Tobar an Dualchais
The Sound of Scotland's Traditions
Tobar an Dualchais/Kist o Riches is Scotland’s online resource dedicated to the presentation and promotion of audio recordings of Scotland’s cultural heritage. Its principal content is songs, music, history, poetry, traditions and stories, recorded from the 1930s onwards. The website contains material from three archives: The School of Scottish Studies, The Canna Collection and BBC Radio nan Gàidheal and there are recordings in Gaelic, Scots and English. Tobar an Dualchais/Kist o Riches’ principal aim is to ensure that Scotland’s rich oral heritage is safeguarded and made widely available for present and future generations.
The People Behind the Collections
The recordings on this website would not exist without the willingness of thousands of individuals to extol their local knowledge and share their oral traditions. They would also not be available without those pioneers who travelled the length and breadth of Scotland, and beyond, to record them. Many of the earlier recordings were made in people’s homes, with fieldworkers often carrying heavy recording equipment to reach them. We have selected some of the most noteworthy people associated with the collections so you can learn a bit more about their lives as well as listening to their recordings. We will be adding more profiles each month so please remember to re-visit these pages.
Projects & other Information
Alongside our work developing the website, we often work in collaboration with other organisations and individuals to develop projects, events, and courses for the benefit of the wider user community. Some examples of these projects are given below.
Gaelic Resources for Schools
Gaelic Resources for Schools
Tobar an Dualchais has created a range of Gaelic-medium resources for educators at pre-school, primary and secondary levels. These resources will assist in making the wonderful range of material on the website more easily accessible to teachers and students. We recognise the importance of young Gaelic speakers being able to connect with the rich cultural heritage associated with the language and the website is an excellent resource to enable this. Other resources will be added to the Schools section as they are developed.
Latest Blog Posts
Celebrating Gaelic Poet with Close Ties to Inverness
An event celebrating the life of the Gaelic poet Mary MacPherson will take place on Saturday 1st March at Eden Court in Inverness as part of Seachdain na Gàidhlig 2025 (World Gaelic Week). Mary was a renowned 19th-century Gaelic bard who was known as ‘Màiri Mhòr nan Òran’ (Big Mary of the Songs). This free event is open to everyone and is being organised by Tobar an Dualchais (TAD) and Cultarlann Inbhir Nis (the Gaelic Cultural Centre in Inverness), in collaboration with An Comunn Gàidhealach (organisers of the Royal National Mòd), who are hosting a conference on the same day, also as part of World Gaelic Week.
The National Trust for Scotland calls artists to create a piece of work celebrating Gaelic heritage and Canna House
The National Trust for Scotland is looking for an experienced creative practitioner to make an original piece of work celebrating the opening of Canna House. The piece must highlight content from the Gaelic archive and the casting call is open to all creatives with an interest in Gaelic culture and heritage. Monday 16 December 2024 at 10am is the deadline for expression of interest .
In Search of Food/Sgrìob Acrach tro Thobar an Dualchais
Jo MacDonald is a freelance researcher, translator, broadcaster and writer, now living in Camuscross, Skye. Here she looks at how food is represented in Gaelic song, illustrated with some wonderful examples from Tobar an Dualchais.