The Celtic languages of Scotland can be divided into two groups: Goidelic (or Gaelic) and Brittonic (or Brythonic). Pictish is usually seen as a Brittonic language but this is not universally accepted. They are known collectively … See more

Latin is also used to a limited degree in certain official mottos, for example Nemo Me Impune Lacessit, legal terminology (Ultimus haeres and … See more

Language vs dialect
There are no universally accepted criteria for distinguishing languages from dialects, although a number of paradigms exist, which render … See more

• The Romani language (Indo-Aryan) has also been spoken in Scotland, but became more or less extinct in the country during the 20th century. It has lent Scotland's other languages a number of loanwords, and has also had an effect on the Gaelic of the travelling … See more

Two West Germanic languages in the Anglic group are spoken in Scotland today; Scots, and Scottish English, a dialect of the English language. The Norn language, a North Germanic language, is now extinct.
The Northumbrian dialect of the Old English language was … See more

Scotland's deaf community tends to use British Sign Language. There are a few signs used in Scotland which are unique to the country, as well as variations in some signs from Dundee to Glasgow (similar to accents). Most deaf people in Scotland are educated in … See more

Diagrammatic representation of the development of the historic Indo-European languages of Scotland: See more