Gathering of the Clans

Press, 29 April 1981, Page 21

Gathering of the Clans

By

PAUL WALLACE,

Features International

They have names like Gallozi, Dubois, Freitag and Dubinski. They live as far afield as Alaska" and the South Seas. They earn a living camel-trading, pearl-fishing or rubber-planting. But every one is a Scotsman at heart — and they’ll be coming home in their thousands soon for the biggest Scottish reunion ever planned — the International Gathering of the Clans. To be held in Edinburgh on May 23, the gathering is expected to attract at least 10,000 Scotsmen from abroad — many of whom have never actually been to their native country. Many, say the organisers, are coming mainly to inquire about their ancestors and learn the history of the clans to which they belong. Some are even determined to learn how to play the bagpipes. “We’re expecting visitors from practically every place in the world, from Andorra to Zimbabwe,” says the organiser, Mr James Adam, “The response has been overwhelming.” For a fortnight, Scottish exiles will be swapping the business suits of New York and Tokyo for the ancestral kilt, the Australian bush-hat for the Tam o’ Shanter, and the briefcases of inter-

national trade for the traditional sporran. The Highland reels, ceilidhs and haggis dinners will ring to the unfamiliar accents of Belgrade, Rio de Janeiro, San Francisco and Vancouver. “From the letters I receive every day, it is obvious that many of the visitors will be here for the first time, and they will be coming with an idealised view of Scotland,” says Mr Adam. “I only hope they are not disappointed when they see the real thing!” But every effort is being made to ensure that the expatriates feel at home in the land of their forefathers. The three main banks in Scotland have put up money to support the Gathering, and the Scottish Tourist Board is laying on exhibitions and entertainments.

A lot of time and energy has gone into a scheme intended to satisfy overseas visitors’ curiosity about the origins of their families. A special Clan Society

Club in Edinburgh will have the history of all the clans -— from the’famous names like Gordon and MacDonald to the smaller clans of Skene. Cumin, Maclvor and Lamond.

Edinburgh travel agents have been busy arranging clan tours, taking in all the family landmarks and battlefields. “We know that overseas people of Scottish origin are terrifically keen to find out all they can about their clans and they will be given every assistance to collect historical material,” says a Tourist Board spokesman. In addition, the clans themselves are arranging a series of social functions in their homelands. They will also be getting together for some joint celebrations, including a rally of 600 fiddlers in Edinburgh. . Mr Adam, who is executive director of the Scottish International Gathering Trust, admits to being astonished at the response the

event has attracted. “Many of the people who have expressed an interest in coming to the Gathering from their homes abroad may be only one-eighth or one-sixteenth Scottish, in terms of their ancestry,” he says. "But that Scottish portion of their blood is more important to them than all the rest. They feel Scottish! “They are proud of their links with a people who have always had solid values and principles. The Scot is a man of independent mind. He has always treasured and guarded the value of the individual spirit.” He says the strain of independence runs through Scottish blood back to the days before recorded history. But whatever the explanation, this International Gathering of the Clans will prove that people with Scottish family links do feel a strong pull from the land of their forebears. The Scottish Tourist Board feels that the visitors will bring positive benefits to their homeland — as well as useful foreign currency. “We find that Scots abroad often have a keener sense of Scottish traditions than many people still living here!” says the board's spokesman.