Gaels were a pastoral people organised in a clan system. The Gaelic aristocracy, and the common people, shared a rich and varied literature and oral tradition. Social, religious and economic pressures encouraged many Gaels to seek opportunities in a new land. Between 1773 and the mid-nineteenth century, tens of thousands of Gaels emigrated to Eastern Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island. Communities were formed based on kinship, religion and source of geographic origin.

Settlement of Cape Breton Island and Eastern Nova Scotia from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland occurred in patterns resulting from chain-emigration. Generally, those who lived together as a community in Scotland continue to live together in a new community in Nova Scotia. Communities were formed based on kinship, religion and family connections. Often a family member would travel in advance and select an area rich in resources or with strong physical similarities to his homeland. The Gaels’ preference for close-knit communities is reflected in the Island’s “Scottish” districts where the Gaelic dialects of Lewis and Harris, Barra, Lochaber, and North Uist remain easily distinguished.


Gaelic language and customs can be experienced in Nova Scotia to the present, having been passed on for up to eight generations.

Highland Village Museum /
An Clachan Gàidhealach
4119 Highway 223
Iona, NS,B2C 1A3

Phone:
(902) 725-2272
1-866-4GAELIC
(1-866-442-3542)
FAX:
(902) 725-2227
gov.ns.ca

  Jimmy MacKay While growing up in Kingsville, Cape Breton, the late Jimmy MacKay experienced the best of what Gaelic Cape Breton had to offer. He was steeped in the language, beliefs and customs of his people. In 1987, Jimmy contributed this exemplary account to Jim Watson and Ellison Robertson’s publication, Sealladh gu Taobh: Oral Tradition and Reminiscence By Cape Breton Gaels. This story can be accessed in both a Gaelic and an English version.

The Gaelic World of Jimmy MacKay - Gaelic Version

The Gaelic World of Jimmy MacKay - English Version

Sealladh gu Taobh: Oral Tradition and Reminiscence By Cape Breton Gaels was edited by James Waston and Eillison Robertson, published by UCCB Press & the UCCB Art Gallery, 1987. ISBN #0-920336-05-1. Jimmy MacKay's piece handwritten by himself and transcribed and edited by Jim Watson. Used with permission.