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Savannah Valentine
Professor Lynn Raymond
UWRT 1103-015 (Revision)
October 7, 2015
Bagpipes, Kilts, and Valentine?
Throughout my research into my family tree, I have become rather interested in learning
about my familys origin and background. Specifically, I began by asking my parents, and
grandparents, about any family facts or history tucked away in their memory; shockingly, my
family remained terrifyingly silent. With that being said, it was up to me to research interesting
facts about my ancestors; I began this process by looking at a surname database which stated that
my last name, Valentine, is of Scottish origin (Last Name: Valentine).
Although the birth of Scotland is noted to have taken place around ten thousand BC, the
earliest recording of activity in the land dates back to the Roman Empire. However, the history
of Scotland truly began to take shape upon the arrival of the Vikings and the Picts. In eight
hundred AD, these settlers simultaneously began to establish their homes in the west and in the
east, but the Picts proved to be more successful. With the organization of the Kingdom of Alba,
the notorious Macbeth, a member of the significant Picts, ruled Scotland for seventeen years
until his death in 1057 AD. After Macbeths death, Scotland was governed by various kings and
queens, and following several decades, the age of enlightenment began to mold the country into
what it is today (Scottish History).
Scotland is home to nearly 5.2 million people known as the Scots. Among these people,
the most commonly spoken language is English, but the language differs according to a regions
dialect (Culture of Scotland). However, besides speaking ambiguously, the Scottish people are

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all unified by the same blue-and-white flag. As one of the oldest used flags in history, the
Scottish flag was approved as the nations flag in 1388, but was not flown until 1512. The flag is
represented by a white Saltire, or St. Andrews cross, on a blue background. Throughout the
years, the flag has undergone several revisions due to variances in the shade of blue, but a
standardized color was chosen in 2003. Since then, the flag has been used to decorate public
buildings and to enhance traditions such as the sixty Highland Games (Koranki). As a mixture of
a plethora of Scottish aspects, the Highland Games is surely an event I am interested in learning
more about in further research.

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Works Cited
"Culture of Scotland." Anthem Culture. Global Media Lifetime Company,
n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2015.
Koranki, Susan. "The Flag of Scotland." Www.scottish-at-heart.com.
MyWay, 2010. Web. 07 Oct. 2015"
Last Name: Valentine." Surname Database. Name Origin Research, n.d.
Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
<https://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Valentine

"Scottish History." Scotland.org. Crown, n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2015.