A thistle wrapped in maple leaves

Archived Material - May 2007 Alex Salmond was elected as First Minister

Scotland's historical links with Canada were brought to life in 2004 with the well-attended "Trailblazers" exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland, and in the spring of the same year, the publication of Jenni Calder's Scots in Canada book further examined the extent of the close relationship between Scotland and Canada.

But did you know just how varied and strong Scotland's cultural, educational and business links are with Canada today?

A home from home

To set the scene, there have been times when Canada was regarded as almost an extension of Scotland. And it's not hard to see why when you realise just how many Scottish place names and family names are to be found throughout Canada; and how many towns, rivers and mountains have been named in honour of Scottish explorers, traders and adventurers, from Mackenzie Bay and Calgary to Nova Scotia (New Scotland) itself, where the first Highlanders arrived at Pictou on the ship "Hector" in 1773.

Elsewhere, Upper Canada's first major Scottish settlement was Glengarry, established in 1784 by Highlanders from Inverness-shire. Growing numbers of emigrants sought opportunities in the new lands of Upper Canada. Their sense of pride in the nation they had left, coupled with a strong sense of cultural identity, led to the early settlers establishing firmly rooted Scottish traditions across the future province of Ontario.

The early Scots left an indelible mark on Canada. Among the most celebrated were Glasgow-born John A Macdonald, Canada's first Prime Minister; Alexander Mackenzie, the first man to find a route from the east to the west coast; entrepreneurs like Donald Alexander Smith from Forres, the driving force behind The Canadian Pacific Railway, linking Montreal with Vancouver, the Atlantic with the Pacific; Lanark-born James Douglas, the ‘Father of BC', who helped develop a remote trading post on Vancouver Island into the province of British Columbia; and Robert Dunsmuir, an Ayrshire coal miner eventually charged with building the Vancouver Island rail link, making him British Columbia's first millionaire.

Less well known, but no less extraordinary were the Scots cattlemen and drovers who turned cowboys; cattle barons like Murdo MacKenzie and John Clay who had a hand in firms such as the Prairie Land & Cattle Company, based in Edinburgh, and the Matador Land and Cattle Company, based in Dundee.

There were others too, though more famous for recording history than making it. Scots like Dollar-born James Anderson, ‘The Bard of Barkerville', and Robert Service, sometimes regarded as Canada's national poet, who together captured the spirit, characters and legends of the Gold Rush.

As well as their impact on the business world, the early day Scots helped shape both the physical and political landscapes of Canada.

For example, the city of Guelph was founded in 1827 by the Scottish novelist John Galt. Tradition tells that Galt, or one of his companions, laid his outstretched hand on a tree stump and predicted that the streets of the new town would radiate from a central point such as his fingers radiated from his palm. The layout of downtown Guelph does indeed resemble such a design.

And, in the world of politics, the first two Canadian Prime Ministers, John A MacDonald and Alexander McKenzie, were both native born Scots and MacDonald was generally recognised as the new nation's principal founder. Indeed, despite their minority status, since the confederation of 1867, eight men and one woman of Scottish ancestry have been elected Prime Minister of Canada.

This ancestral legacy of the early Scottish emigrants on the development of Canada meant that before 1971, Canadians of Scottish descent were listed as a separate category from the British. In the 1960's, they were the third largest ethnic group in the country, after the English and French.

Flying the flag

Today, the enormous contribution that these, and other, Scots made to the development of Canada is being studied at several universities across Canada.

In the west, the Centre for Scottish Studies at Simon Fraser University (SFU), was itself named after the Scottish explorer/fur trader who opened up the west of Canada.

Founded in 1999, the Centre provides a focal point for anyone interested in exploring Scottish history and culture as well as the impact of Scots on other cultures and nations, especially Canada. It encourages the inclusion of Scottish themes and subject matter in academic courses, sponsors major conferences, supports a visiting speaker programme and works closely with individuals and groups in the community. It is also working towards the establishment of a credit programme in Scottish Studies and, ultimately, a Chair in Scottish Studies at the university. This will complement other well-established academic programmes in Scottish or Celtic Studies at several universities in eastern Canada.

The internationally renowned SFU Pipe Band leads a parade in honour of Scotland's national bard every 25 January. Burns, as you would expect, has no shortage of Canadian devotees. Chief among them is the Vancouver Burns Fellowship, which was instrumental in erecting a statue of their hero in Stanley Park, a statue cast from the original moulds used for the Burns statue in Ayr. A great bringer-together-of-men, it's fitting that Burns is involved in Vancouver's Chinese New Year celebrations. Each year, Gung Haggis Fat Choy sees Chinese men donning kilts and Scots tucking into haggis wonton.

Meanwhile in the east of Canada, the Scottish studies programme at the University of Guelph is the largest of its kind in North America, and benefits from funds from the Scottish Studies Society and the Scottish Studies Foundation.

