Festival celebrates Scotland’s Gaelic heritage

Stories, songs and poetry are part of a packed programme of events showcasing Gaelic language and culture across Edinburgh.

Festival goers at a pop-up event at Edinburgh Gaelic Week 2024
A pop-up Gaelic Centre event at Edinburgh Gaelic Week 2024

Leugh seo sa Ghàidhlig

Gaelic Week Edinburgh – Seachdain Gàidhlig Dhùn Èideann – will take place at venues across the city from Monday 24 February to Sunday 2 March.

From creative writing workshops to choir singing, the week-long programme will deliver an enticing series of events to immerse people across the Scottish capital in Gaelic culture. 

The festival is a collaboration between the University and City of Edinburgh Council and is held in conjunction with World Gaelic Week, an international celebration promoting Scottish Gaelic across the globe.

Festival programme

Gaelic enthusiasts will have various opportunities to celebrate Gaelic’s unique language, art and culture.

Among the events being delivered by the University of Edinburgh’s community is a Gaelic poetry translation workshop on Monday 24 February.

The University’s Gaelic Writer in Residence, Niall O’ Gallagher, and writers Garry Mackenzie and Taylor Strickland will discuss the methods they use to translate Gaelic poetry and how this interacts with other languages. 

Later in the week, festival goers can explore Gaelic oral traditions, from the 18th century to present day, at a presentation of handwritten manuscripts and audio recordings within the University’s collections. 

Elsewhere in the city, the National Library of Scotland will host a Gaelic Family History online talk covering its collection of family history resources relating to ancestors from the Highlands and Islands. 

View the full events programme on the Edinburgh Gaelic Week website:

Edinburgh Gaelic Week programme 2025

Gaelic connections

The University of Edinburgh has a long history of supporting the Gaelic language and culture and established the first Chair of Celtic in Scotland in 1882.

Gaelic Week Edinburgh was established by the University in 2014 to celebrate the Gaelic community in the city, past and present. 

The festival has been running in collaboration with the City of Edinburgh Council since 2015. 

We’re delighted to be supporting Edinburgh’s Gaelic Week; there is a packed programme with events for people for all ages to take part in and celebrate the language. The Capital Gaelic project has given us, alongside other organisations, the opportunity to raise the visibility of the language in the city.

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2025