In this talk Professor Dunbar will examine the history of Scottish Gaelic in America as well as the contributions of Americans to Gaelic culture and scholarship. Professor Dunbar shows that there are longstanding Gaelic-language links between the United States, Canada, and Scotland. Gaelic speakers helped shape the history of colonial British America and the early United States, and an interest in Gaelic culture has deep roots in the country. As a consequence of those roots, he shows that Americans have played key roles in the preservation and study of Gaelic culture, both in the United States and in Canada and Scotland. At the end of the talk Professor Dunbar will be pleased to take questions from the audience.

A native of Canada, Rob Dunbar holds the Chair of Celtic at the University of Edinburgh. Educated as a lawyer before pursuing an academic career, he was educated at the University of Toronto, York University (Canada), the London School of Economics, and the University of Edinburgh. Professor Dunbar has taught at the universities of Aberdeen, Glasgow, and the Highlands and Islands as well as Edinburgh. He has worked with international organisations such as the Council of Europe, and the OSCE, as well as national and sub-national governments, including the National Assembly for Wales, and governmental and non-governmental organisations, on issues broadly relating to the maintenance and revitalisation of minority languages and the protection of their speakers. He was involved in the development of the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005 and the creation of BBC Alba, Scotland's Gaelic digital television service. His research interests include Gaelic language and culture in Canada and the United States.

The event will take place on Zoom Webinar and you will receive a link via Eventbrite to watch the live event in due course. This event will take place at the following times dependent on the time zone:

BST: 19:00

EST: 14:00

CST: 13:00

MST: 12:00

PST: 11:00

PLEASE NOTE:

This event may be recorded for promotional or recruitment materials for the University and University approved third parties. If you do not want to be in the recordings please contact the organiser at protocol.office@ed.ac.uk. Any written questions or comments may be subject to Freedom of Information legislation.

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Celebrating Scotland Week - Scottish Gaelic and America: Two-way Traffic