Language. There are two official languages in Scotland, Scots (also known as Lallans or Lowland Scots) and Scots Gaelic

There are two official languages in Scotland, Scots (also known as Lallans or Lowland Scots) and Scots Gaelic, in addition to the de facto language, English, which does not have official status .

Almost all residents of Scotland speak English, although many speak various Scots dialects which differ markedly from Standard English. Some 1.5 million are believed to speak Lallans to some extent, again with a range of dialects and ap­proximately 2 % of the population use Scots Gaelic as their language of every-day use, primarily in the northern and western regions of the country.

Linguists usually split Lallans into 5 distinct dialects, North, Central, South, Island and Ulster. The core and their variations is called the Older Scottish Tongue and the Oxford University Press spent 65 years (1937-2002) producing the definitive dictionary for the language in 12 volumes right after the project started in 1919.

Scots (or Lallans meaning lowlands) is a Germanic language used in lowland and central Scotland, and parts of Northern Ireland and border areas of the Re­public of Ireland, where it is known as Ulster Scots or Ullans. On the whole, Scots descends from a form of Anglo-Saxon with influence from the Vikings, Dutch and Flemish. Scots also has loan words resulting from contact with Gaelic.

Nowhere throughout the education system is the objective to produce people able to read, write, and speak Scots as an auton­omous alternative to English. The use of Scots in the media is scant and is usually reserved for niches where local dialect is deemed acceptable e.g. comedy, Burns Night, or representations of traditions and times gone by. Serious use for the likes of news, encyclopaedias, documen­taries etc. rarely occurs in Scots, although the Scottish Parliament website offers some infor­mation in Scots.

Scottish Gaelic, is a member of one branch of Celtic languages. The branch in­cludes Scottish Gaelic, Irish and Manx, and is distinct from the other branch, which includes Welsh, Cornish, and Breton.

Gaelic is the traditional language of the Gaels, the Celtic ethnic group now mainly in the Scottish Highlands, and the historical language of most of Scotland.

Scottish Gaelic occupies a special place in Scottish culture, and is recognised by many Scots, regardless of whether they speak Gaelic, as being a priceless part of the nation's culture, though others may view it primarily as a regional language. Gaelic has a rich oral tradition, having been the language of the bardic culture of the Highland clans for several centuries. The language suffered as the Highlanders and their traditions were persecuted, especially after the Highland Clearances, but despite lingering prejudices, the language is now achieving greater cultural and official recognition.