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Celebrating 50 years of Scottish Literature

Scottish Literature at UofG is the only academic unit in the world dedicated entirely to the study of Scotland’s literary tradition. This year we celebrate its 50th anniversary.

Much has changed in the 50 years since Scottish Literature was established by the poet and academic Alexander Scott (1920–1989).

The department of Scottish History & Literature was established in 1913, but teaching tended to focus on history. In session 1971–72, Scott ushered in a literary curriculum, distinct from history, which included works by Sir Walter Scott and James Hogg through to writers of the 20th-century “Scots literary Renaissance” and contemporary poetry.

Although the literary texts brought in by Scott represented a significantly fresh perspective, there were no women writers represented on the reading list back then. A half-century later, by contrast, students study a range of women writers, including recent Makars Liz Lochhead, Jackie Kay and Kathleen Jamie, as part of a wide-ranging curriculum that represents the rich diversity of Scottish literature and culture. “Scottish Literature deserves to be recognised as a world literature in its own right, and my predecessors and colleagues at Glasgow have done much to promote the subject as an autonomous area of research and teaching while also raising its international profile,” says Dr Ronnie Young, a lecturer in Scottish Literature.

Although looking back at a long literary tradition that has roots in the medieval period, Scottish Literature at Glasgow has in its short history been a forward-thinking subject area. It is a pioneer in online learning, for example, and is now beginning to explore the potential of virtual reality for teaching through its partnership with immersive learning platform Edify.

Dr Pauline Mackay is Head of Scottish Literature: “Scottish Literature at Glasgow is a centre for world-class scholarship, has consistently excellent reviews for its teaching and attracts major external research income.

“Our commitment to cutting-edge research and teaching, through the production of major publications and associated digital resources, the development of online courses, and work-based learning initiatives with our external collaborators, has ensured that the subject area is as vibrant as the literature upon which it is founded. We look forward to the next 50 years!”

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