Scots Translator

About Scots

Scots belongs to the West Germanic branch of the Indo-European family and is spoken mainly in Scotland, with smaller communities in parts of Northern Ireland and the wider Scottish diaspora. Estimates vary widely, but it is often described as having around 1.5 million speakers or people with some ability in the language. It is written with the Latin alphabet, using conventions that overlap with English but also preserve distinct Scots spellings and vocabulary.

A distinctive feature of Scots is its close relationship to English combined with systematic differences in sound, grammar, and lexis, including forms such as bairn for “child” and ken for “know.” It developed from the northern variety of early Middle English and became an important written language of government and literature in late medieval and early modern Scotland. The poet Robert Burns is especially closely associated with literary Scots, and his work remains one of its best-known cultural touchstones.