs on the SCA website. This workshop has grown from conversations around the important Gaelic oral history collections held at Nis, including how to care for digital recordings, preserve them for the future, and continue building the collection through new interviews and community participation. Many Comainn Eachdraidh hold equally important oral history collections within their own communities, and by sharing knowledge, collaborating, and learning from one another, we can help strengthen and safeguard Gaelic heritage for future generations.

Please note, the workshop is primarily in Gaelic, therefore the ability to follow and participate in conversation is required. Text and other materials used will be in Gaelic and English. Handouts will be available in both languages. Registration opens at 9.30am, with lunch provided during the day. There will also be opportunities to ask questions, share experiences, and network with others interested in oral history and community heritage work.

Workshop Content

First-hand accounts shape our conception of history, yet without effort and care they are too easily lost. Recording oral history is a uniquely valuable way of preserving and making accessible the memories of individuals and communities.

The workshop will cover everything needed to confidently plan and deliver an oral history project. We will grow familiar with a step by step guide to setting up a project, based on models of best practice. Ethics and data protection requirements will be demystified to become a safeguard that is built in to all aspects of our work. We will also undertake practical training on both the interview process and archiving the recorded material.

What You Will Gain from attending the Workshop

• Learn how to confidently plan and run an oral history project within your Comann Eachdraidh.
• Gain practical interviewing skills to help record and preserve community memories and stories
• Understand simple best practice for storing, organising, and archiving recordings
• Learn about ethics and data protection in a clear and practical way
• Meet and network with volunteers involved in Comainn Eachdraidh heritage projects.

Only two people from an organisation can attend.

The session will take place in the Learning Room, Museum nan Eilean

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Trainer bio

Euan MacLeod has experience in both community and heritage sectors, including two years as Oifigear Dualchais (Heritage Officer) at Museum nan Eilean in Stornoway. He has worked on oral history projects in Gaelic communities across Scotland. Euan completed a BA in Cànan is Cultar (Gaelic Language and Culture) with Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, University of the Highlands and Islands. He is currently researching Gaelic material culture as a PhD student, as part of a collaborative project between SMO and National Museums Scotland. Euan lives in Shawbost.