Burns Night is celebrated for the celebrated poet Robert Burns and his contribution to Scottish culture. On the 25th of January, the people of Scotland hold supper and poetry recitations written by the poet.
They prepare a dish called Haggis, a sausage made from sheep’s belly. The ritual is to read the poetry on that dish written by Burns before proceeding to eat. Formal traditional dinners are held every year at Burns Club as well as hosted by the Freemasons.
After Robert Burns died of ill health in 1796, a group of nine friends and patrons got together to celebrate his life on his birthday in 1801. The event was held in Burns’ family home, Burns Cottage in Alloway, and even two centuries ago the Supper’s familiar checklist was already taking shape.
‘The organizer, Rev’d Hamilton Paul, kept notes of the occasion and it is surprisingly similar to what we do today,’ says Dr. Clark McGinn, writer of The Ultimate Burns Supper Book, ‘with a haggis being “addressed” and eaten, a toast to Burns’ memory and a number of Burns’ own poems and songs.’
Aside from the group serving toasted sheep’s head with the haggis, the celebration was already recognizable as Burns Night in its current form. One year later, loosely organized Burns Clubs were already springing up in Paisley and Greenock.
‘In the early 1800s there were clubs for everything,’ McGinn tells us. ‘Some were formal, with a written constitution, membership fees and a president’s chain of office, while others could be as informal as the regulars in a pub.
The first Burns Clubs fitted that mold.’ Today, that tradition continues. On Burns’ birthday, 25 January, societies, clubs, and groups of friends hold Burns Suppers across the world, to celebrate the life and times of Scotland’s national poet.
‘Over 1,000 Burns clubs and societies exist around the world,’ says John McCheyne, brand ambassador for the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. ‘No other poet is celebrated in this way.’ The tradition of honoring Burns didn’t stay in Scotland for long.
As Scots traveled the world as part of the British Empire, they brought their idiosyncrasies with them. Gradually the event became a celebration of the trappings of Scottish culture, namely a role in the ceremony for the bagpipes, kilted dress, and of course, plenty of whiskies.
‘Robert Burns is probably the reason why whisky is Scotland’s national drink,’ McCheyne says. ‘Like “Freedom and Whisky gang the gather,” some of his most famous sayings revolve around Scotch.’
From his ode to the distillation process in John Barleycorn to his rage against taxation in The Author’s Earnest Cry And Prayer, an amber vein runs through Burns’ work, tracing a love of whisky throughout his life.
Although Burns’ predilection to excess is not quite an example to be followed, to pour a dram for the traditional toasts is part and parcel of the Burns experience.
