News release

Online Exhibit Showcases Gaelic Heritage

Tourism, Culture and Heritage (Dec. 2003 - Jan. 2011)

Visitors to the Nova Scotia Archives' website can explore the province's rich Gaelic heritage using a new virtual exhibit.

Gaelic Resources: Goireasan Gàidhlig features selections of photographs, documentary art, music sheets and textual documents that show various aspects of the province's Gaelic history. Additional published sources and textual records give examples of the Gaelic language, and the struggle to preserve it in Nova Scotia.

"Gaelic culture forms an important part of Nova Scotia's heritage," said Rodney MacDonald, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. "It is important to find creative ways to preserve and promote this culture for future generations. This new online resource does just that."

Nova Scotia Archives has preserved a significant amount of archival records that document the province's rich Gaelic roots. Among those records are the Maclean-Sinclair family papers, acquired in 1953, and described then as the finest collection of original Gaelic material in Canada.

Other major sources for Gaelic research available at the Nova Scotia Archives include the Helen Creighton Collection, with its emphasis on folk heritage and music, and Cape Breton's Magazine, a late 20th century collection of documents, folklore, music and oral history.

The launch of this virtual exhibit coincides with activities taking place at the Highland Village Museum in Iona, Victoria Co., during Museum Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, June 11 and 12. The museum will offer a variety of indoor and outdoor activities that celebrate Gaelic culture. Like the Highland Village, the archives' virtual exhibit reminds visitors and researchers about the significance of Gaelic heritage.

Gaelic Resources: Goireasan Gàidhlig is available on the archives' website at www.gov.ns.ca/nsarm/virtual/gaelic