The Scottish Studies Foundation itself is a charitable organisation dedicated to the study of Scottish and Scottish-Canadian culture and heritage through active support of the University of Guelph's Scottish studies programme. The foundation's support has allowed the University of Guelph to create North America's first Chair in Scottish studies.

The impressive library at the University of Guelph contains one of the largest collections of Scottish material outside Scotland, including both printed materials on Scottish and Scottish-Canadian topics as well as a large amount of manuscript source material in the form of letters and business documents.

Also in the east, situated in the heart of the earliest Scottish settlement of Baddeck in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, the Gaelic College was founded in 1938 by Rev A.W.R. MacKenzie and began as a school of Gaelic language, Celtic arts and culture in a small log cabin overlooking St. Ann's Bay.

Nowadays, the College has gained an international reputation for its contribution to the maintenance and preservation of the Gaelic language and culture. The only institution of its kind in North America, students learn fiddling, bagpiping, Gaelic and Highland Dancing, and summer festivals attract people of all backgrounds.

Baddeck is also home to the Alexander Graham Bell National Historical Site which currently houses the world's largest collection of artefacts and archives belonging to the Edinburgh-born inventor, widely regarded as one of the most important figures of the 19th century.

Bell's family decided to emigrate to Canada after Alexander's two brothers died of tuberculosis. The Baddeck estate, where Bell settled in his later years, was a source of great inspiration for Bell and many of his discoveries took place there.

Trading transatlantically

Scotland and Canada already have strong and growing business links, with Scottish and Canadian companies recognising the importance of trading with each other and setting up operations in each other's markets.

Well-known Canadian companies such as Alcan and Seagram already have a presence in Scotland, and have been joined in recent years by others such as Mitel, the global provider of communications services.

Voxar a Scottish medical imaging software developer is opening new business in the Canadian market; the Wood Group, one of Scotland's largest energy companies, has several offices in Canada and contracts with a Canadian counterpart; and Talisman Energy has a presence in Aberdeen.

Toronto-based Endpoint Research provides clinical research development services to pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies. The company specialises in the areas of oncology and respiratory, and opened its European Head Office in Bellshill, Scotland in 1998. This marked a significant step for the company's European expansion. The President of Endpoint Research noted that: "Scotland is the ideal base for the company given Scotland's developing biotechnology industry and graduate base".

Glasgow-based Red Kite and Canadian Amberwood Entertainment co-produced a children's animated TV series, called The Secret World of Benjamin Bear, premiered in August 2005 on the Family Channel.

And there's so much more

There are many St Andrew's and Caledonia Societies based in cities across Canada, with Burns' night on 25 January being a major highlight of the Scottish calendar for the members. However, it is not the only date marked on the calendar; Traditional Highland Games are held throughout the country, with cabers being tossed in Games as far apart as British Columbia and Nova Scotia!

In May of every second year, competitors and visitors from Scotland, the USA, and across Canada descend on Vancouver for a competitive festival of Gaelic music, drama and song. The next Mòd Vancouver is scheduled for May 2007.

The list of Scottish-Canadian links is endless. We could for instance mention Canada's thriving curling scene; the Celtic musical influence in Cape Breton and the Wild West; the Scottish contribution to Canadian literature; the herd of Ayrshire cattle at the heart of British Columbia's dairy industry or that other thing we share in common, lake monsters; Scotland may have Nessie, but British Columbia has Ogopogo.

The British Columbia region even has its own Tartan Army. Established in 1998, the Vancouver Tartan Army gather to watch the Scotland games and enjoy a few beers. Others have gone further in pursuit of the beautiful game with Canadian footballers having crossed the Atlantic in recent years to play for Hibernian, Hearts and Falkirk respectively.

Come see for yourself!

It's never been easier to discover the Canadian-Scottish connections for yourself and, each year, hundreds of thousands of travellers cross the Atlantic to experience for themselves the heritage of the past and the attractions of today offered by Scotland and Canada.

During 2004, 150,000 Canadians visited Scotland, making this the highest number of visitors since 2000. It is estimated that over 88,000 Scottish people travel to Canada each year.

In May 2004, Ottawa-based Zoom Airlines, which was founded by Scottish-born entrepreneur Hugh Boyle, began running scheduled air services between Glasgow and six Canadian airports. Whilst services operated by Canadian-Affair, Airtransat, Globespan and Air Canada all fly between other Scottish and Canadian airports.

Increasing numbers of people are making the journey to trace the origins of their Scottish and Canadian ancestors and to visit the places described in their family trees. Being an amateur or professional genealogist is now much easier with the help of various websites, such as www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk and www.ancestralscotland.com

As we hope you have discovered, the relationship between Scotland and Canada has always been as rich as it is diverse. And today, the two countries are continuing to develop this close relationship in many new areas. Long may the Thistle and the Maple Leaf continue growing together, side by side.