ULSTER-SCOTS
RESEARCH
CENTRE

Where does Ulster-Scots come from?

Ulster-Scots speech is mainly descended from that of settlers who arrived in NE Ireland from the Scottish Lowlands from the 16th century onwards. It also contains influences from Mid-Ulster English (itself based on a number of English and Scottish dialects), many of which have long since died out in Standard English, and also from various dialects of Gaelic spoken in Ulster over the past few centuries. Most Ulster-Scots speakers refer to their own tongue as 'Tha Braid' ('The Broad') or simply 'Scotch' ('Scottish').

Is Ulster-Scots really a language?
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